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lianastovall 's review for:
Yellowface
by R.F. Kuang
3.5 ⭐️
Such a clever and well written story. Kuang was brilliant for telling this story through the voice of a first person unreliable narrator. The main character’s monologue almost subtly guides the reader into doubting their own presuppositions about diversity, cultural appropriation/appreciation, cancel culture, racism, and social media discourse. This book single handedly pulled me out of a reading slump; the flow and pacing of the first 75-80% of the story whisks you along. It’s like a train disaster; you hate it, but you you can’t look away. Yellowface is an engaging and well-constructed novel that reads almost like a thriller.
It’s also very impressive how this book sparks a conversation about such a niche topic (the publishing industry) while still appealing to the mass market. I’m suddenly fascinated by the politics of publishing and what authors have to do to get published. Truthfully, that’s not a world I know or interact with much, but I suddenly am inclined to care more about it.
I do think the author, who I understand is remarkably intelligent, dumbed down the story for a wide audience. I think the book could have been 100-150 pages shorter because her points are hammered down so many times. At times, it was like Kuang was moralizing to me instead of June. Her heavy-handed style seemed to oversimplify the main points that she kept returning to; it became redundant. At some point, you start to think to yourself, “Ok, I get it, let’s move on.” It’s unfortunate because the book was so airtight, but then slowly starts to unravel and lose that punchy quality.
I liked it. I’d recommend it. I just wish the author didn’t doubt the intelligence of her audience.
Such a clever and well written story. Kuang was brilliant for telling this story through the voice of a first person unreliable narrator. The main character’s monologue almost subtly guides the reader into doubting their own presuppositions about diversity, cultural appropriation/appreciation, cancel culture, racism, and social media discourse. This book single handedly pulled me out of a reading slump; the flow and pacing of the first 75-80% of the story whisks you along. It’s like a train disaster; you hate it, but you you can’t look away. Yellowface is an engaging and well-constructed novel that reads almost like a thriller.
It’s also very impressive how this book sparks a conversation about such a niche topic (the publishing industry) while still appealing to the mass market. I’m suddenly fascinated by the politics of publishing and what authors have to do to get published. Truthfully, that’s not a world I know or interact with much, but I suddenly am inclined to care more about it.
I do think the author, who I understand is remarkably intelligent, dumbed down the story for a wide audience. I think the book could have been 100-150 pages shorter because her points are hammered down so many times. At times, it was like Kuang was moralizing to me instead of June. Her heavy-handed style seemed to oversimplify the main points that she kept returning to; it became redundant. At some point, you start to think to yourself, “Ok, I get it, let’s move on.” It’s unfortunate because the book was so airtight, but then slowly starts to unravel and lose that punchy quality.
I liked it. I’d recommend it. I just wish the author didn’t doubt the intelligence of her audience.