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Title details for The Donut Trap by Julie Tieu - Available

The Donut Trap

A Novel

by Julie Tieu
Natalie Naudus
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
Borrow Listen to a sample Listen to a sample
1 of 1 copy available

Julie Tieu sparkles in this debut romantic comedy, which is charmingly reminiscent of the TV show Kim's Convenience and Frankly in Love by David Yoon, about a young woman who feels caught in the life her parents have made for her until she falls in love and finds a way out of the donut trap.


Jasmine Tran has landed herself behind bars—maple bars that is. With no boyfriend or job prospects, Jasmine returns home to work at her parents' donut shop. Jasmine quickly loses herself in a cyclical routine of donuts, Netflix, and sleep. She wants to break free from her daily grind, but when a hike in rent threatens the survival of their shop, her parents rely on her more than ever.

Help comes in the form of an old college crush, Alex Lai. Not only is he successful and easy on the eyes, to her parents' delight, he's also Chinese. He's everything she should wish for, until a disastrous dinner reveals Alex isn't as perfect as she thinks. Worse, he doesn't think she's perfect either.

With both sets of parents against their relationship, a family legacy about to shut down, and the reappearance of an old high school flame, Jasmine must scheme to find a solution that satisfies her family's expectations and can get her out of the donut trap once and for all.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    November 9, 2021

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9780063069824
      • File size: 240001 KB
      • Duration: 08:20:00

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      July 5, 2021
      A floundering heroine struggles to create a meaningful life for herself outside of her immigrant parents’ expectations in Tieu’s meandering debut. Jasmine “Jas” Tran’s parents set up Sunshine Donuts in an L.A. suburb after fleeing the Khmer Rouge and immigrating to the U.S. Jas has worked there since childhood, and after burning out on the pre-med track during her senior year at UCLA, she returns to the shop full-time, giving her parents more opportunities to critique her lack of social life, career, and boyfriend. Enter Jas’s old college crush, Alex Lai. The pair start dating, but Alex’s own struggles with his Chinese immigrant mother lead to an unfortunate dinner argument that aggravates Jas’s insecurities about her career. The narrative gives ample time to the fraught relationship between Jas and her parents, but at the expense of developing the romance between Jas and Alex, who bond over their similar traumas, but share little else. Meanwhile, the friend ex-machina through which Jas eventually finds professional fulfilment strains credulity. Still, the diverse cast and deliciously described donuts make up for some of these flaws. Readers looking for slow-paced, low-stakes romance should find plenty to enjoy. Agent: Laura Bradford, Bradford Literary.

    • AudioFile Magazine
      In a vibrant performance with well-paced comedic timing, narrator Natalie Naudus turns Jasmine Tran's attempt to save her love life, career, and donut shop into a satisfying listen. Naudus's slightly acerbic voice is well suited for Jasmine, who uses self-deprecation and sarcasm when confronting her problems. While attempting to make her family's donut shop go viral, Jasmine gets a second chance with her college crush, the seemingly perfect Alex, for whom Naudus takes on an amiable tone that matches his good-natured patience with Jasmine. Naudus gives a balanced performance; her boisterous narration becomes more reserved when portraying Jasmine's parents who, while supportive, struggle to understand their first-generation- American daughter. Naudus's standout audio performance will undoubtedly pull listeners into this contemporary coming-of-age story. J.E.C. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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