daniela_09's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Babel is immersive, passionate and critical as expected of R. F. Kuang's incredible writing.
Graphic: Colonisation, Violence, Suicide, Racism, Murder, Hate crime, Death of parent, Racial slurs, War, Cultural appropriation, Pandemic/Epidemic, Drug use, Xenophobia, Slavery, Panic attacks/disorders, Misogyny, and Grief
sharrikloves's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: War, Xenophobia, Racial slurs, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Genocide, Classism, Violence, Toxic friendship, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Panic attacks/disorders, Misogyny, Murder, Slavery, Racism, Religious bigotry, Physical abuse, Grief, Gore, Gaslighting, Cultural appropriation, and Colonisation
Moderate: Car accident, Ableism, Sexual harassment, Vomit, Medical content, Suicidal thoughts, Religious bigotry, Drug use, Death, Child death, Emotional abuse, and Death of parent
This is an important read, but will be extremely triggering for AAPI + BIPOC readers.elenaluisa's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Murder, Blood, Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Child abuse, Colonisation, Classism, Deportation, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Gaslighting, Violence, Racism, Misogyny, Bullying, Classism, Death, Death of parent, War, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, Cultural appropriation, Emotional abuse, Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, and Xenophobia
gen_wolfhailstorm's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Where do I begin. This was perfection in a novel... Bold words, I know.
This straight away reminded me of a recent read, being Jonathan strange and Mr norrel in tone, but I would say more accessible, which is funny because one of the main things I loved about this novel was how academic this was. I've always liked the idea of dark academia but always thought I'd struggle to understand the information, (probably why I leaned away from this for so long), but it was so reader friendly in its prose and so fascinating that I couldn't help pour over every word. It was so surprisingly easy to read that I barely minded the lack of consistent short chapters.
As well as being visceral in the vibe of the genre, it wasn't shy on having substance.
The plot was thick and intricate, with threads of conspiracies and beautiful detailing on the science behind silver-working (the magic system in this world). The conversations on interpretation, colonialism, building into a corrupt Empire was just so powerful to read about.
The victorian setting was lush, filled with jaw dropping descriptions of an imagined Oxford in what you could call this alternate history, and the early tour of the Institue of Language itself was fascinating.
Speaking of language, the etymology was so thorough, fascinating and deep. I loved seeing how different languages connected, and in this case, paired together to create something quite magical, yet equally dangerous in the wrong (and of course, powerful) hands.
Our characters..Oh what can I say that hasn'y been said before?
I Ioved the friendship demonstrated here, especially between Robin and Ramy. Seeing our main four characters explore Babel from their varying and diverse perspectives and as novice scholars of language was such a delight.
I appreciated getting interludes of the other threes upbringing and history, because the story is mainly told from Robin's perspective, so it was nice to change it up a bit and appreciate a bit more of the other characters. Even if we didn't have that, I could never accuse Robin, Ramy, Victoire and Letty of being flat characters. They felt real.
The whole time, pacing was brilliant. This was especially noticed at times when I was listening to the audio.
I feel like I learned so much during my time in this world. I'm left heartbroken and in awe at the sheer aduacity of excellence R.F. Kuang had in crafting this whole piece together. Coming into this as the first novel I've read from this author, I now understand that all the praise is well deserved and I look forward to trying out her other novels.
A note on the audio - the voices and accents the narrator could flit between was so impressive. He sounded like a BBC news reporter for the first time, but this was quite endearing as time went on.
I loved blended reading this one (physical and audio). It felt like my own little match-pair.
Graphic: Vomit, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Racism, Gaslighting, Xenophobia, Hate crime, Suicide attempt, Trafficking, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Torture, War, Colonisation, Misogyny, Toxic friendship, Child abuse, Classism, Death of parent, Deportation, Religious bigotry, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Grief, Death, Slavery, Blood, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Racial slurs, Bullying, Cultural appropriation, and Cursing
Minor: Alcohol, Car accident, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, and Addiction
stephlikestoread's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Bullying, Child death, Child abuse, Classism, Colonisation, Confinement, Cultural appropriation, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Slavery, Toxic friendship, Torture, War, and Vomit
cardboard's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Racism, Sexism, Misogyny, Grief, Gaslighting, Colonisation, Xenophobia, Suicidal thoughts, Physical abuse, Suicide, Classism, Death of parent, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Slavery, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Violence, Torture, Bullying, Deportation, Murder, Gun violence, and Blood
Minor: Cursing, Addiction, Death, Alcohol, and Cultural appropriation
alisonvh's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Misogyny, Torture, Xenophobia, Racism, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Bullying, Violence, Racial slurs, Sexism, Suicide, Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Addiction, Religious bigotry, Physical abuse, Infidelity, Gun violence, Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment, War, Drug use, Islamophobia, Death, Toxic friendship, and Terminal illness
cassiacow's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Some may find it slow in the beginning - but the second half of the book the pace turns right up. This book is written with such a deep love for languages and the magic system is so clever that this book has been resonating in my mind for most of the time that I've been reading it.
This is a book about colonization and power, but also about contradictions - translation as tools of empire, but also as tools of managing the self. The difficulty of existing in a society that doesn't tolerate you - of contributing to structures of power that marginalise people like you. It's also a book about meaning - the meaning of words, the meaning of power, the meaning of the self.
RF Kuang is a genius and I could not put this book down.
Graphic: Racial slurs, Xenophobia, Violence, and Racism
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Panic attacks/disorders
cheye13's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Reading this felt more like historical fiction than anything else. Events and timelines too closely mirrored real history to leave any true hope throughout the story, but it was still heartening to watch the characters try.
Given the synopsis, I had actually hoped for more focus on the language element, more linguistic theory, whether true or invented. Compelling and important novel nonetheless.
Graphic: Xenophobia, Violence, Colonisation, Death of parent, Suicide, Death, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Child abuse, Murder, and Torture
Moderate: War, Blood, Sexism, Slavery, Grief, Racial slurs, Car accident, Cultural appropriation, Gore, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Confinement, Panic attacks/disorders, Deportation, and Toxic friendship
lauragarabedian's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
Moderate: War, Violence, Slavery, Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, Cursing, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Toxic friendship, Suicide, Islamophobia, Infidelity, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Colonisation, Addiction, Abandonment, Racism, Trafficking, Suicidal thoughts, Racial slurs, Physical abuse, Grief, Drug abuse, Classism, Misogyny, Hate crime, Drug use, Death, Sexual harassment, Sexism, Police brutality, Murder, Mass/school shootings, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, Deportation, Cultural appropriation, Bullying, Blood, and Alcohol