Babel is set in an alternate history, where Britain has been using magic to maintain its colonial supremacy. Without getting spoiler-ey, this world is built on the idea that languages are magical resources and there is actual power in the act of translation or meaning making. And so, Britain robs its colonies, not just of material wealth but also children, who speak the different languages that are harnessed to work magic and usher in a magical industrial revolution.
The book opens with Robin, a Cantonese-speaking orphan in plague-ridden China. He is whisked off to Oxford to be a scholar at Babel, the Royal Institute of Translation where linguistic magic is forged. What follows is a coming-of-age tale as we watch Robin and his friends, a band of outsiders, tussle between fitting in and being themselves. Cue elitist parties and trips to the library, immersive lectures, and an almost utopian pursuit of knowledge. But scratch beneath the surface, and you’ll find a horrific world of overt racism, subtle discrimination, power struggles, and brewing rebellion. Footnotes abound and the writer takes her deep-dives into history and etymology very seriously.
Sometimes the problem with a book is one that can be solved by branding. I bought Babel because its cover blurb promised fantasy, dark academia, intrigue, and adult fiction. What I got was more allegorical YA with its stock characters, snippy dialogue, and neat solutions. A defining feature of fantasy for me is when the magic is transformative, in that it significantly alters the setting or the world to create something that may mirror our reality but is different in at least one fundamental way. Unfortunately, while Babel provides a good metaphor for the colonial project, I can’t help but wonder, if words and cultures really had actual magical power, wouldn’t the world be very very different?
Also, the whole idea that the fate of the world rests on teenage shoulders is such a YA book trope to find in an adult story. Had the book been marketed as a YA allegory, I would have known what I was getting into and prepared for it. But hey, genre’s a slippery beast and these categories are admittedly somewhat subjective. My sister tells me I should read Yellowface next and I’m happy to give the author another try. What is your idea of fantasy? Does this sound like a book you’d like?
Tabula Rasa 
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