Author: R. F. Kuang
Genre: Fiction ; Adult ; Contemporary ; Mystery ; Literary ; Thriller
Publication: May 25, 2023 by The Borough Press
Pages: 329
Format Read In: Audiobook
Summary from Goodreads (GOODREADS LINK)
Authors June Hayward and Athena Liu were supposed to be twin rising stars: same year at Yale, same debut year in publishing. But Athena’s a cross-genre literary darling, and June didn’t even get a paperback release. Nobody wants stories about basic white girls, June thinks.
So when June witnesses Athena’s death in a freak accident, she acts on impulse: she steals Athena’s just-finished masterpiece, an experimental novel about the unsung contributions of Chinese laborers to the British and French war efforts during World War I.
So what if June edits Athena’s novel and sends it to her agent as her own work? So what if she lets her new publisher rebrand her as Juniper Song–complete with an ambiguously ethnic author photo? Doesn’t this piece of history deserve to be told, whoever the teller? That’s what June claims, and the New York Times bestseller list seems to agree.
But June can’t get away from Athena’s shadow, and emerging evidence threatens to bring June’s (stolen) success down around her. As June races to protect her secret, she discovers exactly how far she will go to keep what she thinks she deserves.
With its totally immersive first-person voice, Yellowface takes on questions of diversity, racism, and cultural appropriation not only in the publishing industry but the persistent erasure of Asian-American voices and history by Western white society. R. F. Kuang’s novel is timely, razor-sharp, and eminently readable.
Kuang captured my heart in her Poppy Wars trilogy so she’s an instant-buy author for me. This time, she stepped away from high fantasy to contemporary, and I found the subject to be interesting. The cover is very simple, which I also love.
What I Liked
- June was a good depiction of the malevolence of racism in how she believes in all the stereotypes, without admitting that she’s racist, and pities herself for being an unsuccessful white woman (i.e., lots of self-victimization, “no one is interested in reading my books because they want the new ~exotic~ thing to read”) while an Asian woman is getting what she thinks she’s owed. Basically, she’s a great depiction of a white liberal–a good mix of self-consciousness and entitled arrogance! She’ll even bully kids just for vindication
- Kuang goes to town with her scathing depiction of publishing’s inherent racism and biases. It’s fun to read about but also pretty painful.
- Honestly, #JusticeForAthenasMother. She’s the real victim here!
What I Didn’t Like
- After seeing more reviews about this book, I do find it uncomfortable that Athena is clearly modeled off of Kuang’s experience. Which isn’t wrong but it does feel too navel-gaze-y and kind of cringey, especially when Athena’s valid critics are treated the same as the nonvalid critics. But Athena is depicted to have flaws, which I appreciate, but they’re hardly focused on.
- I think the ending was a very strange turn in the narrative…
Conclusion
With some of the most recent bookish controversies, like it or not, we all need to grapple with the thought that plenty of favourite white writers, successful or not, probably think exactly like June. This book just makes me want to go out and support all marginalized writers, but I think it’s also important to remember that no person is perfect and that being marginalized doesn’t mean you’ll recognize your own biases. There is a lot to chew on from this novel, and I’m glad I picked it up, no matter how uncomfortable I felt the whole way through.
My Rating: Showering
Where to Find Me
sweaters.and.raindrops@gmail.com
Sweaters & raindrops 