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A review by emoverhere
Babel by R.F. Kuang
4.0
Before getting my hands on Babel, I was unfamiliar with R.F. Kuang’s writing, I had only heard about her being a prodigy, a formidable writer in her early 20s with talents that exceeded those twice her age and experience, and then the ARCs of Babel started getting book reviewers, and her overwhelmingly positive reputation was impossible to escape, and so I made a decision: I will read Babel no matter, regardless of how hard it is to find foreign book in my country, and despite the fact that dark academia setting don’t interest me much.
And holy god, were the people right.
Babel is unlike anything I’ve ever read; brilliant, poetic, deeply tragic from the very first page to the very last, with moments of hope and beauty spread between our young crew, thought evoking, and for those of us whose countries were colonized for years and years, rage inducing. I think it’s safe to assume that this book successfully managed to evoke every emotion a person could possibly feel.
I adored Robin, his character arc was heart wrenching, and the conclusion of his story shattered me in ways I didn’t anticipate. Ramy was a breath of fresh air, and his eventual departure was felt so strongly throughout the rest of the book. Letty was… Letty, in all her horrible, complacent, and deeply misguided ways. And Victoire… there are no words to describe how much I love Victoire, I would read multiple books about her, she’s such a fascinating character. I adore her with everything I have.
There’s plenty more to say, about Babel, the professors, Britain, colonialism, each character’s drive to their end goals, etc. But my words are failing me, and I honestly think I’m going to need time to process that ending. But what I solidly know is that R.F. Kuang has gained a new fan.
And holy god, were the people right.
Babel is unlike anything I’ve ever read; brilliant, poetic, deeply tragic from the very first page to the very last, with moments of hope and beauty spread between our young crew, thought evoking, and for those of us whose countries were colonized for years and years, rage inducing. I think it’s safe to assume that this book successfully managed to evoke every emotion a person could possibly feel.
I adored Robin, his character arc was heart wrenching, and the conclusion of his story shattered me in ways I didn’t anticipate. Ramy was a breath of fresh air, and his eventual departure was felt so strongly throughout the rest of the book. Letty was… Letty, in all her horrible, complacent, and deeply misguided ways. And Victoire… there are no words to describe how much I love Victoire, I would read multiple books about her, she’s such a fascinating character. I adore her with everything I have.
There’s plenty more to say, about Babel, the professors, Britain, colonialism, each character’s drive to their end goals, etc. But my words are failing me, and I honestly think I’m going to need time to process that ending. But what I solidly know is that R.F. Kuang has gained a new fan.