Book review: Yellowface by R.F. Kuang

Another trusted reader (my mum!) warned me that she didn’t finish Yellowface when she tried to read it, so I was a bit wary. This explains why I was so late to pick up this book that had attracted a lot of attention in the past few years. I think everyone has noticed the eye-catching book design with the bright yellow face on the front.

The story follows June, who unexpectedly finds herself with the opportunity to steel the work of a friend and author who she swings wildly between admiring and feeling fierce jealousy towards.

This is the start of a saga where June fulfills her dream of becoming a best-selling writer, but also encounters obstacles relating to her deception.

All of this delivers the opportunity to explore race in publishing and the wider community, including the ever-present, unpredictable and fearsome social media mob.

This is a story where there are very few likeable characters, although some that it is fun to hate.

I enjoyed how the writer, R.F. Kuang, turned racism on its head by telling the story from June’s viewpoint, exposing the (often entirely unreasonable!) reasoning behind some abhorrent thoughts and behaviours.

However, it is also a contemplation of the publishing industry and how it pits writers against each other and leads to a hyper-competitive space where writers lose all love of their craft and all good-will towards each other.