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A review by isabellarobinson7
Babel by R.F. Kuang
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Rating: 4 stars
I was going to write a long review of Babel, but then I read Petrik's review, and once again I am floored by his ability to convey his thoughts and feelings on a book in his third freaking language better than I can do in my first (and only). Maybe I just need to make a rule to read Petrik's stuff after I have finished writing my own, because that is the second time in the past few months that this has happened.
Whether you pronounce it BABEl or BABel (or, if you're like me, BOOBle, because you are actually five years old) there is no denying that R.F. Kuang has released another excellent book. She has proven once again that she was no "one hit wonder" with The Poppy War trilogy; nor is she confined to one genre, conquering dark academia with Babel, and general fiction with Yellowface.
Reading Babel as an English speaker will probably make you feel very stupid. Not in a belittling way, just in the way that there is a whole other world of learning that you can undertake as a multilingual person that those of us confined to learning in one language can't even touch. In short, I am jealous. I have tried to learn other languages (French, Japanese, Te Reo Māori) but all I've come away with are a few words here and there; nothing properly sticks. I can probably greet and farewell you in Te Reo, but that is only because it is literally the native language of my country (I mean, I live in Tauranga for goodness sake) but any and everything else seemed to go in one ear and out the other.
That leads me onto the other big theme discussed in Babel: colonisation. I, as previously eluded to, live in New Zealand, which is actually the name the English gave to Aotearoa. It's no secret it's a colonised country. As someone who is descended from the settlers (not the initial ones, but a bit later), I cannot change what happened in the past, but I can try to make today a little better. Wow, that sounded really Ted Talk-y. All I'm trying to say is that I find myself thinking about colonisation probably too much already, and Babel has caused me to ponder it even more... even if the ending was a little too heavy handed with said messages.
Ok, need to wrap this up because I'm going to start rambling about random stuff soon. Babel was really good and R.F. Kuang is awesome. The end.
P.S. Also, R.F. Kuang's team need extra awards because she has still yet to have an ugly cover. The Poppy War trilogy, Yellowface, and especially Babel... they're all absolute bangers.
I was going to write a long review of Babel, but then I read Petrik's review, and once again I am floored by his ability to convey his thoughts and feelings on a book in his third freaking language better than I can do in my first (and only). Maybe I just need to make a rule to read Petrik's stuff after I have finished writing my own, because that is the second time in the past few months that this has happened.
Whether you pronounce it BABEl or BABel (or, if you're like me, BOOBle, because you are actually five years old) there is no denying that R.F. Kuang has released another excellent book. She has proven once again that she was no "one hit wonder" with The Poppy War trilogy; nor is she confined to one genre, conquering dark academia with Babel, and general fiction with Yellowface.
Reading Babel as an English speaker will probably make you feel very stupid. Not in a belittling way, just in the way that there is a whole other world of learning that you can undertake as a multilingual person that those of us confined to learning in one language can't even touch. In short, I am jealous. I have tried to learn other languages (French, Japanese, Te Reo Māori) but all I've come away with are a few words here and there; nothing properly sticks. I can probably greet and farewell you in Te Reo, but that is only because it is literally the native language of my country (I mean, I live in Tauranga for goodness sake) but any and everything else seemed to go in one ear and out the other.
That leads me onto the other big theme discussed in Babel: colonisation. I, as previously eluded to, live in New Zealand, which is actually the name the English gave to Aotearoa. It's no secret it's a colonised country. As someone who is descended from the settlers (not the initial ones, but a bit later), I cannot change what happened in the past, but I can try to make today a little better. Wow, that sounded really Ted Talk-y. All I'm trying to say is that I find myself thinking about colonisation probably too much already, and Babel has caused me to ponder it even more... even if the ending was a little too heavy handed with said messages.
Ok, need to wrap this up because I'm going to start rambling about random stuff soon. Babel was really good and R.F. Kuang is awesome. The end.
P.S. Also, R.F. Kuang's team need extra awards because she has still yet to have an ugly cover. The Poppy War trilogy, Yellowface, and especially Babel... they're all absolute bangers.