This isn't a review. I just read the "20 Fragments of a Ravenous Youth" by Xiaolu Guo and wanted to write something about it. My intentions are pure I just want someone else to read the book and probably like it just as I did. So I'll keep it simple, and spoiler-free. 

I found this book by accident. I was just randomly pulling books out of their shelves at the library(Before you ask I was putting them back exactly where I found them) and this small book caught my attention. It was small and had the flexibility that small paperbacks have. The book was borrowed a lot and had some mysterious-looking stains to prove it. I thought they were curry stains, but I could be wrong.

The cover is catchy but also misleading. It looks like a romance novel, but it isn't. Especially because the protagonist Fenfang doesn't believe in romance. Fenfang is originally from a farming village.  She gets fed up with farm life and moves to Beijing to get into the film industry. She believes that she'll be able to carve out a place for herself there. Even though she only gets to act as extra in the movies, she's optimistic about her chances.

Fenfang has to go through disapproving busybodies, violent exes, and giant cockroaches to keep her independence. Most of all, she doesn't get fairytale-like developments to help her with her dream. Her life is more adventurous and realistic. It's also very inspiring, not like in an optimistic "everything will work out if you work hard" sort of way, but in a subtle, realistic way. It reminds you of how your life can change and how insignificant things become after a while. Maybe because this is a book from the eastern part of the world, but I felt closer to it than the books I regularly read. And the ending was kind of unique too. I'm not going to spoil it by saying what happened. so you'll have to find out by reading it.