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A review by yajairat
Babel by R.F. Kuang
dark
emotional
informative
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Had a very slow start, but picked up towards the middle and then just flew by at the end. I expected a grim story, but I didn't think it was going to be THIS sad. It touches on pretty much every horror and flaw in British society during imperialism. It was a tough read sometimes with the constant racism, sexism, abuse, etc., but it's meant to make you feel uncomfortable. Really really enjoyed the period where the characters were on strike, it gave us a more in-depth look at issues that they encountered while on strike (access to food, clashing personalities, and the resulting tense environment). I thought it was super well-researched and thought out. And overall, it really honed in the point that empires are very fragile, and when united, the people have much more power to topple them than they think.
I have very mixed feelings on the four main characters. I feel like they were... underdeveloped? With the exception of Robin since it was mostly told from his point of view. I felt like I didn't get a full picture of who they were and their friendship dynamic, and it seemed like the author wanted me to care about that. But I wish we got to see more of that friendship be explored and not just narrated to us. We would get time periods where they weren't getting along, but they never had actual conversations about it, it was just stated that they just got over that rough patch. I think I would have been more deeply affected by how the other characters ended up if we got some more insight into their stories. I could say the same with Griffin's character too.
Overall, it was a very solid read with great insights on a very dark period of history (that we still see the ramifications of). Had some flaws but would still recommend!
Some quotes I liked:
"Loss just meant a lack, meant something was missing, but it did not encompass the totality of this severance, this terrifying un-anchoring from all that he'd ever known"
"Betrayal. Translation means doing violence upon the original, means warping and distorting it for foreign unintended eyes... how can we conclude, except by acknowledging that an act of translation is then necessarily always an act of betrayal?"
"Robin found it incredible, how this country, whose citizens prided themselves so much on being better than the rest of the world, could not make it through an afternoon team without borrowed goods"
"It sounded so abstract -just categories of use, exchange, and value - until it wasn't; until you realized the web you lived in and the exploitations of your lifestyle demanded, until you saw looming above it all the spectre of colonial labour and colonial pain"
"That's just what translation is, I think. That's all speaking is. Listening to the other and trying to see past your own biases to glimpse what they're trying to say. Showing yourself to the world, and hping someone else understands"
"Liberation was a string of coincidences, of ingenuity, resourcefulness, and luck"
I have very mixed feelings on the four main characters. I feel like they were... underdeveloped? With the exception of Robin since it was mostly told from his point of view. I felt like I didn't get a full picture of who they were and their friendship dynamic, and it seemed like the author wanted me to care about that. But I wish we got to see more of that friendship be explored and not just narrated to us. We would get time periods where they weren't getting along, but they never had actual conversations about it, it was just stated that they just got over that rough patch. I think I would have been more deeply affected by how the other characters ended up if we got some more insight into their stories. I could say the same with Griffin's character too.
Overall, it was a very solid read with great insights on a very dark period of history (that we still see the ramifications of). Had some flaws but would still recommend!
Some quotes I liked:
"Loss just meant a lack, meant something was missing, but it did not encompass the totality of this severance, this terrifying un-anchoring from all that he'd ever known"
"Betrayal. Translation means doing violence upon the original, means warping and distorting it for foreign unintended eyes... how can we conclude, except by acknowledging that an act of translation is then necessarily always an act of betrayal?"
"Robin found it incredible, how this country, whose citizens prided themselves so much on being better than the rest of the world, could not make it through an afternoon team without borrowed goods"
"It sounded so abstract -just categories of use, exchange, and value - until it wasn't; until you realized the web you lived in and the exploitations of your lifestyle demanded, until you saw looming above it all the spectre of colonial labour and colonial pain"
"That's just what translation is, I think. That's all speaking is. Listening to the other and trying to see past your own biases to glimpse what they're trying to say. Showing yourself to the world, and hping someone else understands"
"Liberation was a string of coincidences, of ingenuity, resourcefulness, and luck"
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Racism, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Grief, Murder, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Racial slurs, War, Classism, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Xenophobia