Bittersweet Enchantment: Book Review: Random by Charong Chow

Bittersweet Enchantment: Book Review: Random by Charong Chow: Title:  Random Author:   Charong Chow Number of Pages:  226 Published:   Self-Published (2011) Source:  Author - Paperback Genre...

GSA Network

Being a teen hasn't changed all that much. I have been fortunate enough to read from and speak about my book Random at high school GSA, or Gay Straight Alliance, groups. I've shared by personal experiences and listened to their stories, sometimes shocking and all too real.

At the core of Random is the relationship between Tierney and Jeremy, which mimics my own relationship to my best friend Jeremy who died in 2001 when we were 26 years old. In real life, he was in the closet during high school and only truly came out while we studied abroad at university in Sydney, Australia.

Local GSA groups are organized by the national non-profit GSA Network, which was founded in 1998 to stop homophobia and support youth activists. Jeremy may have lived if this type of organization was around when we were in high school. Through the network, students can form a safe haven within their high schools to talk about issues that are important to them and make friends.

High schoolers I spoke with said that since it is a Gay Straight Alliance, joining didn't necessarily mean you are LGBT. You could be just supportive, which helps many teens find a way to participate.

I want to thank all the students I have met so far. I have been touched by their positive responses Random. After 11 years, I still find it difficult to speak about Jeremy's death. Meeting these amazing teens gives me hope for the future and proud to have written my book.

Come Celebrate Charong's Novel, Random - Friday January 27th

Charong Chow: photo by Alexander Chow-Stuart.

This Friday evening, January 27th, between 6pm - 8pm in the private room at theStarbucks at The Junction in Sonora, Charong Chow will be hosting her book launch party for her first novel, Random...and Alexander Stuart will be celebrating one thousand years on the planet (or something like that): my birthday!


Inspired by the death at 26 of our best friend, Jeremy, who first introduced us at one of my book readings in Miami's South Beach, Random is a Young Adult "teen noir" love story and thriller, set in contemporary Los Angeles.


Tierney is a sixteen year old high school co-ed who's neither the Bad Girl in school, nor exactly your average student, either. Excited by the arrival of Tom, a handsomely mysterious new kid, Tierney skips classes with her best friends, Jeremy (who's openly gay) and Maya, taking Tom along for a drug-fueled truancy that foreshadows darker things to come.

Written with an energy and razor-sharp dialogue that mixes teen angst and ennui with the shadows of a Hollywood long past - a Hollywood explored in a visit to Tom's grandparents and to the Griffith Observatory (famous for a key sequence in Rebel Without A Cause) - Random is powered by the sense of loss of the author's best friend, creating an energy that is part contemporary noir mystery and part emotional catharsis.


Charong will also be appearing tomorrow morning on KVML 1450AM in an interview by Mark Truppner that will be broadcast at 6:45am, 7:45am and 8:45am.

The cover of Charong Chow's Random, designed by Nancy Choe.

10% of all sales of Random between now and the end of the school year in June, will be donated to the Sierra Waldorf School in Jamestown - a progressive school that is dedicated to nurturing the individual capabilities of each child from pre-school to eighth grade, following the inclusive and inspirational teachings of Rudolf Steiner, the founder of Waldorf Education.

Charong Chow's Random is available both as a paperback from Amazon, priced $8.88 (eight is the luckiest number in Chinese), and as a Kindle download, priced $5.99 (or free if you are an Amazon Prime member).

Please note that you do not need to own a Kindle to read a Kindle book. You can download a free Kindle app from Amazon for your Mac, PC or smartphone at this Free Kindle Reading Apps page.

Charong and I hope you can join us Friday night between 6pm - 8pm at theStarbucks at The Junction for a joint celebration.

Warmest wishes,

Alexander and Charong

Radio Interview on KVML Friday

Listen out Friday January 27, 2012 morning on Sonora's KVML 1450 AM for an interview about my YA novel, Random. Mark Truppner interviewed me just moments ago to ask me about the inspiration behind Random and how we made the move to northern California.

The interview will air 6:45, 7:45 and 8:45 a.m. 

10 % of RANDOM Sales to be Donated to Sierra Waldorf School

From now until the end of the school year, 10 % of all book and Kindle sales of Random will be donated to the Sierra Waldorf School.

Dedicated to learning, the school was founded in 1989 by a group of local teachers and parents in Jamestown, California, who wanted to establish a high-quality and nurturing educational environment. Surrounded by cow pastures and views of Tabletop Mountain, the historic 1875 Rawhide Schoolhouse stands as the anchor to the campus.

Celebrate Random's publication on January 27, 2012, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Starbucks at the Junction in Sonora, CA. Paperback books will be available, and help us raise money to support the Sierra Waldorf School.

Random Launch Party and Giveaway January 26 at 6 p.m.PST

Paperback of Random

Please join me for a virtual book launch party here on Charong.com, Twitter and Random on Facebook January 26, 2012 at 6 to 7 p.m. PST.

Like Random on Facebook or follow me on Twitter @Charong. Be sure to add #RandomYA to your tweets to participate.

I'll answer any questions, talk more about why I wrote the book and I will be giving away a free paperback copy of Random. There are two ways of winning, either leave a comment on this post or participate in the Twitter conversation January 26. I will randomly choose the winning comment or tweet.

Thank you for your support and see you January 26 at 6 to 7 p.m. PST.

First Review for my novel Random

5.0 out of 5 stars More Than Zero...Teen Love and Loss in Contemporary LA,December 20, 2011

By 

Alexander Chow-Stuart "Also known as: Alexand... (Los Angeles, California) -See all my reviews

This review is from: Random (Kindle Edition)

Charong Chow's Random is a thrilling read: a dark noir-influenced mature teen love story that captures adolescent disenchantment and danger in the midst of LA's suburban landscape, with a precision that echoes the raw unfettered vision of Bret Easton Ellis' Less Than Zero, thirty years on.

Tierney is a sixteen year old high school co-ed who's neither the Bad Girl in school, nor exactly your average student, either. Excited by the arrival of Tom, a handsomely mysterious new kid, Tierney skips classes with her best friends, Jeremy (who's openly gay) and Maya, taking Tom along for a drug-fueled truancy that foreshadows darker things to come.

Written with an energy and razor-sharp dialogue that mixes teen angst and ennui with the shadows of a Hollywood long past - a Hollywood explored in a visit to Tom's grandparents and to the Griffith Observatory (famous for a key sequence in Rebel Without A Cause) - Random perfectly captures the lifestyle of kids on the verge of adulthood but not quite understanding the responsibilities they face, in the decade that is itself the teens of the 21st Century.

A compelling read that takes you on an emotional roller coaster, Random is hugely influenced by the drug-related death at a young age of Charong Chow's closest high school friend. The sense of loss of the author's friend powers the pages of Random with an energy that is both part contemporary noir mystery and part emotional catharsis.

Random is edgy, funny at times, totally authentic in its picture of teen life - but more than anything, it is moving: a tribute to the senseless loss of a young life, the kind of event you read about in the news or hear about in a chance encounter with an old schoolfriend.

Life can seem random enough at times, but death at an early age throws the universe itself off-course. Charong Chow's Random plumbs friendship, flirtation, sexual identity and threat to create a world in which love and loss color a landscape that is at once familiar and frighteningly new.