Yellowface

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'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.

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