Welcome to Litsy!

31% and I am entranced - decorations are out and lights are on the tree but now I have to make dinner 😡 and deal with laundry and put sheets on my bed and go to work tomorrow. 1 air pod is dead and the second will die soon 😆

Christmasizing has begun. I am LOVING this story and loving it so much on audio. I hope I can get it done before Libby claws it back - I‘ve been working away for over an hour and I‘m only at 10% 😬

A suitably dark photo, I think!
For personal historical reasons this was a challenging read. Many years ago I could have translated on sight any piece of Latin you'd care to give me. (Best of times, worst of times: you know the drill.)
I adored all the stuff about translation and am totally here for word-nerds bringing down the Empire.

This was beautifully written. I loved the discussions about translation & the ways languages grow & change. Having translation used to power the magic of silver was intriguing. The necessity of fluency in far-flung languages being the driver behind colonialism while maintaining English attitudes of racism, classism, & sexism brought the tension. But I wish the author had made her "alternate history" a little more alternate; see spoiler comment.

How do you not go through this book without having strong feelings and thoughts about half a dozen issues? It took me a while to get through because I ended up thinking where I stood on things like colonialism and the history and future of language.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.25

A lot to unpack in this novel. It is a story of a Robin Swift, an orphan rescued from a cholera outbreak in Canton. He becomes the ward of an English professor and after years of study is accepted at Oxford University and the prestigious translation institute, Babel. At university Robin makes close friends and learns the empire building skill of silver working. A 4/5⭐️pick for this boarding school novel with a few twists.

I'm taking a #mentalhealth day and am going to try to make progress on some of these buddy reads. (Except Babel, which I am- very slowly- reading for myself.) I have my tea, birds are singing, sun is shining, ahhhhh 😍 #BackPorchReading

This was an intense, driven book, rich with history and a clear love of language and the power it holds. A damning condemnation of imperialism, being able to see the world through Robin‘s eyes was very impactful. Though there was little happiness to be found in this book, I found I loved it for its unflinching honesty, wealth of history, and the magic we can find in the ordinary. The footnotes added a contextual depth that made a big difference.

Well, I thought I would need half of the month for this audiobook. Turns out, I got addicted and ran through it in almost no time. I get that not all people like the all the monologues and the educated talks, but I did. It's amazing how Kuang fusions actual history and fantasy together, I'm still stunned. Also, how we see Robin growing and transforming just blew me. The older he grows, the more he understands and changes his points of view.

Finally starting this one ahead of #Katabasis — a buddy read with my book bestie😊 Seems perfect for a quiet Saturday afternoon…

I found this book really interesting. I have never read anything by this author before. I loved the layout of the book. I want to read more by this author. I rated the book a 4 out of 5 stars.

#sundayfunday

After My Friends earlier this month, I thought it‘d be a long while before another book took possession of my heart and mind. Nope. This book was most excellent. I need a sequel.

I really enjoyed the first part of the book. Following Robin as he travels to London and then to Oxford. I loved hearing about his studies, and his first year at Oxford. He has been sheltered, so soon becomes aware of the racism, sexism and classism surrounding him. He begins to get radicalized and wants to make changes in the world. I thought the magic system was interesting. The silver working produced a more subtle magic that was fascinating.

3.75⭐️ Set up for the story felt like it took too long; excellent story though #2025 #fiction #magicalrealism #fantasy #historicalfiction

$3 gem! Happy donating Saturday. Hope everyone is having a fantastic weekend!!

An incredible story about white fragility dressed up in gothic dark academia. I loved it. The MC, a young Cantonese boy, seemingly rescued from death and poverty, is groomed by an Oxford professor to join the illustrious and elite translators. Kuang is a masterful storyteller weaving together class, race, socioeconomics, and sexism centering around language—the only real barrier dividing humans and complicating true understanding. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“The word loss was inadequate. Loss just meant a lack, meant something was missing, but it did not encompass the totality of this severance, this terrifying un-anchoring from all that he‘d ever known.”

I enjoyed the book and special shoutout to the number and references to Bangla and Bengalis in the book.

Too much jargon however!

I finished Babel! #5starread #fantasy #babel

#amreading #currentread #currentlyreading

Babel puts a magical spin on 19th-century British colonialism. In this world, silver bars engraved with words from two languages that don‘t perfectly translate can create powerful magic. But at its core, the novel makes it clear that racism is the driving force behind England‘s colonization efforts. This was a heavy and thought-provoking read that should come with a trigger warning for racism, sexism, violence, and suicide.

#babel #fantasy #amreading

LOVED Kuang‘s Poppy Wars Trilogy. Finally starting this!

About last night!❤️❤️❤️

Okay, I finished Babel and I have some mixed feelings. I loved the dark academia vibes of 1830s Oxford and I felt like the topics of anticolonialism, racism, sexism, and classism were handled well. I just don't think this book needed to be a fantasy. The magic elements are cool, but they feel forced in some respects. I almost wish it had just been a dark historical thriller.
I'm going to add some more thoughts in comments with the spoiler tag.

I just got the news that I have another snow day tomorrow! Friday will *likely* be my only work day this week. I'm very much so appreciating the extra time to read and get stuff done around the house and work the shop.

P.s. notice the Corgi ears?

A historical fiction fantasy about the importance and dangers of translating language. How does culture and racism play a role in how words are translated? Is translation always an act of violence?

A story of survival, self-discovery, education, power, and betrayal.

It's an incredible read. 5 stars 🌟⭐️🌟⭐️🌟
Have you read this one?

My sweet little reading buddy 🥺

Started this one & so far, I love it! I'm realizing that fantasy *has* to be told in the 3rd person for me to enjoy it. I was happy to see that this one is.

An overview of some of my favorite books from 2024 :)

Yes, I'm behind on this, but I'm back to Litsy. That's what matters. 🥰😅

⭐️⭐️⭐️

“Babel” is not an easy read. Racism, slavery, and colonialism are major themes in this book, and Robin‘s journey is both empowering yet heartbreaking. I am in awe of Kuang‘s world building and attention to numerous languages. All of the above confirm “Babel” being worth the hype, it just wasn‘t for me personally.

“Because you‘re a good translator.‘ Ramy leaned back on his elbows. ‘That‘s just what translation is, I think. That‘s all speaking is. Listening to the other and trying to see past your own biases to glimpse what they‘re trying to say. Showing yourself to the world, and hoping someone else understands.”

Thank you so much, Barbara, for these lovely books and for your kind words. I love the little Christmas Tree band too🥰 Although I hadn‘t stacked Blue Sisters I have been thinking that I would like to read it, so you must have read my mind😆 Thank you again, my friend.

My 2024 favorites:

Fiction: Babel by R.F. Kuang
Non-Fiction: A Libertarian Walks Into a Bear
Poetry: The Wild Iris by Louise Glück

In 2025, I'm going to set my reading goal low and increase it as I meet it. It worked well for me in 2024. I'm also not putting time limits on my reading challenges. (Except the Les Mis buddy read.) They will take as long as they take. 🥰 I hope we all have a fabulous year of reading!

#2024wrapup #2025goals

Idk, why I thought I would actively want to read this. I really have not found many historical books that I truly enjoy and can get invested in. Even with the fantastical subplot, I just didn‘t care. Honestly, I think this was more a peer pressure thing where I saw so many people loving the book and I gave into the hype. #dnf

#12daysofchristmas @Andrew65

Dark academia, meticulous etymology, bildungsroman, speculative fiction that reads like fiction and NF at the same time ... I was completely gobsmacked.

Yay! Used.

Word-nerds are rarely depicted as fervent rebels, or at least not the kind who might believe the sword is mightier…

But it makes sense here, as a multi-national cohort at a fictional Institute of Translation reckon with the ways they (and the global population at large) are manipulated and exploited by the seekers of empire. But their refusal to participate in the status quo (as always) has consequences.

Yea I just couldn‘t stay awake long enough for this.

Robin confronts Lovell about his Chinese mother.

I have a lot of feelings about this book, and at one point, I was sure it would be a 5-star book for me, but I struggled with the ending, and I felt the footnotes detracted from the reading experience. Overall, though, it was a great read! July #AuthorAMonth. @Soubhiville

#AboutABook
#NewToYouAuthor
@Eggs
@Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

I would never have heard of RF Kuang without last year's #CampLitsy and YELLOWFACE. I read BABEL for this year's #AuthorAMonth, and I loved it even more! She's already a prolific author, and she's only in her 20s!

I did not fall in love with this book like many did, but I did like it. I highly enjoyed learning the etymology of languages and I really wanted to know how the book ended. However, I think I would have had a better experience reading the physical format because I found myself losing focus a few times with the audio.
3.5⭐️

#PopupReadathon @AmandaBlaze #authoramonth @Soubhiville
#BookspinBingo #8 @TheAromaofBooks

#wondrousWednesday

1) I picked a rather obvious name 😃

2) Drive, crafting, laundry, clean house, play solitaire, or cook (for easy but time-consuming meal).

3) Tagged.

Bailed after 1/3 of the book: huge disappointment. There is an amazing world where words have power and translators are doing magic. But there is no action at all, the characters lack substance and the anti-colonial agenda is being pushed down the reader's throat with much force, but little understanding of nuances
#told_by_a_woman
#bookclub

I loved Yellowface so not sure why I‘m surprised that I‘m enjoying this so much but, I‘m really enjoying this dark academia novel. The footnote reading in the audio version though, not so much.

#AuthorAMonth
@Soubhiville

Tbh this was a bit of a slog but I very much appreciated all of the linguistics involved. The author clearly did so much research.

#AuthorAMonth @Soubhiville

#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

Ultimately enjoyable, though the pacing in the first half leaves a lot to be desired. Would round up to 4 out of 5 stars. If you can push through to when the real story starts in the back half, I‘d say it‘s worth it. #AuthorAMonth