Reviews

Babel, or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution by R.F. Kuang

emmerylynn's review against another edition

challenging emotional mysterious 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

4.75

Wow! This is such an incredibly researched historical fantasy. I loved how the author characterized each character so meticulously and I loved the lingustic messages. The anti-imperialism sentiment! The dark academia! The death! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Racism, Death, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Sexism

gmbrooks02's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad 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

5.0

this book is my roman empire

_theanxiousreader_'s review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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

4.25

Babel was a very emotional read. RF Kuang did such a good job in making you fall in love with all the friends and their dynamic with each other, that when everything began unraveling so did you. The plot of the book was absolutely brilliant so the main conflict mirroring soo closely with real life that watching the downfall of the institute felt as satisfying as the fall of a global superpower. Where the book slightly falters is the ending of the story felt slightly rushed and underwhelming but still an amazing conclusion to an amazing book nonetheless 

megj99's review against another edition

dark emotional informative mysterious 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

4.5

This was a good book, a little literary and complicated for where I was mentally at the time of reading but I thoroughly enjoyed it!

gilmoregirlsandbooks's review against another edition

emotional 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

4.5

natt_lux's review against another edition

challenging dark informative inspiring reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Babel probably deserves 5 stars. 

I admire the writer's INCREDIBLE knowledge of languages, history, translation, writing... R. F. Kuang has my humble respect. The story was so well inserted among the true historical events that I had trouble recognizing a fact from fiction. Amazing world building, amazing ideas, amazing story. 

I applaud the author for writing about such controversial topics and in such detail. There were numerous points of view on each problem, which I appreciate - as it isn't just one sided story but really thorough examination of various people's thoughts, priorities and beliefs. She made sure to get many points across to the readers and to really make them think about these issues that STILL exist to this day. It was excellent. 

Now the reason I can't give it 5 stars is because of the way her characters were written. I couldn't quite put my finger on why I couldn't connect to them and feel with them as I would in different books. But in the end I think it's because of the way she writes. This book felt more like a lecture from that funny nerdy history professor than a "regular" book. The majority of the book consisted of descriptions - I missed character interaction, I missed SEEING what they were doing and why they were doing it. I knew what the characters were like more because I was told than because I was shown. 

(Maybe I should have read it in autumn, could have a different impact.)

Would I recommend it? Yes. Just be aware that this book talks about possibly touchy subjects, is far less fantasy than e.g. acotar and leans more into historical fiction with a ✨ sprinkle✨of fantasy in it. It is a very serious read, not really for lazy reading at the beach. 

Anyway, thank you R. F. Kuang for taking me on this journey and allowing me to feel (at least a little bit) what a "foreigner" in a different land might feel. Thank you for opening my eyes to some things I wouldn't have realized otherwise 🖤

kerrieann's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional informative mysterious 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? No

4.25

buttcactus's review against another edition

4.25

I am so glad I stuck with this book. It starts off slow, with an interesting premise but I found myself constantly putting it down because of the amount of information I was ingesting. Once I hit about half way, it got so much better. Held my attention in a way I wish it did from the start, and now I’m sitting here thinking about that ending. This is one of those books that is going to stick with me for a while.

gracest's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring mysterious 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

5.0

cassie2613's review against another edition

slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5