A review by liznperry15
Yellowface by R.F. Kuang

challenging dark mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

I was pretty sure this book was getting 5 stars within the first few chapters. R.F. Kuang’s writing makes me ache it’s so good.  This whole idea is genius and ballsy, and I have so much respect for it. The discomfort I had while reading the character’s perspective while also wrestling with the authorship and appropriation issues from the other authors in the story, too, was poignant. I love that she referenced the critiques of her own work:
“I think the way we learn about history in classrooms is so antiseptic. It makes those struggles feel so far away, like they could never happen to us, like we would never make the same decisions that the people in those textbooks did. I want to bring those bloody histories to the fore. I want to make the reader confront how close to the present those histories still are.” Thank you for your stories R.F. Kuang!