Babel Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators Revolution
R. F. Kuang

1st paperback ed

Paperback (28 Sep 2023)


Publishers Synopsis

THE #2 SUNDAY TIMES AND #1 NYT BESTSELLER
One for Philip Pullman fans
THE TIMES

This one is an automatic buy
GLAMOUR

Ambitious, sweeping and epic
EVENING STANDARD

Razor-sharp
DAILY MAIL

An ingenious fantasy about empire
GUARDIAN

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 new novel from award-winning author R.F. Kuang about the power of language, the violence of colonialism, and the sacrifices of resistance.

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

Samantha Shannon, author of THE PRIORY OF THE ORANGE TREE

R.F. Kuangs book Babel was a New York Times bestseller w/c 11-09-2022.


Book information

ISBN: 9780008501853
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Imprint: Harper Voyager
Pub date: 28 Sep 2023
Edition: 1st paperback ed
DEWEY: 813.6
DEWEY edition: 23
Language: English
Sales rank: 151
Number of pages: 560
Weight: 270g
Height: 198mm
Width: 129mm
Spine width: 35mm