To start off, Babel was an insanely dense read. The beginning of the book is relatively slow, starting with Robin's time with Professor Lovell and his studies. The readers learn about languages with Robin, making it at times feel like a textbook disguised as a fiction book. It will eventually morph into Robin’s time at Oxford and at Babel. Again, it feels as though you are being force-fed linguistics having a little background on the subject, but you can’t skip it because it still is integral to the plot. Once Robin becomes wrapped up in the mysterious Hermes group is when the book really starts to pick up. Robin begins to hear conflicting stories and is able to think for himself. 

Kuang does an excellent job showing the themes of the book. While I would not have written the themes of racism and colonialism as strongly as she did, I think it was important for the plot and for readers who may not relate to Robin to understand where he is coming from. 

All of Kuang’s characters are so well-written and three-dimensional. Each character has their own backstory. While many Babel scholars of color all have similar stories of being taken from their homeland by white Professors strictly for their language skills, they still have a uniqueness to their stories. Their stories aid them in the choices they make throughout the book, and the differences can be seen more and more the closer you get to the end. 

The pacing is much like a movie. it is slow at the beginning, getting you equipt to the characters, the magic laws, and the themes. But as you get closer to the end the pace begins to get quicker and quicker. 

This book would be a good read for anyone who likes historical settings but can handle the difficult topics of racism and colonialism. I think it’s a good book, especially for people who may not understand the significance of the experience of people of color, especially in predominantly white areas.

I give the book a solid 5/5