Babel : : or the Necessity of Violence : an Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution

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Downtown 2nd Floor 4-week checkout	Fantasy / Kuang, R. F.	4-week checkout	On Hold Shelf
Downtown 2nd Floor 4-week checkout	Fantasy / Kuang, R. F.	4-week checkout	Due 01-23-2025
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Downtown 2nd Floor 4-week checkout	Fantasy / Kuang, R. F.	4-week checkout	Due 02-08-2025
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Malletts Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / Fantasy / Kuang, R. F.	4-week checkout	Due 01-23-2025
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"From award-winning author R. F. Kuang comes Babel, a thematic response to The Secret History and a tonal retort to Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell that grapples with student revolutions, colonial resistance, and the use of language and translation as the dominating tool of the British empire. Traduttore, traditore: An act of translation is always an act of betrayal. 1828. Robin Swift, orphaned by cholera in Canton, is brought to London by the mysterious Professor Lovell. There, he trains for years in Latin, Ancient Greek, and Chinese, all in preparation for the day he'll enroll in Oxford University's prestigious Royal Institute of Translation--also known as Babel. Babel is the world's center for translation and, more importantly, magic. Silver working--the art of manifesting the meaning lost in translation using enchanted silver bars--has made the British unparalleled in power, as its knowledge serves the Empire's quest for colonization. For Robin, Oxford is a utopia dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge. But knowledge obeys power, and as a Chinese boy raised in Britain, Robin realizes serving Babel means betraying his motherland. As his studies progress, Robin finds himself caught between Babel and the shadowy Hermes Society, an organization dedicated to stopping imperial expansion. When Britain pursues an unjust war with China over silver and opium, Robin must decide ... Can powerful institutions be changed from within, or does revolution always require violence?"--Amazon.com.

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COMMUNITY REVIEWS

Liguists are heroes submitted by atpierce on June 9, 2023, 12:24pm A fascinating read. Set in a fictitious Victorian england where there is magic in those things that are "lost in translation" between languages. This book ticks a lot of boxes -- a fun historical fiction/fantasy read, but also a book that will get you thinking about imperialism and social justice.

The connection between colonialism and academe submitted by tuttlium on June 14, 2023, 1:03pm I loved this book so much. The main character is brought from Canton/Guangzhou to a fantasy/historical Oxford to become a scholar of language. The plot is driven by his ambivalence about Oxford -- while he loves the scholarly work and feels at home there in many ways, he also recognizes the institution and the people within it for their oppression and collusion with/support of colonization in China and elsewhere. RF Kuang's works are both erudite and tightly plotted. I stayed up way too late reading this one to see how it would end.

Incredible submitted by jschell42 on July 2, 2023, 10:41am Such an incredible novel that weaves together magical realism, colonialism, histories of language and translation, and more. Don't be intimidated by the length, once it gets going, it really flies by.

Good, but sometimes a slow burn submitted by brendjac on July 23, 2023, 3:49pm Reading this was a bit of a slog at times, owing primarily to the often-dense tangents of etymology and political theory. However, I think it’s a testament to Kuang’s writing prowess that she manages to make it work anyhow. I certainly appreciated reading a historical fantasy book that actually engages meaningfully with racism, colonialism, and how those forces collide within the people consumed by empire. Definitely a worthwhile read, but it’s not quick or light to say the least.

Great for historical fiction nerds submitted by abbysourabby on June 19, 2024, 12:29pm I love this book so much, a great title if you like other academia titles like The Secret History, The Atlas Six. Definitely a slow burn, but the kind you can't put down. If you're nerdy like me, the tangents on language, colonialism, etc. are really interesting.

Struck me as YA submitted by flemingj on June 22, 2024, 8:35am I read this because it was all the rage and I read over 100 books a year. This was fine, but certainly hit for a younger audience.

my new favorite book submitted by josiebrown on June 23, 2024, 8:27pm This is an incredible book and I am so so glad I read it. Talks about colonization and you really just need to read it

Fascinating submitted by mvilla on July 2, 2024, 12:29am I was fascinated by the intersection of world-building with intellect found in this novel. It was a good story with an amazing setting. I recommend!

Speechless submitted by nemiller on July 6, 2024, 9:53am I honestly cannot recommend this book highly enough. I have recommended this book to so many friends. It's such a good book on so many levels: the rich world-building, the fascinating, unique, and well-paced plot, the multi-dimensional characters you end up caring about so much, the beautiful language, the ethical questions raised, the way it questions and dialogues with the steampunk genre... Fittingly enough, I simply cannot find the words to explain how much I love this book.

Highly recommended for readers who liked Zen Cho's "Sorcerer to the Crown" or "Witchmark" by C. L. Polk.

Great read submitted by bluepapaya on July 25, 2024, 4:43pm Really unique premise and a great blend of both historical elements and magic