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Babel
- Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators’ Revolution
- Narrated by: Chris Lew Kum Hoi, Billie Fulford-Brown
- Length: 21 hrs and 45 mins
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Babel
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Publisher's Summary
THE #2 SUNDAY TIMES AND #1 NYT BESTSELLER
Traduttore, traditore: An act of translation is always an act of betrayal.
Oxford, 1836.
The city of dreaming spires.
It is the centre of all knowledge and progress in the world.
And at its centre is Babel, the Royal Institute of Translation. The tower from which all the power of the Empire flows.
Orphaned in Canton and brought to England by a mysterious guardian, Babel seemed like paradise to Robin Swift.
Until it became a prison…
But can a student stand against an empire?
An incendiary novel from award-winning author R. F. Kuang about the power of language, the violence of colonialism, and the sacrifices of resistance.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
Critic Reviews
"Kuang has crafted a masterpiece that resonates with power and knowledge. Babel is a stark picture of the cruelty of empire, a distillation of dark academia, and a riveting blend of fantasy and historical fiction – a monumental achievement, from the footnotes to the final page." (Samantha Shannon, author of Priory of The Orange Tree)
"Ambitious, sweeping and epic." (Evening Standard)
"An ingenious fantasy about empire’." (Guardian)
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What listeners say about Babel
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Charlie
- 01-05-2023
brilliant book, really, really clever
I have never consumed a book so profound in its ability to expose the true horror of extractive colonial capture using such a clever blend of fantasy and fact. one of the most intelligent historical fiction books i have listened to. the narrators were terrific
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Eli
- 10-05-2023
Great book, incredible performance
Overall, the book was really great! Amazingly written with a lot of skill put in place, particularly around translation and the magic system overall. Story progresses at a good pace, rather chill read in the story regard. The performance really enhanced this book and made it 1000% more gripping. The voice actors really sold it in all aspects - worth getting even if just to listen to them.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Delphine
- 25-10-2023
Great book: excellent mix of fantasy and real themes that make you think
A great fantasy book that doesn’t shy away from real themes of violence, racism and colonialism. Makes you think, and learn - great use of language. I very much enjoyed the performance on audiobook.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 01-02-2023
Brilliant book
I learnt so many more words and their origins fascinating. An intelligent read well worth the time.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 04-03-2023
Best Narration on Audible!
I never write reviews but this audiobook was outstanding!!!!
The book itself was full of word building and language that appeals to the book lover in everyone, but the execution of the narration just took it to the next level!
You won’t be disappointed
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Shalleycat
- 15-10-2023
Fabulous Historic Fantasy
Addictive tale of English politics and the horror of the Opium Wars. Remember.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Bear Paintain
- 22-04-2024
Wow!
While this story starts off slow and I wondered where it was going, boy does the pace pick up!
A really powerful story about racism and revolution.
An awesome read!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 22-09-2022
My fav book of all time
The last 200 pages were just...😭!!
I felt so seen and heard. I sympathised and empathised with many of the characters, especially Robin.
I learned so much and I love the time I spent reading this book because it was a beautiful record of what these people went through, even though, they were fictional.
This is my favourite book of all time. This is fiction at its finest. It captured a certain truth in fiction so well that it is almost real.
If I can give this book more stars, I would.
♾️⭐
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 07-01-2023
damn
my first message to the person who recommended this book to me:
"how dare you. thank you."
because that was hard to cop, but it was also extremely well done.
what a brilliant and subtle way to get an audience to internalise the lived experience of racism, the damage and the suffering that forms the foundation of the dominant paradigm that underlies western colonial enlightenment.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Nick K.
- 24-01-2023
Beautiful story with great message
Loved the book but the narrating was occasionally annoying with poorly overlaid re-pronunciations. I eventually stopped hearing it but initially it bothered me. Overall the story was so good that I was very happy to overlook the narrating.
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