Book Review: Yellowface by R.F. Kuang

Yellowface by R.F. Kuang
Narrator: Helen Laser
Published by HarperAudio on May 16, 2023
Genres: Fiction, Contemporary Fiction
Pages: 319
Length: 8 hrs and 39 mins
Format: Audiobook
Source: Libby
Goodreads
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Authors Juniper Hayward and Athena Liu were supposed to be twin rising stars. But Athena is a literary darling while June is a nobody. Who wants stories about basic white girls?, June thinks. So when June witnesses Athena’s death in a freak accident, she acts on impulse, stealing Athena’s just-finished masterpiece, an experimental novel about the unsung contributions of Chinese laborers during World War I.
So what if June edits Athena’s novel and sends it to her agent as her own work? So what if she lets her new publisher rebrand her as Juniper Song—complete with an ambiguously ethnic author photo? This piece of history deserve to be told, whoever the teller. That is what June believes, and The New York Times bestseller list agrees.
But June cannot escape Athena’s shadow, and emerging evidence threatens her stolen success. As she races to protect her secret she discovers exactly how far she will go to keep what she thinks she deserves.

I had avoided this book for the previous two years, but when it became available at the library, I decided to check it out since I was unsure what to read. I was still upset after DNF’ing The Covenant of Water, and I said, “Why not?”

Yellowface gripped me from the start when June announced that the last evening she spent with Athena was the day Athena died, followed by the impactful scene of Athena’s stupid death, followed by June stealing Athena’s last manuscript. The book is narrated in first person from June’s point of view, which is not exactly Athena’s friend, but somebody who has grown up all these years shadowed by Athena’s success, while all June’s efforts were for nothing.

Apart from all the cultural appropriation issues that one could foresee, I especially enjoyed everything surrounding the publishing world, marketing, and social media. The characters were brought to life thanks to poignant scenes and vivid dialogues. This book was like witnessing a car crash in slow motion, getting ready for the impact.

Although June is a character we may dislike from the start, it’s easy to relate to her feelings, which are clearly expressed, such as envy and frustration, and one can only wonder what one could do to achieve the ultimate goal in life. Of course, June goes beyond what any of us could, and that’s one of the special attractions of this book: Trying to find the limits of someone who has none, someone with a very specific goal that justifies almost any means. It was an excellent exploration of the dark side of human nature, and the brilliant dialogues made this book an engrossing read.

I listened to the audio version, narrated by Helen Laser, which was exquisite.

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