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Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution

Instant #1 New York Times Bestseller from the author of The Poppy War  

“Absolutely phenomenal. One of the most brilliant, razor-sharp books I've had the pleasure of reading that isn't just an alternative fantastical history, but an interrogative one; one that grabs colonial history and the Industrial Revolution, turns it over, and shakes it out.” -- Shannon Chakraborty, bestselling author of The City of Brass

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? 

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560 pages

Average rating: 7.83

716 RATINGS

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33 REVIEWS

Community Reviews

Bookworm_Claire
Mar 02, 2025
8/10 stars
Audiobook listen. I found this book quite interesting and wholly different from anything I’ve read before. The mix of historical fiction with subtle fantasy elements and a language based magic system kept me intrigued, entertained, and educated.
National Parent Leadership Institute
Feb 26, 2025
9/10 stars
The sci fi aspect of this was a surprising addition but the commentary on language violence and imperialism/colonization is perfection.
JCL
Feb 11, 2025
6/10 stars
Hated the footnotes that mixed fact and fantasy.
Lyssers
Feb 02, 2025
10/10 stars
A novel that wasn’t afraid to dig into some heavy topics and did it with thoughtfulness. R. F. Kuang has a beautiful way of writing. I appreciated the thought and research she put into this book. Though it took me a while to get through I throughly enjoyed Babel.
thebooktroup
Jan 30, 2025
10/10 stars
4.5 rounded up

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