Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

Babel: An Arcane History by R.F. Kuang

118 reviews

bookswithlauren's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Abandonment, Trafficking, Bullying, Death, Blood, Classism, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, War, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Sexism, Body horror, Colonisation, Confinement, Cultural appropriation, Death of parent, Physical abuse, Deportation, Injury/Injury detail, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Gore, Gun violence, Grief, Hate crime, Murder, Racism, Violence, and Xenophobia

koiolee's review against another edition

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

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I was teetering on the fence about giving this book 5 stars or not, but I decided that it rightfully deserves that 5th star. 
I love how symbolic the book is, and how soon the events are foreshadowed. This is an incredibly literary book. This book is about language and the nuances between languages and it challenges the space between language so masterfully. This book tackles the art of writing, translation, and the life beneath what is seen. And we haven't even got to the actual plot and story contents. 
Each character felt fully fleshed out and incredibly real. Oh my boy Ramy, poor Ramy. Robin, the main character, makes so many mistakes in all the best ways. I love how he overanalyzes every opportunity he's given, weighing the pros and cons only to uncharacteristically act on emotion and impulse, the very thing he's been taught not to do. In a book where words are everything, Robin tends to give himself away in his mind, yet never quite says the words that give away what he truly means. Victoire and Ramy probably had the best setup to be the best revolutionaries. They had their brains and wits about them, and the ability to rally the crowd, but Robin was the best choice they could've made. Robin was the one with the most and least self-control, and they bet on that. Victoire is the moral compass of the group and they all respect that. Ramy a fearless leader. Letty was the unfortunate sacrifice they needed to make. The one who couldn't hear what the world truly looked like, what didn't confirm what she knew about her world. Robin described her best, if she couldn't have the world, no one could have it. To be loved is to be heard, and she was deaf to their pleas.
As for the story, it's very neatly organized and linear, there were the climaxes that have you on the edge of your seat mixed with the wonderful lulls of normality. I felt like I was with them with the way Kuang described their second and third years. It reminded me starkly of my third and fourth years respectively (and the fallout that occurred around that time as well), it's good to know that it's a common experience (minus revolution of course).
My only qualm thus far is that all the villains are white people. We could've realistically had some brown people turn their backs on their own like what happens in real life, and given how realistically based this story is, I'm surprised there were no brown traitors. I guess you could say that Robin filled that role actually, but he came back so?
The Dark Academia I was looking for to satisfy the itch fr.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Sexism, Colonisation, Abandonment, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Domestic abuse, Islamophobia, Body horror, Toxic friendship, Violence, War, Murder, Death, Classism, Gore, Xenophobia, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, and Racism

Moderate: Gaslighting, Death of parent, Confinement, Cultural appropriation, Suicide, Trafficking, Forced institutionalization, Sexual harassment, Slavery, Mental illness, Alcohol, and Gun violence

hannahcstocks's review against another edition

challenging dark 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? It's complicated

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Classism, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Death, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Deportation, Dysphoria, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, Child death, Confinement, Hate crime, Misogyny, Violence, Abandonment, War, Racial slurs, Vomit, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Sexual assault, Xenophobia, Grief, Islamophobia, Racism, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Slavery, Toxic friendship, and Trafficking

gbeene's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring mysterious reflective 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Racism, and Colonisation

Moderate: Racial slurs, Gun violence, Violence, and War

Minor: Suicide, Abandonment, Sexism, Torture, Toxic friendship, Islamophobia, Death of parent, Sexual harassment, and Suicidal thoughts

alainral's review against another edition

challenging emotional tense 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Physical abuse, Colonisation, Racism, Xenophobia, and Child abuse

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Forced institutionalization, Suicidal thoughts, Classism, Islamophobia, Religious bigotry, Sexual harassment, Cultural appropriation, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Abandonment

keltaklo's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Physical abuse, Slavery, Emotional abuse, Colonisation, Sexism, Death of parent, Grief, Racism, Racial slurs, Classism, Death, and Child abuse

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Religious bigotry, Bullying, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Pandemic/Epidemic, Drug use, Drug abuse, and War

Minor: Torture, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, and Deportation

celery's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense fast-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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Medical content, Misogyny, Genocide, Grief, Gun violence, Trafficking, Vomit, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Religious bigotry, Sexual harassment, Torture, Xenophobia, Kidnapping, Sexual violence, Slavery, Drug abuse, Gore, Stalking, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Bullying, Terminal illness, Mass/school shootings, Antisemitism, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Suicide, Alcohol, Child abuse, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Islamophobia, Police brutality, Self harm, Abandonment, Addiction, Suicidal thoughts, Classism, Sexual assault, Death of parent, Deportation, Medical trauma, Drug use, Emotional abuse, War, Murder, Racism, Sexism, Toxic friendship, and Confinement

cmklaft's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad 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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death, Suicide, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Sexual harassment, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Slavery, War, Classism, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Grief, Hate crime, Colonisation, Murder, and Cultural appropriation

leonkaspar's review against another edition

dark emotional funny informative inspiring mysterious reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

The way Kuang manages to use symbols and fantasy to recreate the structural issues of our world is mesmerising. 
I love the way the footnotes are embedded into the story and how they highlight the necessary passages with a poignant and scarcastic undertone.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Genocide, Racism, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Violence, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Pandemic/Epidemic, Abandonment, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Cultural appropriation, Slavery, Classism, Colonisation, Death, Suicidal thoughts, and Grief

monicalaurette's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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? It's complicated

4.75

I knew from the beginning that I was going to like this book, I just didn’t know how much - and isn’t that a lovely feeling?

Part of me wanted to make this review short and almost like a joke by saying “5 stars, made me feel bad for being white” but truly I never felt bad for being white while reading the book so I also didn’t want to be false in my review. I took more time to look at my privileges as a white woman in the USA and what that meant for me and all those around me.

So many people say that books should not be political or talk about controversial topics, but I think having books like that only enhance a person, even if the book is escapism. If a book helps you to understand your place in the real world, but still offers you a haven from it - I think that makes it an absolutely wonderful book and I don’t know why others don’t see it or refuse to allow themselves that sentiment.

But now back to the book because I’ve gone a slight tangent - sorry!

I loved following Robin and seeing things through his eyes and also the fact that he would acknowledge the challenges of all his cohort as the years went on. I also enjoyed the way that Kuang wrote the divide in Robin’s mind about his feelings for Hermes vs Babel. The struggle he went through was so vivid that at times I was feeling conflicted while reading. I was also feeling stressed out while the cohort was preparing for their exams, so much so that I had to not read those parts at work so I could focus better!

"Translation means doing violence upon the original, means warping and distorting it for foreign, unintended eyes."

Certain parts of this book happened and I said to myself - this is not a middle of the book event, what else is going to happen now that this has come to pass? - and was just taken on a wild ride for the last like 40% of this book. And that 40% had so much emotions swirling in my head that I rarely took breaks unless necessary.

Very happy that this was my first book by R.F. Kuang and looking forward to my other book of hers on my shelf. And I know that the message and characters of this book will stay with me longer than normal while I move on to other books. The way this book ended I feel was such a testament to the characters and what they all stood for in their hearts and how they knew they could change the world both as a group and individually.

"A mind was not meant to feel this much. Only death would silence the chorus."

I liked Miss Piper and hated Lovell from the start - I’m glad those feelings never changed as the book moved forward.

Honestly thought Evie was also a part of Hermes somehow and not really dead - and I know that I trust Griffin’s version of the story more than Lovell’s on what happened to her with the bar.

Had I not been at work when I read it I would have cheered a little when Robin killed Lovell. He would’ve done something to him either while on the boat or when they returned from Canton so to me it was both self-defense AND revenge for his mother.

Removing .25 stars because of Ramy, and listen: I GET why he had to die, but it just made me so incredibly sad when it happened because I never handle character deaths well.

When Robin & Victoire were talking about the tower burning all I could picture in my head was the burning Elmo meme and I’m so sad I wasn’t able to paste it into my reading journal.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Blood, Grief, Violence, War, Classism, Hate crime, Racism, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, and Gore

Moderate: Abandonment, Blood, Violence, Slavery, Emotional abuse, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Drug abuse, Torture, Sexism, Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Medical content, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Bullying and Confinement