(SPOILERS) Can we pls talk about the love between Ramy and Robin 😭, it’s the fact that Ramy was on Robin’s mind for most of his ending that struck out to me the most. That bond they shared, how in robin’s last moments, he imagined Ramy reaching out to him. How Robin described Ramy as beautiful when they first met. How Robin couldn’t find the will to keep living without Ramy. Their friendship was so beautiful. They placed their trusts in each other’s hands. Found a family between them. Although it wasn’t the focus of the novel, I for some reason, wanted more of that relationship. It was interesting to see robin’s reaction at the end when Letty called him “Birdie” after her betrayal. A nickname Ramy would call him. R. Kaung did an amazing job within those last moments to show how much Ramy’s death absolutely wrecked Robin. And how robin’s actions towards the end of the novel was inspired by Ramy’s words to him. I wish we had more moments between them. The ending was beautiful , bittersweet. Very thought provoking on both the historical and friendship aspect
You've hit the nail with this comment (though I'd like to venture that perhaps they had more than just platonic love, though we shall never know). What they had was beautiful and I'd like to imagine that, after everything, the both of them are sitting on that same hill in South Park 'draped in a golden blanket at sunset' and talking and laughing until their cheeks hurt.
@@helenhoang6209 There’s a moment when Robin asks him why he’s rejecting Letty and he says “you know why,” and then Robin describes the silence as charged, saying he doesn’t know what will happen next. He finds him “absurdly charming and beautiful” and wants to touch his cheek because of how beautiful he thinks his skin is. That is not how I think of platonic friends, I call romantic tension
@@RenaissanceRockerBoy Oh yea, I definitely agree. I've just seen quite a bit of opposition to the idea 👿, so I wanted to keep my comment neutral. Believe me, I intend to make them as queer as possible in my coping fanfics 🥲
Omg I wanted to have confirmed romantic scene between them SO BADLY!!! I feel like the way it was written is really good, but I feel like adding a bit of queer awakenings could've made the story more complex in the right ways. ( I just finished the book as well)
Finished Babel today. Had some teary eye moments, but the book was great! It is definitely a reread. So many themes woven into the book that leaves you feeling awe. Spoiler Alert Spoiler Alert! Letty really let me down, but I had a bad feeling about her. She did understand and was aware the change they were fighting for affected her privledge. She harboured feelings for them, but not enough for equal change.
I think it is good that Letty let us down. She represented toxic people in society who wont help if they get no advantage out of it. I think she grew up in such a classist, white, and strict hosehold that she could not believe the truth. I loved Babel and I loved (and hated) the ending
Now that I finally finished Babel I watched this video (yes you said no spoilers, but I like to go in blind 😭). I loved your interaction with it. I think Letty’s character perfectly portrayed that white women will be in solidarity until they can not longer benefit from it. I can’t believe I haven’t read the Poppy Wars but definitely on my way to the library now to get it 🥹
I have an MA in applied linguistics and adore reading novels around language. I just finished Scattered All Over the Earth. I can't wait to read Babel!
I just started reading this book today and am now watching this vlog again in little steps. I finished book 1 and just now I listened to your thoughts on it. So nice also to see you visiting the places mentioned. Already so excited to finish book 2 tomorrow and hear your thoughts on that afterwards!! Please do this kind of style more often, this is such a different and wonderful reading experience!
Joel, thank you! I recently translated a novella from English to my native tongue for my Mom to read, so a book that focuses on languages/the art of translation is right up my alley. I wouldn't know about it if it weren't for you, thank you!🖤 Perfect timing. :D
The way the ending of this book made me SOB! I loved your recounting of Babel: Or RF Kuang Enacting Suffering lol. Seeing Oxford was so cool too, such an atmosphere!
What great timing, I've just returned from Oxford and took my copy of Babel with me because it just felt right. Work crushed me so read about 10 pages though. But now I am so excited to find space to sit and just read
babel was easily my favorite book of the year i’m glad you loved it so much! this video was absolutely beautiful from the oxford footage to the way you describe babel 🙌🙌
I finished the book today and immediately ran to watch this video, this was such a cool reading vlog! Being in the location the books take place - loved hearing your thoughts on the read!
This was such a beautiful vlog and makes me happy to see you living your best life! ☺️ Now both me and my mom are hooked and desperately need Babel in our hands!!💛
Loved this video! As someone currently living in Oxford this was even more special (although you always come the few times I'm not there...) and I can't wait to read Babel!! Also, you reminded me that I need to visit Vaults and Garden again soon 🌞
My most anticipated book of 2022 read by one of my favorite BookTubers who went to Oxford to read said book?? AWESOME!! Watching you give your thoughts to each part while showing some the quote headers for various chapters was really fun to watch and informative to hear. This vlog has pretty much justified my reasons for buying multiple editions of this book. This is the type of dark academia I want: a violent critique on academia and its effects on students of color from various parts of the world. I would love to see more reading vlogs like this in the future. Cannot wait to see your next video!!
Joel, considering how much you loved Babel I think you might also like Ordinary Monsters by J.M. Miro - it's the first in a dark adult fantasy series that just came out, also set during the Victorian era, largely England & Scotland, and largely within an academic setting (to my understanding, I haven't read it yet!) It's getting great reviews so far and seems like it might provide a similar atmosphere to Babel, if with different themes.
@@fictionalfates Ahh, I'm so glad you've already got it queued up! Looking forward to hearing your thoughts. I can't wait to read it either, but am trying to wait until it feels more autumnal!
I went to England two years ago and had the opportunity to visit Oxford during the summer. I'm feeling a bit disappointed because why didn't i discover Babel earlier? It would have been so incredible to read it there ! And reading about Oxford just feels like "wow, i went there, i ate there, i walk there..." And the book is just so good ! I finished it earlier on the day and i really enjoyed this reading. Reading it in English in France was kinda odd, because i couldn't find the words to talk about it with friends. But i really loved everything in there, especially the anger about colonialism, imperialism because you really felt it more than read it. Btw, i loved your review! It kinda allowed me to see more of Oxford and more importantly, it allowed me to reflect on all those complicated subjects ! Thank you and good day to you all ! Ps: sorry for my bad English :')
Decided to watch this because I’m just about to start my copy of Babel which I got for Christmas! As a masters student in linguistics whose research interests are language learning, linguistic discrimination, and language in education, I’m literally so excited to read this book
Nooooo, you can´t do this to me hahahaha, I just last week got addicted to this kind of videos and I get hooked to them, and theeeeen you uploaded a new one hahahahahha, you´re doing great and at the same time making it hard to me to stop watching them haahhaa
Bestie I been waiting for this video I’m so excited to see how you feel about it. And also I hope you enjoy your break from UA-cam because you deserve it after that heartstoppers video.
Wonderful vlog. Really sets the scene. And I want to eat scones. LOL. But this also makes me so happy that I preordered a copy of Babel. Just sad I have to wait for the end of the month for it to arrive.
It’s so interesting listening to your description of the book as “dark academia.” I found the political and humanitarian issues compelling and the author’s choice of setting and plot worked amazingly well in addressing those issues, but her character creation was the most compelling. The characters drove the story through the issues. Etymology is occasionally used in fiction, but it’s very unusual to discuss the opium wars which are rarely taught or discussed. A shameful century of history that many would prefer to sweep under the table, even though drug wars, language and inclusion are still issues to this day.
I absolutely love this vlog. Especially the outside shot. You really found the most perfect shots to go with Babel. Also completely convinced me to read Babel even though before I hadn’t been interested. Recently I’ve started learning my third language and after what you’ve said about Babel I feel like I have to read it. Also I feel like I should also read it in Oxford except I live on the west coast of the US so not really an option for me. 😅
eeee i'm super excited for you to read Babel, and thank you for your great compliments! you can use this vlog as your immersive Oxford experience, so hopefully it'll help when you actually read the book!
This book hurt me in ways I might not be able to express through any form of expression. Did I cry? Yes. But did that make my pain go away? Not even for a sec. Then I couldn't cry anymore. Coming from a country that has been colonised for 200 years....that has been torn apart...divided and ruled. This book hurt me so so so bad.
ahhhhh watching this video makes me REALLY want to read babel, so can anyone give me an estimate for the reading level for it? normally i read ya and occasionally adult but the concept of the book makes me think the prose might be a tad difficult to read for me? i also haven't read the poppy war so i'm not familiar with r.f. kuang's writing style
this is just based on the first two chapters i read: i graduated from uni a while ago and havent read academic articles in a while and have spent the past few years in a reading slump but i found babel to be quite accessible to read. there were one or two words i weren't super familiar but it didn't hinder my reading at all :)
*sips my water to prepare to see how Babel destroyed your soul. 😅😂 Babel is one of the future release books I'm excited about since I love Oxford University (I visited there) and Dark Academia vibes.
This is a great video. I'm new to your channel so you may have covered this book but have you read The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams? If you haven't it's about the making of the first Oxford English Dictionary and the words they left out. More importantly the people who's words they left out. I enjoyed it so much and your experience with Babel reminded me of it. Thank you for this recommendation. I really look forward to reading it now.
I just finished Babel and, seeking validation, I stumbled on your channel. I love your whole approach (not just another talk head) and am looking forward to seeing more. Good day for me! (And BTW.....Jemisin......yes!)
I am generally super understanding of people's varying opinions on books. It's subjective, I completely get it. There are popular books that I, myself, dislike. However, given Babel's main subject matter, I find it a difficult to empathize with people who hate it. Disliking the writing style, character development, and such other technical aspects of the book, I understand. But hating Babel for its content is big red flag imo. (It's historically accurate ffs. Just sit back and try to understand what white people have done to people of colour.)
Historical fiction can never be fully historically accurate, that's why it's called fiction. Authors pic and chose the bits that serve the story. And people ARE allowed to have a non mainstream opinion about a book that was so extremely promoted and hyped.
I just know rf kuang is going to destroy with babel just like she did with the poppy war trilogy and i'm both dreading it and excited for it in equal measure
You’re so lucky you went when term had finished because my college is right opposite wellington gardens and I mayyyy have attempted to rob you for your copy I’m so sorry but I know myself and I know I would 😞
Spoiler............ I wanted to wring Letty's neck. SMH. I mean, I knew it was kind of coming, but it still hurt, nonetheless. Beautiful Ramy. Selfish heifer. Honestly, I was disappointed with aspects of the ending, but overall, it was a decent book.
My soul was destroyed by having high expectations for the book and then having to have various isms spelled out to me every single page like I was incapable of understanding subtext. No wonder the book debuted at #1 on the NYT Bestseller list and then quickly dropped off. Gotta give her publisher credit for the hype generated, awards bought, and use of influencers though.
I'm part of the minority who don't understand the hype at all. None of the characters is really interesting and they all feel so cliché and the magic system doesn't make a lot of sense either. It's like she really wanted to write a book about history and language but realized that fiction would sell better.
At first I was like “you traveled all the way BACK to Oxford just to read a book?!” And then I remembered you live in England
i live in Wales actually!
@@fictionalfates ohhh, didn’t realize they were separate!
@@fictionalfates my favourite fictional character WILL HERONDALE from the infernal devices is also from wales
(SPOILERS) Can we pls talk about the love between Ramy and Robin 😭, it’s the fact that Ramy was on Robin’s mind for most of his ending that struck out to me the most. That bond they shared, how in robin’s last moments, he imagined Ramy reaching out to him. How Robin described Ramy as beautiful when they first met. How Robin couldn’t find the will to keep living without Ramy. Their friendship was so beautiful. They placed their trusts in each other’s hands. Found a family between them. Although it wasn’t the focus of the novel, I for some reason, wanted more of that relationship. It was interesting to see robin’s reaction at the end when Letty called him “Birdie” after her betrayal. A nickname Ramy would call him. R. Kaung did an amazing job within those last moments to show how much Ramy’s death absolutely wrecked Robin. And how robin’s actions towards the end of the novel was inspired by Ramy’s words to him. I wish we had more moments between them. The ending was beautiful , bittersweet. Very thought provoking on both the historical and friendship aspect
You've hit the nail with this comment (though I'd like to venture that perhaps they had more than just platonic love, though we shall never know). What they had was beautiful and I'd like to imagine that, after everything, the both of them are sitting on that same hill in South Park 'draped in a golden blanket at sunset' and talking and laughing until their cheeks hurt.
@@helenhoang6209 There’s a moment when Robin asks him why he’s rejecting Letty and he says “you know why,” and then Robin describes the silence as charged, saying he doesn’t know what will happen next. He finds him “absurdly charming and beautiful” and wants to touch his cheek because of how beautiful he thinks his skin is. That is not how I think of platonic friends, I call romantic tension
@@RenaissanceRockerBoy Oh yea, I definitely agree. I've just seen quite a bit of opposition to the idea 👿, so I wanted to keep my comment neutral. Believe me, I intend to make them as queer as possible in my coping fanfics 🥲
It was beautifully tragic. Reminded me of Achilles and Patroclus
Omg I wanted to have confirmed romantic scene between them SO BADLY!!!
I feel like the way it was written is really good, but I feel like adding a bit of queer awakenings could've made the story more complex in the right ways.
( I just finished the book as well)
Finished Babel today. Had some teary eye moments, but the book was great! It is definitely a reread. So many themes woven into the book that leaves you feeling awe.
Spoiler Alert Spoiler Alert!
Letty really let me down, but I had a bad feeling about her. She did understand and was aware the change they were fighting for affected her privledge. She harboured feelings for them, but not enough for equal change.
YES! I definitely agree with you about both the non-spoiler and spoilery thoughts - there's just so much nuance and excellent things about this book!
ahhhh wish I was surprised. wyt ppl don't surprise me anymore.
I think it is good that Letty let us down. She represented toxic people in society who wont help if they get no advantage out of it. I think she grew up in such a classist, white, and strict hosehold that she could not believe the truth.
I loved Babel and I loved (and hated) the ending
Love your energy and enthusiasm about reading. Keep up the excellent work.
Now that I finally finished Babel I watched this video (yes you said no spoilers, but I like to go in blind 😭). I loved your interaction with it. I think Letty’s character perfectly portrayed that white women will be in solidarity until they can not longer benefit from it. I can’t believe I haven’t read the Poppy Wars but definitely on my way to the library now to get it 🥹
I have an MA in applied linguistics and adore reading novels around language. I just finished Scattered All Over the Earth. I can't wait to read Babel!
This is a theme I'm interested in as well, which books do you recommend?
@@carolinaroveroni8101 One of my favorite books from last year was Lexicon by Max Barry.
Just for curiosity, what was your major at uni? Asking this because I would very much like to have a MA in something related to languages :')
@@alinastarkov377 My degrees have nothing to do with each other. :-) Undergrad BS in psychology then the MA and now I'm studying for my JD.
It's been a year, have you read Babel? I just came across this book
This book turned out to be my favourite of all time so I'm super excited to see how you like it!!
I just started reading this book today and am now watching this vlog again in little steps. I finished book 1 and just now I listened to your thoughts on it. So nice also to see you visiting the places mentioned.
Already so excited to finish book 2 tomorrow and hear your thoughts on that afterwards!!
Please do this kind of style more often, this is such a different and wonderful reading experience!
i love that you’re so open about your *plain* scone fixation
plain scones are the best scones, i don’t make the rules 😌
@@fictionalfates as it turns out… i influenced the influencer 😗
@@oliverreuben8056 that sounds like a gameshow
@@fictionalfates new video idea
Joel, thank you! I recently translated a novella from English to my native tongue for my Mom to read, so a book that focuses on languages/the art of translation is right up my alley.
I wouldn't know about it if it weren't for you, thank you!🖤
Perfect timing. :D
The way the ending of this book made me SOB! I loved your recounting of Babel: Or RF Kuang Enacting Suffering lol. Seeing Oxford was so cool too, such an atmosphere!
What great timing, I've just returned from Oxford and took my copy of Babel with me because it just felt right. Work crushed me so read about 10 pages though. But now I am so excited to find space to sit and just read
omg yes, it's such a surreal experience to read Babel in Oxford!
I finished Babel last Friday and those book 3 and 4 reactions 🥲🥲🥲🥲🥲 such a mood. Super lovely vlog and so cool to see Oxford like this
The quality of your videos is just 😭😭 I love the vibe!!
Lol the deadpan looks at the camera we’re sending me. And yeah that duolingo owl has no behaviour.
babel was easily my favorite book of the year i’m glad you loved it so much! this video was absolutely beautiful from the oxford footage to the way you describe babel 🙌🙌
I finished the book today and immediately ran to watch this video, this was such a cool reading vlog! Being in the location the books take place - loved hearing your thoughts on the read!
You’ve gotten me impossibly more pumped for this book 💪🏻 great video!
loved the concept of you talking about books among plants I need more of this
This was such a beautiful vlog and makes me happy to see you living your best life! ☺️
Now both me and my mom are hooked and desperately need Babel in our hands!!💛
You described it beautifully. I’m half way through babel now and really appreciated this video and seeing some of the setting❤
Yay! The Babel vlog is finally here!!!
yesssss i hope you enjoyed it!
I studied translation in college so you can imagine how fast I grabbed this book 😂 Babel was phenomenal truly ❤️
Loved this video! As someone currently living in Oxford this was even more special (although you always come the few times I'm not there...) and I can't wait to read Babel!! Also, you reminded me that I need to visit Vaults and Garden again soon 🌞
guys is this a novel or a saga? bc i can't sant Kuang's cliffhangers😭 joel said it's a novel but just making sure
it’s a single novel!
ahhh so happy this vlog is posted!! i think this is from the weekend I ran into around town 🤩🤩 can’t wait to watch
My most anticipated book of 2022 read by one of my favorite BookTubers who went to Oxford to read said book?? AWESOME!!
Watching you give your thoughts to each part while showing some the quote headers for various chapters was really fun to watch and informative to hear. This vlog has pretty much justified my reasons for buying multiple editions of this book. This is the type of dark academia I want: a violent critique on academia and its effects on students of color from various parts of the world.
I would love to see more reading vlogs like this in the future. Cannot wait to see your next video!!
eeee thank you! i'm super excited to do more of these in the future when i'm able to, it was such a fun experience to film this!
WOW!! I'm currently studying translation studies and this book was added instantly to my TBR!
I am so jealous! I am living vicariously through your visit in Oxford and reading Babel at the same time!
This vlog was so perfect omg
thank you omg
You have 10000% convinced me to get Babel
Joel, considering how much you loved Babel I think you might also like Ordinary Monsters by J.M. Miro - it's the first in a dark adult fantasy series that just came out, also set during the Victorian era, largely England & Scotland, and largely within an academic setting (to my understanding, I haven't read it yet!) It's getting great reviews so far and seems like it might provide a similar atmosphere to Babel, if with different themes.
Ordinary Monsters is literally one of my next reads and I’ve heard so many good things about it 😭 I cannot wait to get into it eeeee
@@fictionalfates Ahh, I'm so glad you've already got it queued up! Looking forward to hearing your thoughts. I can't wait to read it either, but am trying to wait until it feels more autumnal!
I went to England two years ago and had the opportunity to visit Oxford during the summer. I'm feeling a bit disappointed because why didn't i discover Babel earlier? It would have been so incredible to read it there ! And reading about Oxford just feels like "wow, i went there, i ate there, i walk there..." And the book is just so good ! I finished it earlier on the day and i really enjoyed this reading. Reading it in English in France was kinda odd, because i couldn't find the words to talk about it with friends. But i really loved everything in there, especially the anger about colonialism, imperialism because you really felt it more than read it.
Btw, i loved your review! It kinda allowed me to see more of Oxford and more importantly, it allowed me to reflect on all those complicated subjects !
Thank you and good day to you all !
Ps: sorry for my bad English :')
Your face during book 3 😂 You’ve got yourself a new sub, love your content!
Decided to watch this because I’m just about to start my copy of Babel which I got for Christmas! As a masters student in linguistics whose research interests are language learning, linguistic discrimination, and language in education, I’m literally so excited to read this book
Also I minored in English, sociology, and anthropology in undergrad so it’s really got the potential to be just the most perfect book for me
I am so excited to read this book! I pre-ordered mine on Amazon ✨️😭
just finished this book and it was everythingggg
Nooooo, you can´t do this to me hahahaha, I just last week got addicted to this kind of videos and I get hooked to them, and theeeeen you uploaded a new one hahahahahha, you´re doing great and at the same time making it hard to me to stop watching them haahhaa
ahaha i'm glad that i'm able to provide you with more of these kinds of videos to watch!!
YESSS I FINALLY EARLY TO SOMETHING 🤧🙌
WELCOME TO THE EARLY SQUAD!
I loved this vlog so much. Thank you for filming it on location!
Where in the UK did you find a paperback version of the book. I can't find it?
Such a cozy vlog! really want to read this one
Bestie I been waiting for this video I’m so excited to see how you feel about it. And also I hope you enjoy your break from UA-cam because you deserve it after that heartstoppers video.
eee i definitely did enjoy my break, thank you! i'm super excited to be creating more videos now hehe
🙌 Great vlog! Can't wait to read this when it comes out.
i'm so excited to see how everyone reacts to it!
How big of a part does magic play in this novel? Like in poppy wars it was pretty equal parts magic and politics/war strategy
I’ve been soo looking forward to this 🤗💛🤓🥹
awwww I love all the footage of u outside, talking to us. very cozy and felt immersive
eee i'm so glad to hear that!
you've made me sooooo much more excited!!
YES! goal achieved
Wonderful vlog. Really sets the scene. And I want to eat scones. LOL. But this also makes me so happy that I preordered a copy of Babel. Just sad I have to wait for the end of the month for it to arrive.
It’s so interesting listening to your description of the book as “dark academia.” I found the political and humanitarian issues compelling and the author’s choice of setting and plot worked amazingly well in addressing those issues, but her character creation was the most compelling. The characters drove the story through the issues. Etymology is occasionally used in fiction, but it’s very unusual to discuss the opium wars which are rarely taught or discussed. A shameful century of history that many would prefer to sweep under the table, even though drug wars, language and inclusion are still issues to this day.
I absolutely love this vlog. Especially the outside shot. You really found the most perfect shots to go with Babel. Also completely convinced me to read Babel even though before I hadn’t been interested. Recently I’ve started learning my third language and after what you’ve said about Babel I feel like I have to read it. Also I feel like I should also read it in Oxford except I live on the west coast of the US so not really an option for me. 😅
eeee i'm super excited for you to read Babel, and thank you for your great compliments! you can use this vlog as your immersive Oxford experience, so hopefully it'll help when you actually read the book!
This book hurt me in ways I might not be able to express through any form of expression. Did I cry? Yes. But did that make my pain go away? Not even for a sec. Then I couldn't cry anymore. Coming from a country that has been colonised for 200 years....that has been torn apart...divided and ruled. This book hurt me so so so bad.
ahhhhh watching this video makes me REALLY want to read babel, so can anyone give me an estimate for the reading level for it? normally i read ya and occasionally adult but the concept of the book makes me think the prose might be a tad difficult to read for me? i also haven't read the poppy war so i'm not familiar with r.f. kuang's writing style
this is just based on the first two chapters i read: i graduated from uni a while ago and havent read academic articles in a while and have spent the past few years in a reading slump but i found babel to be quite accessible to read. there were one or two words i weren't super familiar but it didn't hinder my reading at all :)
Your voice is soo soothing. You should be my spirit aura guide! 😍😍
*sips my water to prepare to see how Babel destroyed your soul. 😅😂 Babel is one of the future release books I'm excited about since I love Oxford University (I visited there) and Dark Academia vibes.
i can't wait for you to get your hands on it!
This is a great video. I'm new to your channel so you may have covered this book but have you read The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams? If you haven't it's about the making of the first Oxford English Dictionary and the words they left out. More importantly the people who's words they left out. I enjoyed it so much and your experience with Babel reminded me of it. Thank you for this recommendation. I really look forward to reading it now.
Thank you so much!! I actually saw that book in Blackwell's whilst I was in Oxford but I didn't pick it up -- guess I should now!
Do you prefer Tartt or Kuang for dark academia?
where did you get a paperback in the uk?? 😮
On my TBR! 💕
I just finished Babel and, seeking validation, I stumbled on your channel. I love your whole approach (not just another talk head) and am looking forward to seeing more. Good day for me! (And BTW.....Jemisin......yes!)
The ARCs are so pretty!!!
SPOILERS
Ramy and Robin almost, but not quite fell in love... BECAUSE THEY DIED???!!!! Rebecca better pay for my therapy.
Could anyone tell me if there are spoilers for Babel in this vid before I watch?
no spoilers! i briefly touch upon small moments in the book, but nothing that reveals anything about the main plot
@@fictionalfates Thanks Joel - looking forward to watching!
I am generally super understanding of people's varying opinions on books. It's subjective, I completely get it. There are popular books that I, myself, dislike. However, given Babel's main subject matter, I find it a difficult to empathize with people who hate it. Disliking the writing style, character development, and such other technical aspects of the book, I understand. But hating Babel for its content is big red flag imo. (It's historically accurate ffs. Just sit back and try to understand what white people have done to people of colour.)
Historical fiction can never be fully historically accurate, that's why it's called fiction. Authors pic and chose the bits that serve the story. And people ARE allowed to have a non mainstream opinion about a book that was so extremely promoted and hyped.
I can't wait to get "Babel" into my greedy fingers! *lol* Your video just made me even more excited for it. =))
This book destroyed me. I wept.
I just know rf kuang is going to destroy with babel just like she did with the poppy war trilogy and i'm both dreading it and excited for it in equal measure
08:39 isn't it spelled J. R. R. Tolkien 😭
YES SDKFJKLDSFJDF not the bench spelling it wrong oh my gosh
I’m going to Oxford Monday morning, any must do things. Aaaaa I’m so excited omg 🤍
I don’t like dark academia but I love languages so I really wanna try this
I'm so excited for my copy to arrive
Very informative, I will be placing an order for this book..
I want this book so freaking bad
it's so good
Thanks to you I just ordered Babel 🖤
Your vlogs are so entertaining
thank you!!!
List of places you went pls and thank you
english is not my first language, will this be a tough read?
For a book that is set in the Georgian/Victorian era it has surprisingly few terms from these eras. You'll be fine.
Can you make dark academia book recommendation video ?
Amazing video. 🥰
I love the time you take to film the pride flags, it's like "look! fellow gays!"
it had to be done
so its not to do with tower of babel? lol
You’re so lucky you went when term had finished because my college is right opposite wellington gardens and I mayyyy have attempted to rob you for your copy I’m so sorry but I know myself and I know I would 😞
Spoiler............
I wanted to wring Letty's neck. SMH. I mean, I knew it was kind of coming, but it still hurt, nonetheless. Beautiful Ramy. Selfish heifer.
Honestly, I was disappointed with aspects of the ending, but overall, it was a decent book.
😍
💞💘
My soul was destroyed by having high expectations for the book and then having to have various isms spelled out to me every single page like I was incapable of understanding subtext. No wonder the book debuted at #1 on the NYT Bestseller list and then quickly dropped off. Gotta give her publisher credit for the hype generated, awards bought, and use of influencers though.
I love your reading vlogs and would like to see more.
i definitely have more lined up in the future!
14:31 me
Cunning linguists.
I'm part of the minority who don't understand the hype at all. None of the characters is really interesting and they all feel so cliché and the magic system doesn't make a lot of sense either. It's like she really wanted to write a book about history and language but realized that fiction would sell better.
Overrated book imo.
thewaterstone-book-man-(british-book-shop-called-waterstones)-but-like-i-showed-him-the-atlas-6-and-he-wait-straight-to-this-book-said-he-just-read-iyt-and-it-was-so-good-and-i-was-tempted-but-it-was-so-much-money-atleast-i-got-a-free-book-mark-the-man-gave-me-but-it-is-now-on-mt-tbr-i-will-defo-be-reading-or-getting-this-book-soon