Yellowface
White lies. Dark humor. Deadly consequences… Bestselling sensation Juniper Song is not who she says she is, she didn’t write the book she claims she wrote, and she is most certainly not Asian American—in this chilling and hilariously cutting novel from R.F. Kuang, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Babel.
Authors June Hayward and Athena Liu were supposed to be twin rising stars. But Athena’s a literary darling. June Hayward is literally 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: she steals 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? Doesn’t this piece of history deserve to be told, whoever the teller? That’s what June claims, and the New York Times bestseller list seems to agree.
But June can’t get away from Athena’s shadow, and emerging evidence threatens to bring June’s (stolen) success down around her. As June races to protect her secret, she discovers exactly how far she will go to keep what she thinks she deserves.
With its totally immersive first-person voice, Yellowface grapples with questions of diversity, racism, and cultural appropriation, as well as the terrifying alienation of social media. R.F. Kuang’s novel is timely, razor-sharp, and eminently readable.
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R. F. Kuang
R. F. Kuang's writing brims with the raw power of both history and imagination, drawing readers into worlds where myth and reality collide in deeply resonant ways. Born in Guangzhou, China, and raised in the United States, she has long navigated the complexities of multiple cultures—an experience that shines through in her work, where identity, power, and the shadows of history play out on the page.
Kuang's debut, The Poppy War, quickly became a standout in modern fantasy, not just for its gripping story but for its unflinching exploration of war, trauma, and the human spirit. Set in a world inspired by 20th-century China, the novel blends elements of military fantasy with deeply personal stories, examining the effects of war on individuals and societies. Her meticulous world-building and unapologetically brutal narrative choices set her apart in a crowded genre, earning her critical acclaim and a growing fanbase.
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