Book Review | Babel

Traduttore, traditore: An act of translation is always an act of betrayal.

Oxford, 1836. The city of dreaming spires. It is the centre of all knowledge and progress in the world. And at its centre is Babel, the Royal Institute of Translation. The tower from which all the power of the Empire flows.

Orphaned in Canton and brought to England by a mysterious guardian, Babel seemed like paradise to Robin Swift. Until it became a prison… but can a student stand against an empire?

An incendiary new novel from award-winning author R.F. Kuang about the power of language, the violence of colonialism, and the sacrifices of resistance. -Waterstones

Huge thank you to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for granting me access to the eARC of Babel to do this book review.

I was very excited to read this book, I read The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang a few years ago and loved it, and I loved her writing style. That combined with the dark academia setting and the magical setting of Oxford made me confident I would love this book! I am happy to report that I did indeed love it!!

I want to first mention the only element of Babel that I didn’t like, and that is entirely personal to me, and that is the use of wayyyyyy too many footnotes throughout it. Even in reference books I don’t like footnotes, and I hate hate hate them in fiction. They are distracting and immediately draw me out of the book while I have to flick my eyes down to the bottom of the page to read whatever snippet of info couldn’t just be included in the main narrative. It makes the reading experience very disjointed for me. However, I realise this is a personal problem. Not everyone hates them as vehemently as me!

Once I had got over the copious use of footnotes I really enjoyed this novel a lot, particularly the last quarter. By the time I reached the 75% mark I think this novel was sitting at a strong 3.5 for me, but the last quarter blew me away!! The drama and tension cranks up and up until it is almost unbearable, and I couldn’t tear myself away until I reached the last page. The novel is quite a slow and meandering read, but once you reach the last quarter the pace speeds up considerably, and the danger increases tenfold! The last quarter also expands the novel outside its Oxford focus, which I also enjoyed. I will say be prepared for heartbreak folks, it’s not all plain sailing for our characters!

The majority of Babel takes place in Oxford, among its historical University buildings, and I did love the setting. I love a historical fantasy, and Kuang does a masterful job of grounding this novel in the historically accurate and recognisable time period, while simultaneously making the changes necessary to move the plot as needed. I loved the mix of new and old within the novel, and the positioning of quintessentially English buildings with such an eclectic mix of people who were seen as ‘others’ by those same Englishmen.

Kuang deserves real praise for the wonderful and insanely clever magic system she has created in Babel. Kuang clearly has a lot of background knowledge and passion for languages, and it allows her to make an awesome magic system which is wholly unique.

This novel also focuses on a lot of important topics, particularly that of British imperialism and colonialism, and the untold damage the British Empire did in the 1800s across the globe. It is refreshing to read books that take such a clear eyed view on the damage that was done to other countries. The themes of racism and slavery are also at the forefront of Babel, and are important to consider when considering the novel as a whole.

Overall I loved this novel. I was afraid that my expectations were too high, but they were exceeded by Babel. This novel is a perfect historical fantasy, with a brilliant magic system, and a breathtaking look at the terror of the British Empire and colonialism.

Buy Babel from Bookshop.org or Waterstones

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