I Read "Babel" by R.F. Kuang
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- Опубликовано: 27 янв 2024
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Babel sounds like one of those plot premises where I think satire might actually help the heavy themes hit harder. 'Solving colonialism' as you said is something you can't really do, and there is some heavy-handedness even when it's left open. But if Kuang satirised the whole issue more and leaned into the absurdity of it all, I think the questions posed by the narrative could be asked (and perhaps even answered) more openly.
Babel was my first RFK. I liked it okay. I didn’t take notes, but then I almost never do. If I hadn’t liked it then I never would have read Yellowface which I also enjoyed. I don’t give authors a second chance if the first one didn’t work for me.
Normally I don’t give second chances either but since the genres and settings were so different I thought “why not?”.
Damn, harsh outlook. Some of my fav books have taken me like 4 tries to get into but once i finally was in the mood, i loved it. I give authors multiple chances
I love the shoutout for A Master of Djinn - definitely in my top 5 of all time. P. Djeli Clark is seriously a master wordsmith
I haven’t read something by him I didn’t love! I’m excited to read his next book coming out in the spring.
Same! His books are just so easy to sink into, so I can't wait @@dontfretreadbooks
Welcome back! I hope your dad and family are doing well 🙏🏽
Thank you! He’s okay family is getting by. I’ll be posting kinda sporadically for the next few weeks while we adjust 🩷
Sending good vibes to you and yours ❤ I appreciate your take on Babel. I think this would be the one Id like a lot (I love languages studies and etymology) but I found the magic’s premise a bit odd - that “translation is an act of betrayal.” Not really sure what that’s supposed to mean or if that was mainly the character’s view of his own work. I also like the way you put this writer’s craft - that Kuang writes academically rather than artistically, which I think can help readers to decide if Kuang’s books are for them or not. Thanks you for your insightful review 💜.
I think your comment abt her intellect is dead on. Her trilogy flexes a lot of chinese military history to the detriment (imo) of the story. I didn't notice as much in Babel and was obsessed but I majored in linguistics so I was half waiting for the next word pair lmao
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on Babel. Based on all of the reviews I heard of her works, it would make more sense for her to write intro to x,y,z topic nonfiction books rather than try to craft fiction stories. That way she doesn't have to try to make characters with fulfilling payoff and only kind of succeed.
I think she def succeeds in the poppy war
Thank you for your critiques of this book; I really appreciate hearing a different perspective. I'm one of those who are really into etymology, so that definitely played a part.
This is one of those books where the more I consider my experience reading it, the less I like it.
Thanks for sharing your review!
Thanks for watching!
I really appreciate your take on this. I liked Babel a lot, it was one of my favorite reads of 2023, but I can totally see how it might not be for everyone or if you just might not like it. I agree with Reads with Rachel’s take that this book is more for people who are unpacking their own unconscious biases. I come from a very white fundamentalist Christian / evangelical background and I identified a lot with Robin’s like wake-up to how terrible the system is around him. I also really enjoyed the etymology stuff as a linguist myself and the magic system as like the “power of language.” Even then, I had some criticisms, but liked it overall. Again, that’s just my take. I’ll have to check out Master of Djinn, it sounds good. Thanks ❤
I feel like this book should've been nonfiction. Plot was uninteresting and attempts at social commentary were layed on thick. Ultimately for me this book failed in it's atemts to do several things at once and underdelivering at all of them. It sounds like fun premice, but it would've benefited from being a collection of essays.
I guess I'm just not a big fan of rfk wrighting in general.
Thank you for this thoughtful review, I really enjoyed hearing you compare this one with Yellowface and why the characters did or didn’t work for you in each. I was tempted to start with Babel as my first RFK novel, but went with The Poppy War instead, and it was very much not for me. Judging by your review here and several reviews I’ve seen for both Yellowface and Babel, it seems (to me) like her books share similar flaws. Which is to say, really interesting premises that are arguably flubbed in regards to execution and character development. I don’t plan on trying any more of her novels, but to each their own, and kudos to her on her success. Anyway, appreciated the chill video and looking forward to more. ✨
I have a lot to say about this book (spoiler: didn't like it lol) but as a language fan, I have to say that you're wrong - the overabundance of etymology is uninteresting within the story even to a language nerd. I am that book's target audience and yet somehow it was absolutely not for me.
Etymology was tbh the only interesting part of this book for me
💗💗
kuang really is an academicist first and foremost, not a writer. that, i think, is the biggest problem with her books to me
I really enjoyed Babel. I think I would definitely be selective about who i would recommend it to though, because the element of language and translation and etymology was probably my favorite part, but I can see how it definitely isn't for everyone. Great video as always!
I love that you said it's a masterpiece, but you don't like masterpieces with complete confidence. It makes me feel a lot better about myself bc I feel the same way abt masterpieces.
🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰
Omg, yes, so many times people ask, "What are you or where you from?" Like why? What do people get out of it? I got to the point where I asked where they're from, but i don't want to hear it. I'm mixed The End!
You started on 2 of my least favorite books by R. F. Kuang... and didn't touch the books that made me see the face of God: Poppy War lol. But also, It's cool if someone isn't into the author I'm really into. I'm happy you tackled them anyway!
I loved this book soooo much lmao but somehow your critique is making sense.
i thought it was Babel like babble
I think the general consensus is that the way I said it is how they say in the UK but both are acceptable.
@@dontfretreadbooks lol my entire life i thought it was "babble" because it was a pun on the way the bible story ends.
As someone studying translation in academia, I loved the etymology and translation theory sections of the book. Babel is the only story I've seen so far that explores translation as a tool of empire/colonialism & the power imbalances that come with rendering one culture to another. But that's a very specific thing that only a few weirdos like me would like, so I totally get why it didn't work for you.
I know you haven't loved either of her books but I really beg you to try the Poppy War. Babel and Yellowface are just such a departure from her first trilogy that I dont think you'll have the same problems.
Its like if you were a harry potter fan but then went and read her transphobic detective crime novels she wrote with the pen name, you know? Like theyre just totally separate in so many ways that I doubt you'll experience Poppy War the way you disliked these last 2 books.
The Poppy War is way more like reading Will of the Many that came out this year. Its a book thats really hard to put down and could easily be blasted through in a day or two. She does a much better job at characters and interpersonal relationships in this trilogy.
If theres one thing you may dislike it would be the tonal whiplash Half way through the book, However I think that it is done on purpose, and actually serves the narrative that she's crafting. Given how the story is initially about students going the magic school, the tonal shift in act 2 really displays how in an instant literal children can after innocence ripped away and be treated like hostile threats. ing to be executed (as as sss bka
Seeing this review is very interesting to me for a kinda funny reason, cuz I watched another review of this book from another booktuber, who was a white chick. And in the video she was BAWLING by the end of the book. Straight up she could not make a comprehensive sentence cuz she was heaving and hiccupping through her review....and then I find this little gem by you, and youre sitting there like "yeah I see what theyre tryin to do but it didnt hit me personally" and now I'M sitting here like. What could have possibly broken down that little white girl so hard 😂 It's the two wildly different reactions that's just fascinating to me lmfao
You’ve got me wondering the same thing 😅 I have a guess but I can’t imagine it making somebody CRY!
I like the book a lot, but it kinda reminds me of NK Jemisin's The City We Became in how the book feels like its meant for white audiences to be a primer on babys first racism. I think its better though.
City We Became didnt really work for me however the sequel did a better job. Babels like a more elevated version of that.
“Baby’s first racism” is so funny and actually makes a lot of sense. Gotta start somewhere.
@@dontfretreadbooks lmao right?! Like the book seems designed to coddle the white people through the invisible ways racism effects people. Its not meant for us marginalized folk who live through this shit every God damn day.
Excuse spelling errors jts 5am adnt haven't slept since yesterday
it's Babel as in, Baa-bell. I love your reviews but ahhh, everytime it was mispronounced. Ahahahaaaa, aaah.
I just repeated what I heard in the audio book 🤷🏽♂️
@@dontfretreadbooks Oh no! The audiobook pronounced it that way?! Woof that would be so rough for me to listen to. I didn't mind it in your review.
Huh. That's interesting. Now I am curious. Because if the author is referencing the Tower of Babel from the ol Bibble-de-book, was the audio book narrator just not aware or....huh.@@dontfretreadbooks
I believe both pronunciations are correct, with BAY-bul being more prevalent in the UK
Good to know. It still bugs me a bit, but knowing that does take the edge off. I never heard that word pronounced any other way, until today years old. @@suzannewdowik