Reviews tagging 'Pandemic/Epidemic'

Babel by R.F. Kuang

127 reviews

veldadraws's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous dark inspiring reflective slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder

Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Torture, Xenophobia, War, Pandemic/Epidemic

Minor: Vomit

alsoapples's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Xenophobia, Trafficking, Death of parent, Colonisation, Classism, Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Gun violence, Slavery, Torture, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Drug use

misszierose's review against another edition

5.0

challenging dark emotional inspiring tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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This is a dense, erudite, and dark book.  I truly believe everyone who loves language and books and believes in basic human rights even if people different from you should at least attempt this book.  It is so important especially in the social and political and cultural time we are currently living through.  Our choices matter.  People deserve respect.  Knowledge is power.  Who holds that power is something that can alter the whole world’s future.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Violence, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, War, Classism

Moderate: Slavery, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, Pandemic/Epidemic

20sidedbi's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Classism

Moderate: Drug use, Genocide, Infidelity, Misogyny, Slavery, Blood, Islamophobia, Trafficking, Religious bigotry, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Deportation, Pandemic/Epidemic

end3225's review against another edition

4.5

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Misogyny, Racism, Suicide, Violence, Xenophobia, Grief, Murder, Colonisation, Classism

Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual harassment, Pandemic/Epidemic

Minor: Child abuse

lotoblanco's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Racism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Pandemic/Epidemic

angorarabbit's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Is it wrong to move a book up the TBR due to it being listed on a GoodReads challenge? I am glad I read this book but I feel like the challenges are manipulating the readers. Is a book popular on GoodReads because it is good or because I am reading it to tick off one more challenge? 

 

That aside, this is a very good book. The main four characters feel very real and I can empathise with the viewpoints of all of them. It is also an important book. While languages have not been used in the method the book describes with the silver working they have been stolen in a manner not unlike the onebbnn nn nn  h described in the book. The Opium Wars were very real wars that were fought to keep the opium legal in China for the benefit of European trading companies. 

 

We can learn from history and do better, but we have to actually do better. 

 

Stolen labour, stolen land, stolen language, stolen lives. 

 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Police brutality, Gaslighting, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Classism

Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Slavery, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Cultural appropriation, War, Pandemic/Epidemic

Minor: Animal death, Sexual assault, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol

ita_am's review against another edition

4.75

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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Beautiful and interesting but so incredibly sad

*mild spoilers*

would have been a 5/5 if the gayness had been most clear OR if it hadn't made me sob, the writing was excellent but to be a 5/5 for me, I gotta leave it with my heart feeling full of hope, not sadness

also wish the ending was a bit more clear but I understand why it was the way it was

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Xenophobia, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation

Moderate: Violence, Blood, Toxic friendship

Minor: Slavery, Police brutality, War, Pandemic/Epidemic

dianly's review against another edition

5.0

challenging dark tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, War, Pandemic/Epidemic

beonie's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Murder

Moderate: Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Slavery, Grief, Religious bigotry, Injury/Injury detail, Pandemic/Epidemic

Minor: Infidelity, Deportation