Title: Babel
Author: R.F Kuang
Genre: Historical Fantasy
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Pages: 560
Release Date: 1 September
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Hello fellow book lovers, today I’m back to share my review of Babel, or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators’ Revolution (Babel for short.) An impressively complex and ambitious book I that didn’t want to put down.
The newest release from bestselling author R.F. Kuang is a highly masterful, dark academia which explores themes such as identity, class, racism, colonialism and the power of language.
Synopsis
Traduttore, traditore: An act of translation is always an act of betrayal.
1828. Robin Swift, orphaned by cholera in Canton, is brought to London by the mysterious Professor Lovell. There, he trains for years in Latin, Ancient Greek, and Chinese, all in preparation for the day he'll enroll in Oxford University's prestigious Royal Institute of Translation — also known as Babel.
Babel is the world's center of translation and, more importantly, of silver-working: the art of manifesting the meaning lost in translation through enchanted silver bars, to magical effect. Silver-working has made the British Empire unparalleled in power, and Babel's research in foreign languages serves the Empire's quest to colonize everything it encounters.
Oxford, the city of dreaming spires, is a fairytale for Robin; a utopia dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge. But knowledge serves power, and for Robin, a Chinese boy raised in Britain, serving Babel inevitably means betraying his motherland. As his studies progress Robin finds himself caught between Babel and the shadowy Hermes Society, an organization dedicated to sabotaging the silver-working that supports imperial expansion. When Britain pursues an unjust war with China over silver and opium, Robin must decide: Can powerful institutions be changed from within, or does revolution always require violence? What is he willing to sacrifice to bring Babel down?
Babel — a thematic response to The Secret History and a tonal response to Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell — grapples with student revolutions, colonial resistance, and the use of translation as a tool of empire.
Review
It’s difficult to put into words just how important this book is, with it’s exquisite attention to detail and the meticulous research (both historical and etymological.) It’s an unflinchingly honest and emotionally compelling portrayal of the everyday experiences of diasporic communities, and the harm that racism, sexism and the legacy of colonialism causes. It’s an emotional read but one I’m absolutely glad to have experienced.
It’s told almost exclusively from Robin’s perspective which allows us to place ourselves in Robin’s shoes; experiencing every struggle, dilemma, every moment of grief or joy which made for a far more emotional and thought provoking read than I had anticipated.
I absolutely loved Robin who was such a relatable and endearing character—I could help but empathise with all the challenges and double standards he’s forced to face, alongside Ramiz and Victoire. They were all exquisitely well developed characters (even Letty and Professor Lovell, both of whom I found dislikable were full of depth) with reactions and responses to certain circumstances that felt incredibly realistic—though excruciatingly heartbreaking at times.
I’m honestly in awe of R.F Kuang’s intricately woven narrative and the complexity of each character’s ties to Babel and its oppressive, magic based system. I’m actually still reeling from that phenomenal ending which had me in an emotional chokehold the entire time.
I haven’t read any of R.F Kuang’s other books yet but I’ve been told by fellow reviewers that Babel is definitely tamer than The Poppy Wars but I’d still recommend checking trigger warnings before reading just in case.
Honestly this is a book that needs to be experienced to be truly understood and I, honestly still can’t quite convey just how amazing and deeply emotional this was!
It’s definitely a bit of a slow-burn though, so if slower-paced, academia based books aren’t really your thing then this might not be enjoyable for you (especially as it’s well over 500 pages) but, if you love dark academia or historical fiction then I highly recommend picking this up, it’s Magnificent!
Also, a huge thank you to Harper Voyager and Netgalley for the e-arc
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
About The Author
Rebecca F. Kuang is a Marshall Scholar, Chinese-English translator, and the Astounding Award-winning and the Hugo, Nebula, Locus, and World Fantasy Award nominated author of the Poppy War trilogy and the forthcoming Babel.
Her work has won the Crawford Award and the Compton Crook Award for Best First Novel. She has an MPhil in Chinese Studies from Cambridge and an MSc in Contemporary Chinese Studies from Oxford; she is now pursuing a PhD in East Asian Languages and Literatures at Yale, where she studies diaspora, contemporary Chinese literature, and Asian American literature.
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