Rating: 5/5 stars
Goodreads Synopsis: Authors June Hayward and Athena Liu were supposed to be twin rising stars: same year at Yale, same debut year in publishing. But Athena’s a cross-genre literary darling, and June didn’t even get a paperback release. Nobody 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. 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.
Review: Yellowface is a suspenseful novel sitting on the edge of psychological horror. It’s a haunting tale about a lonely writer putting everything at risk to attain the one thing in her life that means everything to her. Kuang has captured that feeling of desperation and created the worst possible scenario that could ever materialize in any artist’s life. She touches on the vulnerability of an aspiring best-selling author, the reality of the book industry, and the cultural and political pressures in the artist’s world that can hinder the creative process altogether.
“A musician needs to be heard; a writer needs to be read. I want to move people’s hearts…I want the world to wait with bated breath for what I will say next. I want my words to last forever.”
I found Kuang’s novel to be the therapeutic fictional memoir I needed for creative motivation. In many ways this novel was relatable — the desire June had to get noticed as a writer after years of trying, the inability to come up with fresh ideas which then led to desperation.
“…when you’re struggling to come up with a concept, the hours feel suffocating, accusatory. Time should be flying by as you sit wild-eyed at your laptop, possessed by the muse, pouring out your magnum opus. Instead the seconds creep to a halt.”
But I especially loved the way Kuang sprinkled in small but effective tips to help a writer, both practically and mentally:
“I once met a poet who carried a tiny notebook everywhere she went and wrote down at least one quippy observation about every encounter she had throughout the day.”
“My therapist taught me once that the best way to deal with panic-inducing flashbacks is to think of them as scenes from a horror movie. Jump scares are terrifying the first time you see them because they catch you off guard, and because you don’t know what to expect. But once you watch them again and again, once you know exactly when the demon-possessed nun jumps out from behind the corner, they lose their power over you.”
And maybe you’re a writer, or you’re struggling to find a job, or for different reasons, you cannot acquire a job but you try your best to busy yourself in a hobby or work of other kinds but struggle with self-motivation or you’re just stuck creatively, you may relate to this quote:
“I have nothing to do. Nothing to write, nothing with which to distract myself. Most days I occupy myself with housework, counting down the minutes until the distraction of my next mealtime. I water my plants. I arrange my mugs. I can make the ritual of consuming a microwave lasagna last for half an hour. I envy the barista at Starbucks, the clerks at Kramers; at least they can while away the days with their dignified menial labor.”
After reading Yellowface, you’ll find yourself sympathizing with every writer whose work has been scrutinized and conspired against knowing all the thoughts, doubts, and strain involved. Imagine how difficult it would be to be for a writer whose work was torn apart, dissected, and maneuvered in a way they didn’t intend, whose art was doubted in its sincerity. And maybe the rumors are true or maybe they’re completely false and created by a resentful goon behind a screen. We’re all desperate for something, or many things, whether it be a person, an idea, a passion, a place. Whatever it is, when it comes down to it, what would you be willing to risk?
You can purchase Yellowface by Rebecca F. Kuang here.
xx
bonitappétit 