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A best-selling novelist identified a minor character as Israeli. Some fans are canceling their orders.

JL;DR SUMMARY Bestselling author Rebecca R.F. Kuang is facing backlash after an advance copy of her upcoming novel, "Taipei Story," identified a minor character as Israeli. A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.

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Tags

Bds MovementZionismJewish RepresentationLiterary CensorshipTaipei StoryRebecca R.F. KuangBook BoycottCultural ControversiesPublishing Trends

Places mentioned

Taipei, Taiwan
"Kuang is set to publish her seventh novel, Taipei Story, in September."
China
"Rebecca R. F. Kuang, the Chinese-American author of the 2023 satirical novel Yellowface and The Poppy War trilogy, is set to publish her seventh novel."
United States
"in which even minor mentions of Israel or Israelis are enough to land authors on boycott lists."
Israel
"Kuangs inclusion of the Israeli character reflects a trend in the literary world."
Taiwan
"a young Chinese-American woman on an intensive summer language program in Taiwan."
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
"she withdrew from an appearance at a literature festival in Dubai, citing a call from the BDS movement."

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Cairo Item ID 81576
Cairo Source ID 42
Retrieved 2026-05-05 18:00:31 UTC
Curated 2026-05-05 19:00:41 UTC