Reviews tagging 'Medical content'

Yellowface by R.F. Kuang

41 reviews

peggy_racham's review against another edition

5.0

Hard to review a book with a narrator such as this. I loved "I am not okay" so this was a natural conclusion. Cant say I love the MC but I do love how the story molds its self through the book. And every time you think you have all the details, there's more underneath. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Racism, Gaslighting, Medical content, War, Cultural appropriation, Sexual assault, and Toxic friendship

chaoticnostalgia's review against another edition

tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Grief, Mental illness, Violence, Xenophobia, Death, Cultural appropriation, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Vomit, War, Alcohol, and Rape

Minor: Islamophobia, Blood, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Medical content, and Suicide

stephmcoakley's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Xenophobia, Bullying, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Body shaming, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Racism, Rape, Toxic friendship, Classism, Gaslighting, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Cultural appropriation, and Sexual violence

espookita's review against another edition

challenging dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

R. F. Kuang’s Yellowface is a biting commentary on white privilege, entitlement, cultural appropriation, and the publishing industry. It explores the inherently exploitative nature of writing as a whole, and digs into ethical questions regarding storytelling. It is fast-paced, compelling, and impossible to put down. Our narrator is a Karen caricature unable to resist doom scrolling on Twitter, and the many social media and pop culture references are somewhat jarring. While the sharp critique on both the industry and whiteness were valid, I found myself wishing more of the relationship between the narrator and the victim of her theft was more drawn out. I feel I am left with more questions than answers—especially about what it means to be friends with someone whom you both fear and admire. Worth the read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Cultural appropriation, Death, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, and War

Moderate: Colonisation, Genocide, Medical content, Racial slurs, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic friendship

ofpagesandparagraphs's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This book was like a car crash that you can see coming from a mile away, can do nothing to prevent, but that you can't help but watch as it inevitably happens, as if in slow motion.  It seemed a little bit like a psychological thriller since you are in the MC's mind the whole time and you get a front row seat to its collapse.  
The complexity with which Kuang weaves in themes of jealousy, racism, privilege, crowd mentality, social media, stereotypes, cultural appropriation, and more throughout this story were brilliant and horrifying all in one.  There were multiple moments that made me cringe, and yet I couldn't stop turning the pages.  This story is fast-paced, edgy, satirical, and both believable and unbelievable in the same breath. I'm going to be thinking about this one for quite a while.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Medical content, Death, Cultural appropriation, and Racism

Minor: Suicidal thoughts

eleanor029's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This is an amazing book. I had been looking forward to its publication and it was worth the wait. This is definitely a book club book, best read with someone near to talk about it. I annotated my copy so much, because I needed to let out all my comments. Rebecca Kuang took a bold step, basing a book on the reader's outrage, and it paid off big time. It was very elegantly done. I can't wait to see what she writes next.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Racism, Toxic friendship, Cultural appropriation, Death, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Cultural appropriation, Child abuse, Racism, Bullying, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Stalking, Death, Sexual assault, Mental illness, and Islamophobia

Minor: Alcohol, Xenophobia, War, Suicidal thoughts, Colonisation, Blood, Antisemitism, Injury/Injury detail, Incest, Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, Classism, Stalking, Murder, Medical content, and Vomit

leonormsousa's review against another edition

challenging dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexism, Cultural appropriation, Death of parent, Eating disorder, Grief, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Racism, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Islamophobia, and Medical content

basicbookstagrammer's review against another edition

adventurous dark reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cultural appropriation, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Stalking, Death, Racism, Sexual assault, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Death of parent, Grief, Mental illness, Medical trauma, and Medical content

edgaranjapoe's review against another edition

relaxing fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cultural appropriation, Death, Racism, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Rape, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Racial slurs, and Bullying

Minor: Vomit, Cursing, Blood, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Stalking, Alcohol, Grief, Medical content, Self harm, War, and Injury/Injury detail

meganpbell's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This book gave me a stomachache in the most viciously brilliant way! Yellowface is an absolutely relentless send-up and take-down of racism in publishing, a razor sharp literary thriller you won’t be able to put down, narrated by an unreliable and utterly unlikeable lead—and you won’t be able to tear yourself away from reading every rotten word she says. If you love a train wreck AND books that push you to think more critically, pick this one up!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Racism, and Cultural appropriation

Moderate: Mental illness, Violence, Rape, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, Gaslighting, Panic attacks/disorders, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Alcohol and Death of parent