A review by shaipanda
Babel: An Arcane History by R.F. Kuang
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- 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
5.0
I truly have no words to express how great this book is. it is simply an experience and despite it being dark and long and fairly academic, it is worth every last minute spent reading it.
It got a lot darker in the last 200 pages which I didn’t fully expect so definitely be aware of that but this is just a masterpiece of a book.
R F Kuang is ridiculously skilled at writing about things that she has done incredible amounts of research and study on and this is a great example of that
Just an amazing and incredibly impactful read that I will be thinking about for the foreseeable future
It got a lot darker in the last 200 pages which I didn’t fully expect so definitely be aware of that but this is just a masterpiece of a book.
R F Kuang is ridiculously skilled at writing about things that she has done incredible amounts of research and study on and this is a great example of that
Just an amazing and incredibly impactful read that I will be thinking about for the foreseeable future
Content Warnings
Graphic: Colonisation, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Torture, Xenophobia, Child abuse, Grief, Violence, Domestic abuse, Racism, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, and Racial slurs
Moderate: War, Classism, Confinement, Suicide, Sexism, Kidnapping, Slavery, and Abandonment
Minor: Vomit, Alcohol, Drug use, Police brutality, Drug abuse, and Addiction