“Be selfish," he whispered. "Be brave.”
― R.F. Kuang, Babel, Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution
What's it about?
Babel was my most anticipated and loved read of 2022. I have been a fan of R.F Kuang for many years, having devoured the Poppy War series, so I was especially thrilled to find she had written a new book based in the country I live in, around a topic I find fascinating. This book did not disappoint, it was educational, informative, uncomfortable, and a complete heartbreaker. I was fortunate enough to read this with a friend and I am so glad we were able to discuss and analyze these complex characters in real time together. Kuang has this magical ability to create characters that are both deeply loveable and incredibly flawed all at once.
I found myself growing angry with Robin for his acceptance of Prof. Lovell's abuse and rejection, I wanted Robin to stand up and fight back, and demand respect, but of course, Ms. Kuang had a much better journey for Robin planned. The revelations were perfectly pitched throughout the book and I was often surprised at the direction that the characters chose to take. I was genuinely shocked and outraged at some of the behavior of the characters and by the end, I was sobbing, but I understood why it had to end as it did.
I think as a white woman this book was a hard but necessary read. It allowed me to have discussions with my friend about our own privilege and race while analyzing the parts of characters like Letty that we internally accept without even realizing we do so. Kuang was able to showcase throughout the book how sometimes racism is the simple act of not noticing the struggles of your BIPOC friends. I recommend this book to anyone interested in language and linguistics. The world-building is incredibly well done and Kuang paints a perfectly clear picture of the class differences between colonizing and colonized nations.
It isn't often I say this - but I hope we never return to Babel. It was a perfect stand-alone book that needs no additional explanations. I have recommended this to anyone who will listen.
“This is how colonialism works. It convinces us that the fallout from resistance is entirely our fault, that the immoral choice is resistance itself rather than the circumstances that demanded it.”
― R.F. Kuang, Babel, Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution
“I suppose we decided to be girls because being boys seems to require giving up half your brain cells.”
― R.F. Kuang, Babel, or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution
My Thoughts...
Babel was my most anticipated and loved read of 2022. I have been a fan of R.F Kuang for many years, having devoured the Poppy War series, so I was especially thrilled to find she had written a new book based in the country I live in, around a topic I find fascinating. This book did not disappoint, it was educational, informative, uncomfortable, and a complete heartbreaker. I was fortunate enough to read this with a friend and I am so glad we were able to discuss and analyze these complex characters in real time together. Kuang has this magical ability to create characters that are both deeply loveable and incredibly flawed all at once.
“We're here to make magic with words”
― R.F. Kuang, Babel, Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution
I found myself growing angry with Robin for his acceptance of Prof. Lovell's abuse and rejection, I wanted Robin to stand up and fight back, and demand respect, but of course, Ms. Kuang had a much better journey for Robin planned. The revelations were perfectly pitched throughout the book and I was often surprised at the direction that the characters chose to take. I was genuinely shocked and outraged at some of the behavior of the characters and by the end, I was sobbing, but I understood why it had to end as it did.
“We are foreign because this nation has marked us so, and as long as we’re punished daily for our ties to our homelands, we might as well defend them. No, Letty, we can’t maintain this fantasy. The only one who can do that is you.”
― R.F. Kuang, Babel, Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution
I think as a white woman this book was a hard but necessary read. It allowed me to have discussions with my friend about our own privilege and race while analyzing the parts of characters like Letty that we internally accept without even realizing we do so. Kuang was able to showcase throughout the book how sometimes racism is the simple act of not noticing the struggles of your BIPOC friends. I recommend this book to anyone interested in language and linguistics. The world-building is incredibly well done and Kuang paints a perfectly clear picture of the class differences between colonizing and colonized nations.
It isn't often I say this - but I hope we never return to Babel. It was a perfect stand-alone book that needs no additional explanations. I have recommended this to anyone who will listen.
Recommendations - if you liked these books, check out:
Poppy Wars - R. F. Kuang
The Book Eaters - Sunyi Dean
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow - Gabrielle Zevin
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