I like fiction about terrible people (see also: The White Lotus), so Yellowface by R.F. Kuang was fun for me. The book is about two friends – one Asian (Athena Liu), the other white (June Hayward) – who come up together through university, both pursuing authorship. When Athena dies unexpectedly at home, June – spurred by jealousy and self-pity – steals her brilliant (natch) work in progress and publishes it under the name Juniper Song. Then, she slowly begins to unravel.
This is a novel for the social media age. Indeed, it contains ample “Twitter” posts as part of the narrative. The characters speak and act the way people online often do – cutting, condescending, self-aggrandizing, and cruel. The narrative is fast-paced, so if you have no attention span left from scrolling, this is the book for you. I got the benefits of Schadenfreude, watching an entire cast of unlikable characters undermine, gossip about, hurl accusations at, steal from, plagiarize from, and doxx each other.
The book has been controversial amongst readers, but only in the “Twitter controversy” way. That is, readers seem to be arguing more about the identity politics inherent in the book’s premise than in discussing the writing, character development, cutting commentary on social media, and shitty practices in the publishing industry depicted in it. Either way, I thought it was a great premise for a novel, and I especially love the touch of magical realism that kept me questioning what really happened for the entire novel.
My criticism of Yellowface is two-fold: first, the ending was deeply unsatisfying. After the climax, I kept waiting for something more. It never came, and then, the book ended. This leads me to believe that the novel was less about the story and more of a vehicle for Kuang to hash out her beliefs – about racism, publishing, Chinese history and politics, and class. Which, fine. Those are all worthy topics, but IMO, fiction addresses issues best when it’s human-centered. This book felt issue-centered.
Regardless, I enjoyed reading it. There was a lot of delectable snark and, as I said, I like stories about assholes. Yellowface checked a lot of boxes for me, and I definitely recommend it, just be prepared not to have an ending that provides closure on these characters and their drama.