"Babel, or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution" by RF Kuang
Based on the Goodreads reviews, this book polarizes readers: they either love it or hate it.
I enjoyed it, but I also enjoy etymology in general, which should almost be a prerequisite to reading Babel. It kind of makes me want to return to Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell to see how they compare.
None of the Hugo’s unexplained exclusions make sense. (Aside from for political reasons due to the draconian government of 2023’s host country, of course.)
The fact they waited the maximum allowable period (90 days) before releasing stats, when normally they’d be released within a few days, speaks volumes. As do the evasive default non-answers to legitimate questions about the supposed ineligibilities.
It’s all a huge fail and a massive blow to the awards’ integrity at this point.
About halfway through R.F. Kuang's "Babel" and I think I chose the best book to get back into my reading habits. The writing style is accessible, the setting and atmosphere are gripping, and the themes are relevant.
I think this is my sign to purchase The Poppy War trilogy and Yellowface. I bought my copy of Babel a few weeks ago, when I was visiting Malaysia for a debate tournament.
The 'dark academia' vibe and the colonialism discourse make it the perfect read during my off days.
Recently I read Yellowface by Rebecca Kuang. It’s an amazing tale of a person who finds herself digging herself into a deeper and deeper terrible hole, while managing to continue inspiring sympathy. Kuang has rapidly become one of my favourite authors, and I can imagine this being a book I reread over the years and appreciate more and more each time.