where is the line? the scattered remains of a yellowface-induced internal crisis
The following is a book review I started writing for my bookstagram that no longer ended up becoming much of a book review and more of scattered thoughts on what makes someone Asian enough to write Asian stories. Enjoy? Yellowface by RF Kuang is a book that poses one big (unanswered) question: Where is the Line? What is the limit to what a writer can or cannot write about? Is it cultural appropriation for a white person to write a book taking place in a country they’ve never stepped foot in and whose heritage does not originate from? Is it outside of the scope for an Asian-American person to write a fictionalized account of atrocities their family experienced in Asia but they themselves never have? This seems to be a question posed to the audience and posed to author RF Kuang. And I still find myself to not be very sure. Yellowface by RF Kuang follows 100% white woman June Hayward as she rises to stardom as a young author in the literary world. Well, that is, by publi...