Book Review: Yellowface by R.F. Kuang (Spoiler Alert)

"The truth is fluid. There is always another way to spin the story, another wrench to throw into the narrative. I have learned this now, if nothing else."

- Yellowface by R.F Kuang

As part of the Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, my public library had a section dedicated to books by Asian authors, encompassing both classic and contemporary fiction, memoirs and other non fiction books. This novel with its bright yellow cover instantly grabbed my attention and made me curious. I have heard about this recent book in many online avenues and wanted to know what the hype was about. And frankly, there were a lot of insights and wisdom I gained from this work of fiction.

This book is a contemporary tell-all about the world of book publishing, describing in details the trials and tribulations one has to face, and the hurdles to be jumped in order to get a book published, but even more importantly, about staying relevant in the literary scene. The significance of social media marketing, pre-order hype, Goodreads review and many other things that contribute to the success of a newly released book in modern world is described in vivid details, giving the audience a sneak peek at behind the scenes. For aspiring writers like myself, these details are really helpful in a way, as they showcase the dark reality of the publishing world.

When coming to the plot, from the start itself, we the readers perceive Juniper as a narcissistic, guiltless, cold-hearted thief. As the plot plays on, we start getting more and more angrier at her and her (lack of) conscience. This goes on until over halfway through the novel. Then like a switch flipped on, right after we get to know what transpired during her freshman year of college, all that hate towards her vanishes. And now suddenly, we start to despise Athena and don't feel that bad for what Juniper did to her posthumously. That is the power of fiction! It still blows my mind how mere words sewn together possess the power to influence and alter the emotions of complex creatures like us. This is the reason I want to read more and more fiction.

"Writing is the closest thing we have to real magic. Writing is creating something out of nothing, is opening doors to other lands. Writing gives you power to shape your own world when the real one hurts too much."

-Yellowface by R.F Kuang

The book serves as a testament to the fact that sometimes things aren't all black or white but rather in the grey area. The actions of others aren't entirely good or bad but rather an amalgamation of various emotions and it varies from person to person based on how much truth they know and how they judge the situation. 

Another important aspect of this book I found worthwhile is the subtle racial tension that exist beneath the fabric of American society. Even after all these years, it is still a sensitive subject and unsurprisingly, whether consciously or not, many of our judgments are still based on these perceptions. I believe the author did a great job in pointing that out in this novel. 

Overall, this book serves as a good representation for the current American society, more specifically the literary circles and offers a reality check  to the progress we have made in this field and others. 

-Rithin.