Reviews tagging 'Hate crime'

Babel by R.F. Kuang

323 reviews

doogle's review against another edition

4.0

dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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When you're born into a cruel world that prides itself on exploiting others for gain, you eventually will be forced to choose where your loyalties lie — the place with whom you share a blood connection with, or the place that gave you everything you could've wanted, for a price?

Sometimes, though, you don't have to choose at all if you've lost enough. And maybe a little bit of silver will help you along the way?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Hate crime, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Violence, Murder, Classism, Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Slavery, Islamophobia, War

vestal_rebecca's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious 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: Yes

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I laughed. I sobbed uncontrollably. In the face of the current circumstances and consequences of imperial conquest, I find myself drawn into the quiet loss of personal culture on multiple fronts. On the loss of many languages and cultures that compose my own background. 

Revolution in the face of oppression is inevitable, and like our protagonists find, it is never a smooth road. 

Kuang takes you on a beautiful journey. I should know by now that her portrayals will draw you in and break your heart with hope and sorrow both. If I could give it a million stars I would. Absolutely stunning. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicide, Religious bigotry, Gaslighting, Colonisation

sauvvyyy's review against another edition

3.75

dark emotional hopeful informative sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Colonisation, Classism

britt_redalei's review against another edition

5.0

challenging dark hopeful inspiring reflective tense 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: Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug use, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Xenophobia, Murder, Gaslighting, Colonisation, War, Classism

Moderate: Torture, Toxic friendship

evanscahill's review against another edition

4.5

adventurous dark hopeful informative sad medium-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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An intimate journey thought he challenging emotions of revolutionary action. An unflinching look into what it means to act.
A work that focuses on the racial struggle and mostly gestures at the sexism in spite of two of the main characters being women - however one must wonder if this was intentional, given the gender of our main narrator.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Classism

Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Gore, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Death of parent, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment

Minor: Drug abuse, Drug use, Genocide, Homophobia, Misogyny, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Fire/Fire injury, War, Deportation

thegreatnoodles's review against another edition

5.0

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative mysterious sad medium-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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A tremendously powerful and beautifully written book about the struggles of inequality, the crushing might of colonialism and the violent, all consuming nature of capitalism. All mixed together in an alternate history, magically laced story about academia and language.

I cannot express how much I enjoyed reading this book, and how strongly I felt for all of its characters.

The only fault I can think of is that this’ll make so many future reads pale in comparison to Babel.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Genocide, Slavery, Police brutality, Medical content, Medical trauma, Cultural appropriation, Deportation, Pandemic/Epidemic

Minor: Ableism, Addiction, Self harm, Fire/Fire injury

writingbugsal's review against another edition

5.0

challenging dark emotional funny 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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If you're white and you're not deeply, horrifically uncomfortable while reading this book, I would question your ethics. On the Necessity Of Violence serves to remind us that sometimes there is no change except through blood and death. And it offers a cold, haunting reminder that colonialism and racism are the very foundation on which western civilization has risen regardlesss of the cost. We are simply Letty at the end of the day but I hope we do better. God, I hope we do better. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Xenophobia, Trafficking, Grief, Religious bigotry, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, Classism

Moderate: Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Hate crime, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent

thelonelywizard's review against another edition

4.75

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

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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i had a whole essay i was gonna type up in my notes app about the themes and the character parallels and how much i fucking hate letty (bc i rlly do hate that stupid white bitch), but the last page of robin’s story gutted me. victoire’s ending gave me some hope, but his gutted me.

idek what to say. I’ve watched him grow up since page one, and now…i want to hold ramy and robin and victoire so tight, i love them so much. they deserved so much better. 

will be thinking about this one for a while.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Drug abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Death of parent, Cultural appropriation, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, Classism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Sexual harassment

ironicaster's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny 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: Yes

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the first 80% of this novel had me hooked, especially when we first get to Babel -- you really do get to experience this prestigious world that you wished you were a part of until R.F. Kuang reminds you that only a select few will ever belong there.

I related so much to the characters where they're stuck in this limbo between their native countries and a Western country -- you adopt culture but you'll never be one of them, yet you'll also never really fit in with the people from your home country. 

The writing was very textbook-y, which I actually liked because it made sense: Babel is an institute of scholars. Though I do wish we spent a little more time in certain scenes.

More time spent with the rebellion would've been nice, a little too much time was spent on Robin's bouncing between rebelling against the system or conforming to it.

The characters were interesting but could've been fleshed out more -- Griffin and Victoire especially. But they were all realistic

(we've all had a Letty in our lives at some point)

.They all felt their age or as close they could be considering how ridiculously smart they all were. Especially because they're around my age so I actually did feel like I was just reading about my friends if they were geniuses in the 1800s. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Xenophobia, Trafficking, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, War, Classism, Deportation

cassidoo's review against another edition

4.0

challenging dark tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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Babel was significantly more intense than I expected it to be. When it was recommended to me it sounded like it would be very magical and fantastical in how power is captured into silver. What I didn't expect was the power dynamics, commentary on colonialism, and the violence throughout. It was a good read. It started slow and then got so intense I couldn't put it down for the last ~25% of the book. I do recommend it, but be prepared for themes of racism, colonialism, and violence, rather than... fun and fantastical magical possibilities.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Hate crime, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, War, Classism