Thank you to Tiny Reparations for sharing a copy in exchange for my honest review.
History is told by the conquerors. Across the Western world, museums display the spoils of war, of conquest, of colonialism: priceless pieces of art looted from other countries, kept even now. Will Chen plans to steal them back. A senior at Harvard, Will fits comfortably in his carefully curated roles: a perfect student, an art history major and sometimes artist, the eldest son who has always been his parents’ American Dream. But when a mysterious Chinese benefactor reaches out with an impossible—and illegal—job offer, Will finds himself something else as well: the leader of a heist to steal back five priceless Chinese sculptures, looted from Beijing centuries ago. His crew is every heist archetype one can imagine—or at least, the closest he can get. A con artist: Irene Chen, a public policy major at Duke who can talk her way out of anything. A thief: Daniel Liang, a premed student with steady hands just as capable of lockpicking as suturing. A getaway driver: Lily Wu, an engineering major who races cars in her free time. A hacker: Alex Huang, an MIT dropout turned Silicon Valley software engineer. Each member of his crew has their own complicated relationship with China and the identity they’ve cultivated as Chinese Americans, but when Will asks, none of them can turn him down. Because if they succeed? They earn fifty million dollars—and a chance to make history. But if they fail, it will mean not just the loss of everything they’ve dreamed for themselves but yet another thwarted attempt to take back what colonialism has stolen. This is the first review I've written in like... ever? And WOW, I could not have chosen a better book to get back on the bandwagon for. Portrait of a Thief is brilliant, emotional, tightly paced, and wound up in all my heartstrings. The novel follows a group of college students who become hired thieves exploring questions of cultural ownership, loyalty, family, and national identity. I've always been fascinated by museums and the art world, which is maybe why this book hit so hard for me, but I think it would be tough to avoid getting invested in Li's compelling characters and authentic portrayal of their different relationships to the mission that ties them together. Every heist needs a leader, a hacker, a driver, a thief, and a con artist. Now, what I love most about Portrait of a Thief is it takes these complicated tropes and archetypes and nuances them, because in addition to their different feelings about criminality, all of the characters are children of the Chinese diaspora, wanting to relate to a country that feels both familiar and alien to all of them through family relationships and cultural significance. As mentioned in the synopsis, a central argument of Portrait of a Thief is the impact of colonialist mentalities on museum collections around the world. What happens when one culture feels entitled to keep stolen art in the name of academia and history, but the country of origin wants it back? I'm an Indian-American art student, so on some level I understand the desire to see museum collections repatriate artifacts they have no claim to--it's enraging to see misattributed art, or works that aren't properly explained within their cultural context because they've been looted. On the other hand, I don't believe that all artwork should automatically be displayed only within its country of origin--so many people would lose the opportunity to see global art because of lack of access to travel, or the risk in transporting priceless art overseas. Museums with global collections are a wonderful concept, linking art from many countries in this way. But I digress. My point is, Portrait of a Thief gave me space to explore the implications of both schools of thought, and allowed me to develop my own opinion based on the actions of the characters. It's such a brilliant book precisely because it joins entertainment with the urge to form original thought. Li's prose is brilliant--each chapter is incisive and powerful. I was truly immersed in the story, and I would definitely read a sequel or spinoff. The pacing works--the heists aren't always very well planned, which is to be expected since college students don't typically seem like the best option for hired thieves. In the end, there was more than one surprising twist, but I wasn't reading for shock value and it didn't seem as though that was the goal of Li's writing either. I came away feeling more like I'd read an introspective literary novel than a high-stakes heist thriller. If you're looking for schematic diagrams and high-tech thievery, perhaps this isn't the novel for you. The thing to remember about Portrait of a Thief is that the crimes serve a purpose, and aren't the main focus of the story. The point is to ask questions about cultural identity, art ownership, and the lasting legacy of colonialism. I'm giving Portrait of a Thief 5/5 stars--this is one of my favorite books of 2022 already. Go pick it up! (And while you're at it, visit a nearby museum and look at some art. I guarantee you'll have fun.)
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The BaronessHey, I'm Shreya! I love to read, write, travel, and drink tea. Disclosure: I am an affiliate of bookshop.org and I will earn a small commission if you click the above link and make a purchase.
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