Yellowface tells the story of June Hayward, a young white author who achieves sudden fame and success after publishing a novel she claims to have co-written with her recently deceased friend, Athena Liu, a Chinese American author. 

June and Athena are both writers, but their careers couldn’t be more different. Athena is the darling of the literary world, celebrated and adored, while June languishes in obscurity. Then, in a bizarre twist of fate, June witnesses Athena choke to death on a pancake. As she awaits the paramedics, June stumbles upon Athena’s just-finished manuscript - a work no one else has seen. Seeing an opportunity, June takes the manuscript, edits it, and passes it off as a novel she co-wrote with her late friend. With the help of her publisher, June reinvents herself as June Song, crafting an ambiguous ethnic identity to bolster her newfound success. Overnight, she becomes the literary sensation she always believed she deserved to be.

But June can’t escape Athena’s shadow. Her success, built on a foundation of lies, begins to unravel as questions about the manuscript’s origins arise. As the book becomes a bestseller, it also ignites a firestorm of controversy. Accusations of cultural appropriation and plagiarism begin to circulate, dragging June into a web of deceit, public scrutiny, and moral dilemmas. What follows is June’s increasingly desperate attempt to protect her secret and the extreme lengths she’s willing to go to keep it buried.

Hailed as a masterpiece, Yellowface has garnered widespread acclaim for RF Kuang’s sharp wit and incisive critique of the publishing industry. The novel is both entertaining and thought-provoking, offering a scathing look at the hypocrisy and systemic issues within the literary world. However, some critics have accused Kuang of weaving too much of her own personal experiences into the narrative, blurring the lines between fiction and reality.

I haven’t finished the book yet, but I’m thoroughly enjoying it so far. The combination of white lies, deadly consequences, dark humour, and sheer desperation creates a gripping and intoxicating mix. Yellowface is a satirical and provocative exploration of cultural appropriation, diversity, identity, authenticity, and ethics in the publishing industry. It’s a compelling novel that uses satire to tackle serious issues, making it a significant and thought-provoking addition to contemporary literature.