I’m trying to find any redeemable qualities that make me feel better for the time I spent reading it. I could have put it down, but the raving reviews made me think that it would get better.
It didn’t.
I loathed it. With passion.
I read and enjoyed it but it was definitely very “hit you over the head” on imperialism/colonialism, and the ending was kind of predictable.
The Poppy War trilogy, however, I am nearly finished with and I have absolutely loved. It is raw, honest, unpredictable, and very well written. Also long af.
I liked poppy wars but it was a bit too relentlessly nihilist for me. I thought Babel was, if anything, better balanced in terms of presenting empire as a system where people who are not inherently out to harm others end up doing so anyway.
I loved it. Loved the historical setting and its exploration of racism, imperialism, capitalist exploitation at that time and place with the perspectives of diverse characters.
I already enjoy linguistics and learning languages, so I may be biased towards already liking the premise of the novel. (And dark academia is totally up my alley.) The way the author explores the nature of language and how certain parts of ideas always get lost in translation was pretty cool; and using that as a form of magic (that could then be exploited only from native speakers of the language no less) was so cleverly done.
Add in the character conflicts between the four friends, a campus strike, and working class solidarity (with a dash of “be gay do crime”)… I was hooked.
