egonz15 's review for:

Yellowface by R.F. Kuang

5.0

dark fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

---

 Holy whiteness. I went into Yellowface knowing it was supposed to be good, but I never actually looked at the summary, so I wasn’t prepared for how hard this would hit. I am shooketh. This book immediately made me think of American Dirt and its controversy, and of my own work in immigration law, where I’ve seen white women co-opt the stories of non-white folks to build their own careers. Kuang captures that dynamic so precisely that I felt like I was reading real life. 

 

From a bird’s-eye view, the novel is about self-justification. June is the kind of “well-intentioned” white woman who swears she’s liberal and progressive, but when pressed, she gravitates toward conservative rhetoric and communities that validate her insecurities. The book becomes a chilling portrait of how entitlement, jealousy, and white woman tears can transform into power and protection. And that’s exactly why June feels so real to me — because I know women like her. I’ve seen the ways they evade accountability while demanding sympathy. 

 

Spoilers below: 

June steals Athena’s manuscript and convinces herself it’s a form of reparation. She rationalizes her theft so completely that some readers even sympathize with her — which, to me, is exactly the point. It shows how whiteness garners endless benefit of the doubt, while women of color like Athena must be flawless to deserve respect. Whether Athena was perfect or not is beside the point. June built her success on someone else’s work, and watching her “justify” it while her world unravels was both maddening and brilliantly rendered.

 

For me, this is a five-star read. Kuang knows exactly what she’s doing, and she nails it