Yellowface

I've been making an active effort this year to read books that are actually released in 2023. I found a few "most anticipated" lists and this was on most of them. I haven't read any other books by Kuang, but I have heard good things about them and they are on my to-read pile, plus this book has a great cover and provoking title. I put this on hold at the library a couple months ago and I was able to check out the audiobook on the actual day of release.

The premise is great: a successful Asian-American author dies unexpectedly, leaving behind an unpublished manuscript which is then claimed by a white friend as her own. Unfortunately, it doesn't explore it's titular issue as deeply as I think it could have. It is more just used as a passing point of tension, among other things.

This was well written, but a lot pulpier than I was expecting. The climax in particular I thought was cheesy and unsatisfying. However, the book does move at a brisk pace though and it was easy to keep turning pages.

The story is told from a first person perspective and the protagonist is extremely unlikable and makes unethical decisions constantly. She is not stupid nor ignorant, so she has at least some semblance of logic to justify her actions. She is entitlement personified. She thinks of herself as liberal, but she's more of a center-right "both sides have good points" sort of person. This can be an interesting perspective to tell a story from, but also makes it hard to latch onto as a reader at times.

I think there are a lot of really great ideas just below the surface here that didn't quite reveal themselves as fully as I was hoping. I'm curious to check out more of Kuang's work now though.

If I have learnt anything this year, it's that I will devour and enjoy anything that R.F. Kuang writes.

I'm going to be as vague as possible whilst still giving my thoughts because I don't like writing spoilers or anything in particular detailed for reviews, especially when it comes to books that aren't released to the public yet.

Yellowface covered important topics that are not often highlighted in books, especially when it comes to the publishing world. Racism, plagiarism, microaggressions and cultural appropriation are just some of the things that were portrayed in this book. This book was the definition of meta and satire and I loved every minute of it.

June was a protagonist that you didn't want to root for and that's something that you don't see often in books but I think it speaks volumes about how there are many people in the real world, in all types of workplaces and life in general like June who take advantage of the disadvantages of marginalised groups for their own benefit. I found myself so angry reading this at June's blatant disrespect, racism and self-righteous actions throughout the book. Just to name one out of many was when June was annoyed by others rightfully saying that many issues arise when it comes to white people writing stories from the point of view of marginalised groups, a point of view that white people will never experience or understand.

This was so unlike anything that Kuang has written and I'm excited to see what she writes next. I know that I will eat up anything that she publishes.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for providing me with this ARC. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

For anyone who thinks protagonists have to be likable in order to enjoy a book, give this one a try. June is pretty horrible, the human incarnation of “I'm not racist, but...”, and yet Kuang preserves her humanity and allows the reader to feel empathy with her. She's awful, but she's not a caricature. She's a very real person, probably all too common in Kuang's publishing spheres. As a white woman with dreams of traditional publishing myself, I can't help but read her as a cautionary tale.

Yellowface is a major departure from Kuang's epic fantasies, but her writing is strong enough to cross genres effortlessly. I wouldn't call it a “fun” read. It's frustrating, complex, and frequently disheartening, but it is a good story that is vital and incredibly relevant in our social media fame-obsessed age.

I can't believe I put this one off for so long because I loved it, even though it was far from an easy, light read. The constricting feeling of anxiety had a hold on me throughout the whole thing. I hated June so very, very much, but I was still rooting for her. It was such a confusing feeling.
I can't give it more than 4 stars because it had way too many references that already feel dated. There were also some plot points that didn't make much sense to me, but overall, it's definitely a must-read.

CW: on page death, anxiety and panic attacks, suicidal thoughts, racism

I may not have finished Babel but it's still on my list and maybe I'll read next year, but there was never any doubt that I'll read this one despite it not being SFF. And I was actually very glad I got to buy the paperback for a very good price on sale. Turns out, it was such an unputdownable read.

I'll be honest, I'm still not completely sure what I feel about the book on the whole. It's immensely readable and a breeze to get through - once I started, I didn't wanna stop and didn't even realize how much I had read when I had to take a break. I also listened to the audiobook in parts and I have to commend the narrator Helen Laser because she just brings the voice of June to life and her voice acting made it an equally wonderful listen.

The plot is a mix of a satirical take on how US publishing works with its seasonal trends and intermittent commitments to “diversity”, the real struggles that POC authors have to go through to make it, the resentment that white authors might feel because they aren't always the most sought after anymore, and how social media mobs can twist and turn narratives and upend people's lives. As a perpetually online booktwt person, the whole book felt acutely familiar to me and I could especially see the exact Twitter comments coming before I even read them on page. I know there have been many criticisms about this particular aspect of the book because many instances seem to have been lifted directly from things that have happened on booktwt in the past few years, but I actually enjoyed that.

As for the characters, this is probably one of those rare characters where I didn't like a single one of them but still enjoyed the book as a whole - which is surprising for me because I'm a very character focused person. I won't deny that there were parts where I could feel June's pain but overall she is hardly likable because she is petty and jealous and in denial that she is racist. Maybe she could have been written with more nuance and came across more like a racist stereotype, but there have been enough ppl who talk like her on social media that I've encountered so it didn't bother me. It almost felt petty on my part to enjoy her rise and fall in the story but it's just funny to see how she justifies every action of hers while simultaneously spiraling down.

I did really like how Athena's character was written. I know many readers have complained that it felt like too much of a self insert, but it didn't bother me much because I don't follow RFK closely enough to realize how much of her own voice bleeds through in the narrative. Athena is a very interesting example of what it might take to be successful as a WOC in this industry, and how your brilliant writing skills aren't enough - you have to be deemed young and beautiful so that you can be marketed, painful narratives from one's personal history being written feels almost like a necessity to get published, but it also provokes the question about how this exploitation of other's pain for her own writing and eventual success leaves behind many people in further pain - and isn't that the irony of it all.

I frankly don't know what else to write. Maybe I do have more thoughts but I'm not sure I want to put them out there. I'm not even sure whom to recommend this book to. But if you like RFK, then do give this a try. If you think you'll enjoy an easily readable satirical take on publishing, diversity, social media mobs and cancel culture, then maybe this book is for you. The open ending was a nice touch because I feel that's how the real world works. But I still think the book could have said more with a narrower focus. I don't really have complains that it wasn't in-depth enough, but maybe that's why it's not a full 5 stars from me. Maybe I just have too much expectations from the author. Can't wait to read her next book - isn't it the one set in Hell..???

I enjoyed Yellowface! It was sort of fun in a satire(ish?), meme-of-a-white-woman, Bodies Bodies Bodies way. We all know a Well Meaning White Woman like June and her racist/microaggressive inner monologue really made me laugh in moments just bc of how familiar it felt as an Asian woman in America. Made me think about how we reach for extremes: only hero or villain, no grey area. I thought things sort of dragged towards the end but overall had fun with it

i read this book so so fast and honestly this book is genius. the way it covers race is so brilliant but it's also approachable and easy to read. june was literally crazy and so unlikeable but in a very purposeful and realistic way. this is such an important read and i highly recommend everybody read it. 

Absolute stunner of a book! Loved the irony and sometimes I didn't know if I wanted to kick the narrator down the stairs (iykyk) or if I wanted to feel the least bit of sympathy for her. In the end I ended up loving the twist at the end, and I really liked R.F Kuang's writing! I'm very excited to read more book from her in the future.

Four stars four being a very well written satire whose singular POV character is really such a a-hole. As a passive twitter user i hugely enjoyed the descriptions of the shitstorms in a tea cup. I actually started using twitter for following sports journalists but it then began to be a great way to follow authors i love, and some handle it deftly like Gaiman or Scalzi. Others play on the periphery like Abercrombie who relish in their 1 stars. In all cases i found this book an enjoyable romp on ground i knew enough of to find it familiar.

And I added a fifth start just because of so many knickers twisted in the GoodReaders reviews... the ultimate trolling fishing trip

I do not believe I was the targeted audience for Yellowface.

There are many positive aspects within this story that I enjoyed. However, this book felt... lackluster. Even that word doesn't describe what I'm feeling.

Anyway...

I was bored and annoyed. Which that could be because every week since December of 2021... me entering the book community I have seen these exact Twitter conflicts play out. Sheshh, I've even seen them play out on TikTok.

So, why do we need a book about it? Like... enough with the chaos.

The author has talent and a way with words but this did not showcase that talent.

Also, I can't stand this redemption arc situation. Nah... I get both girls did wrong in the book but what the FMC did was ten times worse.

But... that's just my opinion and everyone has one.

Oooh this book had a pretty controversial debut didn't it, the reviews kinda look a little like Fallujah circa. 2004. Having read the book, I can't say I am surprised, this was a tough read to get through. This is one of those books where different people will find different sections to be intolerable, but suffice to say the subject is heavy. Personally, I found myself hating this book early on, but the further I got into it the more the project as a whole started to make sense. I really enjoyed this book by the end, but having perused the reviews I can see that there is some truth to the negative reactions.

This is a book about the publishing process first and foremost; it also directly deals with the issues of plagiarism and race. This book centers on June Hayward, a struggling white author who happens to be present when her more successful friend and colleague Athena Liu chokes and dies in an accident. June winds up stealing Athena's manuscript about Chinese laborers in the First World War. After some serious revision, June publishes The Last Front under the nom de plume of Juniper Song to immediate critical acclaim. But the good times don't last, people begin to notice the similarities between her work and Athena's, debates around race and cultural appropriation dominate the narrative around her book and ultimately accusations of plagiarism are hurled June's way.

All it really took for me to read this were the keywords “R.F. Kuang” and “Unreliable Narrator”, I'm just a mark for books like this. I think that this might be one of the best First Person Present-tense stories that I've gotten to read. This is a tough style to pull off, but god-damn if Babel wasn't a fluke, THIS LADY CAN WRITE. This is even more impressive to me because the character of June isn't really a self insert for Kuang, but her character was incredibly complete and well-defined. All I can say towards the writing quality in this book is that it's masterful, this is a prestige, a magic-trick that I completely bought into.

Despite the abundant quality, the first third of this book was incredibly difficult for me to read, I just kept finding myself getting irrationally upset with the text and with the character of June. The feeling of abject revulsion I felt with every action June took to cover up her crime, with every justification she presented for her actions and mentality, was honestly too much. I found that I had to break this read up into little chunks to bleed off the anger and focus on the text, but this was tough. If you also hate “everyday racism” and plagiarism, this will probably also get under your skin. That said, I'm glad I powered through because it all pays off in a very Cronenberg-Lets watch this car crash in slo-mo type of way.

I think that even if you took away the narrative elements and stripped this down to an essay concerning race/POC in the publishing industry, it would still be a strong, poignant, and valuable read. Valuable is the key word here, I never expected to read the industry equivalent of a naval broadside: Kuang hits every single issue, every single side, and I can respect the message that much more for its indiscriminate truth. I hate that non-white authors get pigeonholed into writing “diverse works” almost as much as I hate that white authors get flak for telling stories outside their cultural lanes, and it seems like I'm in Kuang's boat here.

There was one criticism that I read in the warzon- I mean the review section- that I agree with in spades. RFK's voice bleeds through the veneer of June; there is a pretty clear distinction between character and author that's established fairly early on, but the more the book dives into the pressure of publishing and the (frankly disgusting) racial aspect ascribed to historical/cultural works, the more I felt RFK's voice take control of the narrative. That's not all bad, her voice has quite a lot to say on the subject, and I'm glad that the whole “They already have an Asian Writer. They can't put out two minority stories in the same season,” discussion concerning the broken diversity elevator made it into the book. And her voice goes a long way to rehabilitating June's character, adding a healthy dose of nuance after an opening that toes the line between social discourse and reverse race baiting. But even with these clear benefits, blurring the line between June and Rebecca makes digesting this content a little messy, on some level it's all the author's words but what are we to ascribe to RFk's life experience and what is pure fiction. If I can boil my issue down, it would be that it would have been so much more impressive if June was just June and RFK found a different, less central character to deliver her opinion.

Closing thoughts: This is a really good book, it's got some flaws, and maybe the ending is a touch bleak for something that was already pretty heavy. I think as a total package this has some literary importance, and even if the content isn't to everyone's liking RFK is saying something that everyone should hear. It blows me away that people read this thing and then still published all of these trash reviews as if to prove RFK right.

 I am a huge fan of R.F. Kuang's previous works (The Poppy War trilogy and Babel).  She is absolutely one of my current favorite authors and she is the first author I've encountered in a long time whose books I will buy as soon as they come out.  In her four previous books she showed an incredible ability to write compelling fantasy stories with strong real-world analogues and complex characters.  These four books had the hallmarks of excellent fantasy storytelling and showed that Kuang herself had a remarkable command of the English language.  These books were incredibly enjoyable to read despite (or in some cases because of) their dark subject matter.  Kuang just has a knack for tackling some very difficult topics with her work and making very accessible narratives out of them.  And that's exactly what she tries to do (and touches on) in Yellowface, her first step outside of the fantasy genre.    I bring all of this up before talking about Yellowface itself because I feel like Kuang's background is quite important to the book.  Yellowface follows Juniper Hayward, a struggling white author who witnesses the accidental death of her college friend and writing superstar Athena Liu.  Juniper takes a book that Athena had just finished, rewrites it and publishes it under her own name.  The rest of the book follows Juniper as she deals with the guilt and consequences of her plagiarism.  It also touches on some very sensitive topics, notably sexism and racism within the publishing industry and what it means to be a writer in the age of social media.  These are tough issues but Kuang handles them quite well as she always does.  The central narrative is quite strong and the two main characters of Juniper and Athena are very nicely explored.  I am a sucker for a book that features a dead character so prominently that they are present as much as most of the alive characters and Yellowface is very much that.    Yellowface also serves as a sort of meta-commentary on Kuang herself and her career.  There are a number of obvious comparisons between Athena and Kuang that can be made, from their educational background to their writing topics to their reputations as writing prodigies at young ages and so on.  Parts of this book feel like Kuang is struggling with her own success and place within the literary world.  I applaud her for taking that internal struggle and putting that on the page.  Because the book is far from completely laudatory towards Athena.  There were times while reading some of the criticism of Athena that I felt bad for loving Kuang's previous works as much as I did.  It takes some serious guts to essentially put yourself in a novel and make that version of yourself evidently flawed.  I don't always think that this aspect of the book is handled in the most subtle of ways but perhaps that is the point.     Yellowface is a book that forces you to think.  It is a book that wants you to be uncomfortable.  It is a book that demands you to look within yourself as a consumer who participates in this industry.  Because of that I can't say that this is the book of Kuang's that I enjoyed reading the most (it's not supposed to be), but after some reflection I do think it's her most interesting and important.  I will go back to her previous books more, but this is the one that will stick with me the most, and I think that's what Kuang was going for when she decided to tackle this project.     I'm glad Kuang wrote this book.  It feels like she needed to write it just for her own sake.  She really is an incredible talent and I can't wait to see what she does next. 

I had high expectations for this book, since it has been critically acclaimed and has received quite a few awards, incl. "Goodreads award". The main plot explores a lot of interesting topics, all revolving in one way or another around the "publishing industry", you can even make an argument that "the industry" is a b*tch (just kidding), a main antagonist in the book.

I would recommend this book for people with an interest in the following topics: writer's habitus + the inner working of one's mind, racism not just in a general, but in a broader circle of writing and publishing environment (with a few jabs at the capitalistic society and consumers included as bonus).

In my honest opinion, the book tried to cover too much and didn't succeed in allocating the time to cover each topic efficiently. Thus, in some chapters the pace is dragging due to the constant mental struggles of the main protagonist (June), the potentially interesting side-characters and environment don't get enough time and feel sacrificial to the more of "Oh no I am almost discovered as a fraud" or "Oh no somebody said this on the internet!". Don't get me wrong, I do understand that the dynamic between the June and the "internet mob'' and "publishing colleagues" is described very close to heart for anybody working in the 21st century, the only problem is that it gets WAY too much attention, making some parts feel like a repletion in a bad "Groundhog Day" way.

The plot structure with cliffhangers at the end of some chapters is kind of barebones plain at best. As put by Rebecca F. Kuang it in Chapter 2 through the words of June reading "The Last Front" manuscript: "it's more like an amalgamation of startlingly beautiful sentences, bluntly stated themes. But she's laid out enough breadcrumbs that I can follow the trail. I see where it's all going.'' You do get the feeling that the book was written the same way as if some parts were highlighted while others put in the backseat.

I don't think I will remember any of the side-characters, they are all very forgettable (some are one-sided) and we don't get enough time with any of them, they are just "there" for the sake of plot. What we do get is the enormous amount of time with the main protagonist June Hayward which we simply do not need, circling back to the point I made earlier.

Sometimes you do feel empathy for her, other times I just wrote "why?" or "what?" on the margins, because her thoughts and decisions were too unrealistic (Remark: I can be wrong here since she could be an "unreliable narrator") or quite emotionally immature, but I do like her smart and witty remarks with a neat sense of humor.

TO SUM UP: This is a book with a weak plot and a "meh" twist at the end, the best part of the book was some of the insights and observations made alongside the story by June + a few in the dialogues in the ending chapters. I would argue that maybe I am not the target audience for this book, but oh well, what's done is done.

P.S. I put a 3/5 because I see no point in re-reading it and I enjoy the writing style, so this is an average book which left more to be desired in the end.