Babel, or The Necessity of Violence

4.5.

literally one of the best books ive ever read 10/10 ending tbh

This book was outstanding! Very thought provoking, and impressively researched.

I really liked the very technical parts that went over some origins of words and/or their meanings lost in translation. The story itself was very captivating and I loved the various character's points of views on colonialism. Even the ones who shared viewpoints held them in various shades.

This had been on my ‘To Read' shelf for a while and was a fantastic birthday gift from my sister :)

This book has a very unique and interesting premise. The writing and characters held my interest through out and the ending was propulsive. I look forward to reading other books by this author and recommend this one to readers who like historical/literary fantasy.

4.5

I loved this so much probably my fav read of 2023 but Rebecca Kuang did not gaf about Victoire

While reading the reviews on the jacket of Babel, I noticed one word kept popping up: masterpiece.  That's a pretty weighty word to throw around.  To me a masterpiece is something that not only achieves everything that it sets out to do but redefines the field that it's in while doing so.  I was fairly skeptical that the bookwould actually live up to the expectations placed on it by that word.  After all, very few pieces of media in general could be considered masterpieces.  And yet now that I have finished reading it I have to say that Babel is in fact a masterpiece.  As with most great books    As with most works of this quality, I find it hard to describe just why Babel is so good, so I'll just start by going over the basics.  Babel initially appears to be a Harry Potter-esque book about a boy rescued from a rough situation at home and whisked away to a magical school where he meets new friends and has great adventures.  But it quickly becomes far more ambitious and serious.  I will give my first of many praises to author R.F. Kuang here for escalating the scope of her story in a way that feels natural.  She allows us to get used to the existing plot before expanding our horizons again and again, taking the reader across many topics without making them feel overwhelmed.  For a book that takes on issues such as racism, sexism, colonialism, war, labor unions while also inventing a new magic system, that is a genuinely remarkable feat.  While the transitions can sometimes feel a bit clunky, this is a pretty smooth 540+ pages and I don't think many writers have the sheer narrative skill to weave these difficult topics together in a way that doesn't feel forced.  What makes this work even better is that at no point does the book stop becoming a genuine joy to read.  There are times when I have read fantasy stories like this one that I feel bored or disinterested when bigger issues come into the fray.  Not all writers can make the reader face serious societal issues while also keeping them entertained, but Kuang has done that in spades here.    Of course, all of what I said above wouldn't mean anything if the characters and setting that exist within the narrative fail.  Luckily they don't.  One really smart choice that Kuang makes is that she keeps the list of important characters pretty small.  In a story of this scope it's easy to introduce a massive cast of characters but Kuang doesn't do that, instead opting to focus more on each individual character (this reminds me of what N.K. Jemisin did with her ‘Broken Earth' trilogy).  The protagonist Robin is an obvious standout here as someone we see grow into someone truly willing to be a martyr, even if for not the greatest of reasons.  Other highlights are Ramy, Letty and Victoire (who make up Robin's group of friends), Griffin (Robin's half-brother who introduces him to work as a vigilante) and Professor Lovell (Robin's father).  This is a seriously strong group of characters and they all feel tremendously realized.  Some of them meet tragic fates, but we get so much time with them beforehand that I don't find myself missing them after they depart the narrative.  That's not to mention Oxford, which feels like a character as well.  Kuang herself has studied at Oxford, so it's no wonder that she's able to make the college so vibrant and full of life (similar to how Leigh Bardugo has made Yale such a fun fantasy setting in her ‘Alex Stern' series).  Setting is such a crucial part of a fantasy novel, whether it be partially based on real life or totally fictional, and Kuang makes Oxford an extremely enjoyable place to transport oneself into.     I'm in genuine awe that this book is as good as it is.  Going into it I wasn't sure if I was going to enjoy it but I've been completely blown away.  I can say without hesitation that it's one of the best books I've ever read, and I heavily look forward to checking out Kuang's ‘Poppy War' trilogy as a result.  She's made me a very big fan of her work. 

This just broke me. It honestly deserves a more thorough review but I feel too wrecked to be able to make it justice. If you like historical fiction with a dash of magic, in an academic setting, with plenty of sociopolitical commentary? This one is for you.

Made it to the 20% mark and still cant figure out why this is classified as science fiction or fantasy. This part is strictly fiction with a desire to talk about translation and the life of a young person in a foreign land.

And where's the plot that this huge tomb is supposed to be conveying?

What an abuse of a reader's and narrator's time! And if in paper what a waste of trees and chemicals!

In early victorian England, foreign translators at Oxford try to take on the empire, which works on a translation-based kind of magic that involves silver bars. Many times, we think it's all over for our protagonists, and they receive a miraculous rescue, it's quite gutting. Until at the end, they don't.

I liked it, the magic is very clever, the parallels to our real world are there, although events have been altered. There's still an opium war, an abolitionist movement, English exceptionalism and disdain for others, all the loathsome things that make up British Empire.

This book has some pretty powerful comparisons to rl. I do feel like there was over explanations and a lack of varying perspectives/character depth but outside of that I really enjoyed it. The epilogue did leave me wanting more. I know more books aren't planned but hopefully we get a little something

Did I finish this book or did it finish me?��

Overall enjoyable if a little plodding at times. On the one hand, an interesting indictment of colonialism. On the other hand, its strike feels strangely Randian. For a while, I found it a little frustrating that the novel introduced this fantastical element but had history play out the same, but towards the end, I was struck with how much of an allegory it is, with silver standing in for lithium.

We meet the main character of this book, Robin Swift, when he is a young boy dying of cholera in a house in Guangzhou (referred to as Canton), China. His mother has already died, and he is close to death, when an Englishman comes into his house and touches him with a mysterious silver bar that heals him. The Englishman, Professor Lovell, assumes guardianship of the boy, has him pick an English sounding name (we never learn the boy's real name), and brings him back to England to be educated in Latin, Greek, and Mandarin. Everything seems fine, if strange, until Robin neglects his studies one day to finish reading a novel he had started, and Professor Lovell beats him viciously as punishment. It becomes clear to us, if not to Robin, that Professor Lovell is not a benefactor. He is educating Robin for a purpose and Robin is not to be allowed to stray from that purpose at all.

Eventually Robin is sent to Oxford, to the prestigious Royal Institute of Translation, or Babel. He and the three other entering “Babblers,” two of whom are foreign born like him, become close friends as they endure the rigors of their first year at university. Robin, however, encounters a boy, Griffin, who knows some of the secrets of Professor Lovell and Babel, and draws him into a nerve-wracking and disturbing double life.

This epic novel is the story of the friendship of those 4 students, a story about colonialism and exploitation at work in people's lives, and the story of the ways people attempt to deal (or not deal) with such all-encompassing forces. It also involves fascinating discussions of etymology and the power of translation. As a librarian I love a good footnote, and this book delivers footnotes! I felt like the book verged on preachy when it came to the central conflict between the friends, but that feeling faded as the story developed.

If you like a nice, fat, complex novel that takes you to surprising places, this is a good one!

I initially loved this book. The magic system is interesting. I actually liked the footnotes. I liked the underlying tension.

And then the preaching started.

At 62%, I knew I couldn't give it more than 3 stars.

Now that I've completed it, I hate it. It has huge potential, but it's ruined by the author's urge to lecture. If you hated Atlas Shrugged for the speeches, this is didactic like that, but lacks the clarity or hope.

And, of course, there's all the little r racism. Lack of power doesn't excuse the moral corruption.

a very good and clearly very personal book, written by someone with such an innate understanding of the subjects at hand (namely language/translation, academia, and the role of race in colonial powers) that it's hard not to get swept up in it even when you can't personally relate or understand some of the specifics. the worldbuilding it both really fascinating but in some ways frustrating - the idea of silver is unique, but its effects on the world and history at large are understandable yet limited. the exact political stance this book takes is also a little unclear to me, particularly in how effective a revolution is, or whether the only way it can be brought about is violence. the ambiguity in the epilogue as to what the result of robin's actions are leaves this a bit unclear, and i would really love to read a followup that takes place years in the future that could imagine a world where it's almost like the industrial revolution was stopped in its tracks, or one in which the opium wars might have never taken place? still, i had a great time reading this - loveable (and hateable) characters, an interesting world, and a story that becomes pretty gripping and fast paced by its end even if its a bit slower to start.

Rating this one in the middle as I'm having trouble putting my thoughts together. I really enjoyed the setting and the topic of languages, however, my brain is quite tired these days and I just couldn't get into the story as much as I wanted to.

Robin Swift is brought to London by Professor Lovell to study various languages. His linguistics skills will eventually bring him into the ‘Babel' program. While Oxford begins as a dream, Robin soon begins to realize's he's being split between Babel and his ancestry.

I think I would have enjoyed this more as an audiobook. There was a lot of information and intricacies that I would enjoy in a clearer mindset. I also struggled to connect to any of the characters. This was definitely a case where I enjoyed the setting and the idea behind it the most. I might revisit the audiobook some other time when I have more time to take it in slowly. 

For what? This book was this long for what? There was not nearly enough story to warrant this many pages of boredom. The etymology aspect was fascinating. The history and anti-colonialism was gripping. I didn't like how the 4 main characters were written though. I feel like they were shallow and one dimensional. I couldn't tell you much about them outside of their one personality trait. Letty's white woman tears, Robin's cluelessness, Ramy's disdain for the rest of the group, and I couldn't even pinpoint Victoire's personality (and she lived the longest...). Robin has a complete personality shift in the last book, but he just took the one personality trait from Griffin. It was frustrating. The magical aspect with the enchanted silver was interesting in concept, but felt corny in this setting. If this could be rewritten as just historical without the fiction, it probably would have been better for me. Or I would have much preferred to read from Griffin's perspective within the Hermes Society. This is clearly a historical period the author has studied tremendously. I don't know if she has studied character writing as thoroughly.

(2.5 stars) Overhyped on the internet to the max — did not see what all the fuss was about. Storyline was enjoyable but there was too much political/historical jargon in it for my liking. Could have easily been half the size.

This could have been a great read if there was no magic and if the characters weren't stereotypes and if it was 100 pages shorter. The world building was lacking, the magic system made zero impact and it feels pretentious. Coming off the back of “A Secret History”, this book was equally boring and drawn out.

Knowledge of language

This was a great book. The story was very interesting especially with its use of language and magic. I think some of the explanations could have been left out at times but I appreciated them being there to help me immerse myself within the story

This was devastatingly beautiful. From the complex characters to the beautiful writing to the succinct plot and to the nuanced conversations on colonialism, racism and its ties with academia, this was excellent. I truly believe that if this was a film it would turn cinema on its head.

3

This book was a ride. When reading a book I always have these moments where I think: “What rating would I give this book so far?”

This book went from a 5, to a 3. To a 4. To a 3. And a 4. And then I decided it would be a 3 after all.

You can tell that the writer has a lot of knowledge of linguistics, I even read a review saying “this is a book where Kuang is continuously flexing her knowledge” - I get why people would say this.

The beginning was intense, it immediately sucked me in. So much happened, it was gory, violent, intense... And then it just kinda fell flat (for me)? Suddenly I was in pages full of lectures and discussions about linguistics and etymology. I kept reading on a much slower pace than the beginning. My brain wasn't keeping up. At one point it even became a chore and I was thinking about DNF. Then I thought: what am I missing? This book is so highly rated. I was on page 250 and started reading reviews on Goodreads. There was literally someone who wrote: “I am currently on page 225 and I started reading reviews, because I'm not getting the hype” - At about the same point.

About 150 pages before the end, plot twists came. Stuff changed. A lot happened. I noticed myself suddenly reading the book very quickly until it, once again, started to slow down to such a way I couldn't really wait to finish the book so I could start on something new. I noticed myself quickly scanning some pages and I couldn't even be bothered to read entire footnotes anymore. I started annotating but kinda stopped halfway. I wrote down tl;dr at some footnotes. I first wasn't annoyed by the overuse of footnotes by the author, but in the end there is a page where more than 50% is a footnote. And chapter 36 (I believe...) is literally one sentence with two pages of footnotes?

Knowing the entire story, in the end, it was quite the ride. So much happened, changed, and there's definitely a underlying meaning in the entire story. But I guess, the way how dense the story was at some points, this book just wasn't for me.

Amazing portrayal of white colonial attitudes in a well researched historical fantasy setting. 

By all means, this is a brilliant book. It also was a challenging read to be sure. I usually don't love reading about history precisely because of how horrible it was and reminds you of how much it sucks today. But this book did it so well that I just had to read it. For some reason, because it was so clearly about colonisation and everything around it was what made me want to read it. 

I loved the characterisation of everyone, especially the difference between Letty and Professor Craft, in the end, was what made an impression on me. They don't make it seem like someone like Letty can only ever make the choice she did. And Robin's realisation about Canton also stuck with me long after reading that chapter. It was all just so good. 

One thing that bothered me was the ending. Not the last chapters necessarily, I had realised soon that this was the only way it could really end and which way Robin and Victoire would go in that moment. But the fact that we don't get an extended epilogue. Not knowing the future of this alternative history is so frustrating after everything they went through. I want to know what happened with the war, with Abel and the other workers, if they succeeded, if it had any impact at all. All we got saw a very poetic “we'll see”