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A review by e_lace
Yellowface by R.F. Kuang
emotional
funny
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I devoured this book so quickly it was embarassing, especially considering I am only giving it a 3.75. I think right now, fresh off of finishing the book mere minutes ago, I feel like the only way I can describe this reading experience is that it felt a lot like reading a 300 page r/amitheasshole post where you start reading and then you just can't stop because it's so interesting and at the end you check the comments to make sure you read it right and everyone is in agreement that ESH, Everyone Sucks Here.
When I first started this book (two days ago) I almost DNF'd it because it was immediately incredibly clear that RF Kuang's resentment towards casually racist white people was going to make it so that any attempt to sympathize a white woman who steals her dead asian acquaintance's Chinese historical fiction novel would be virtually impossible. But I kept sticking around because I genuinely could not put this down.
My best comparison of this book is to the 2022 film NOT OKAY starring Zoe Deutsh which is the story of a white influencer who fakes going to Paris for clout and pretends to be at the Arc d'Triomphe, accidentally posting within minutes of a terrorist attack. Instead of telling everyone that she actually photoshopped herself into Paris, she goes along with it and pretends to be a #survivor. Except, that movie tries to make the viewer sympathize with the main character before making it clear that she doesn't deserve a redemption arc. I think I wished this book did that.
Anyway I have a lot more thought about this so maybe i'll come back and update this but I think if you liked NOT OKAY (not many people did but I thought it was fun idk) or honestly if you like any of R.F. Kuang's other work or you just find author drama riveting, I think you'll like this book.
The one complaint I have about this book that I think is just part of Rebecca's style and worked a lot better in a book like Babel is that this book and Babel were very clearly written during a time when Kuang was taking classes in her PhD program and you can tell because every 3-4 paragraphs it feels like she HAS to end a paragraph with a thesis statement. I think that worked so much better in Babel but in this book sometimes kind of feels like she's feeding the reader a line. I remember feeling this way about Babel a bit too but I think sometimes she wasn't letting the story speak for itself and about halfway through the book it really hit me that the book was kind of written like a really creative essay for a class. Again, not a huge detraction but something I have noticed in Babel and Yellowface that wasn't quite so common in the Poppy War series.
When I first started this book (two days ago) I almost DNF'd it because it was immediately incredibly clear that RF Kuang's resentment towards casually racist white people was going to make it so that any attempt to sympathize a white woman who steals her dead asian acquaintance's Chinese historical fiction novel would be virtually impossible. But I kept sticking around because I genuinely could not put this down.
My best comparison of this book is to the 2022 film NOT OKAY starring Zoe Deutsh which is the story of a white influencer who fakes going to Paris for clout and pretends to be at the Arc d'Triomphe, accidentally posting within minutes of a terrorist attack. Instead of telling everyone that she actually photoshopped herself into Paris, she goes along with it and pretends to be a #survivor. Except, that movie tries to make the viewer sympathize with the main character before making it clear that she doesn't deserve a redemption arc. I think I wished this book did that.
Anyway I have a lot more thought about this so maybe i'll come back and update this but I think if you liked NOT OKAY (not many people did but I thought it was fun idk) or honestly if you like any of R.F. Kuang's other work or you just find author drama riveting, I think you'll like this book.
The one complaint I have about this book that I think is just part of Rebecca's style and worked a lot better in a book like Babel is that this book and Babel were very clearly written during a time when Kuang was taking classes in her PhD program and you can tell because every 3-4 paragraphs it feels like she HAS to end a paragraph with a thesis statement. I think that worked so much better in Babel but in this book sometimes kind of feels like she's feeding the reader a line. I remember feeling this way about Babel a bit too but I think sometimes she wasn't letting the story speak for itself and about halfway through the book it really hit me that the book was kind of written like a really creative essay for a class. Again, not a huge detraction but something I have noticed in Babel and Yellowface that wasn't quite so common in the Poppy War series.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Suicide, Sexual assault, and Suicidal thoughts