Linguistics is something I've always found incredibly interesting, but I am not particularly academically minded. A fair portion of Babel is literally just lectures on linguistics and etymologies, and despite my lack of knowledge it felt completely accessible to me. In order to explain a complicated subject in a way that laymen can understand, you need to really understand it, and I consider it the mark of a truly intelligent person to be able to do this.

Politically, Babel didn't expose me to anything I didn't already believe, but the way it criticized things like colonialism and capitalism were incredibly harsh in a great way. I know this book had a huge impact on so many people for that reason. Despite taking place in an alternative past, the comparisons to current society were obvious, and in many ways I see this book itself as a call to arms for a revolution that feels inevitable.

The world building was stunning. Usually when I read something with fantasy or magical realism I'm left with a bunch of questions, but Rebecca left no stones unturned with this. Btw footnotes are amazing and I wish books used them more! I read this digitally on my Kobo and I love the way footnotes are integrated. But honestly the magical realism in Babel is so subtle and well integrated that sometimes I felt like I was reading straight historical fiction and silverworking was a real thing. 

Plot wise, Babel can be very dense and it did take me longer to read than most books this length would. I loved the descriptions of love, friendship and happiness between Robin and his friends. There's a strong sense of family and the turns this book took were very bittersweet. I think the ending of the book was incredibly impactful and it's definitely something that will stay with me for a long time.