I'm having the exact same issue. I have to be very close to blocks and facing them directly. Blocks located directly above, below, or behind Steve cannot be mined or placed. Sometimes blocks can only be mined or placed 2 blocks away, other times the reach goes out to about 4 blocks.
I am unable to recreate the bug while recording, because of lag, I dont have the best computer. It's not that hard to recreate, I can still post a video showing how to do it, but I've tried multiple times to recreate with recording software, and the lag wont allow it.