DISORIENTATION by Elaine Hsieh Chou
- Publisher: Penguin Press, March 22nd 2022
- Genre: Literary Fiction
- Format: eARC
- Page Count: 416 pages
Click on the cover for my review on Goodreads.
Disorientation follows a 29-year-old Taiwanese American PhD student Ingrid Yang (cishet) as she works on her dissertation on Xiao-Wen Chou, a fictional “Asian American” icon. Ingrid starts out as someone who is ignorant on the subject of racism and other social justice issues, which is the realm of her nemesis and fellow graduate student Vivian Vo (sapphic, Vietnamese American). Throughout her research, Ingrid finds substantial dirt on Xiao-Wen Chou, and it becomes the start of her journey of unlearning as well as sets off catastrophic events in Barnes University.
Chou utilizes drug hallucinations and the fictional poet to discuss Asian fetishism, yellowfacing, and brings in other themes of justice/injustice. Disorientation is satirical and delivers everything pretty heavy-handedly (like it is supposed to be in the set up of this novel). It breaks down the sometimes-difficult subject of how a person of color can be racist and that people who come across as open-minded can also be awful bigots.
Ingrid’s point of view is not a pleasant place to be in, but throughout the book, we see that she is relearning and growing. She realizes Timothy Liu (Taiwanese American) is being used as a racism shield (a person of color who makes racist comments so that white people can say “hey my Asian friend here says it, too”), her fiancé Stephen Greene who translates Japanese works and seems to date exclusively Asian women most likely has an Asian fetish, her best friend Eunice Kim (Korean American) definitely has some issues with race given that she is dating the sorry excuse of the white tech bro Thad, etc. The major plot points revolve around who Xiao-Wen Chou really is and what made him such an icon in the scope of the story.
Perhaps you also noticed the oddness in the name “Xiao-Wen Chou” the first time you saw it: “Xiao-Wen” is obviously Pinyin, but what about “Chou”? I still don’t know if there is a last name that is spelled “Chou” in Pinyin (edit: per Robert’s comment below, it is possible as 丑 and 醜 are family names). Like the author’s name, “Chou” is most commonly found as a last name that uses Wade–Giles Romanization. Anyway, that might clue you in how there is something fishy going on with the “iconic” poet.
Disorientation gave me a lot to think about, not only about race (again, yellowfacing, fetishizing Asian people and culture, etc.) but also about art—specifically, the author–reader relationship when it comes to audience and why you cannot separate the art from the artist. I’m not naming names here, but suppose an author has some terribly bigoted beliefs. Can we support their works while denouncing their beliefs? Without even considering the financial rewards the author would get through people purchasing their works, should we separate the work from the artist? Read Disorientation and you might know why we should not and cannot if you don’t already know.
Some parts of the story is told through Ingrid’s hallucinations, a side effect of her drug abuse. You don’t know what’s real and what’s not, much like a lot of things going on in the world that seems unreal to begin with. How can things turn out so awfully in Disorientation? Looking back at our real world, it is easy to see that Chou isn’t even exaggerating.
All in all, Disorientation made me angry about the world, and I recommend it.
(And if you have not heard about Yi-Fen Chou, here is an article on The New Yorker which might be spoilery for Disorientation.)
content warnings: drug abuse, physical abuse, racism, graphic sex, yellowfacing, hallucination (from drugs), eugenics, cissexism (… not challenged), emotional abuse (including gaslighting), racial microaggression, trespassing, physical assault, strangulation, r slur (somewhat challenged by Ingrid), infidelity
I received a digital review copy from Penguin Press via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.
affiliate buy links (I get a small commission at no extra cost to you): Kindle, hardcover.
For more of my reviews and other whatnots, follow my blog, Twitter, Instagram, and friend me on Goodreads.
