Babel

Staff Pick, Sci-Fi/Fantasy (by Sorcha)

Babel, Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators’ Revolution is a beautifully written, heartbreaking story of belonging and sacrifice, friendship and duty and, most importantly, revolt. Its breadth is huge; it explores not only academia, etymology and languages, but also colonialism and the British Empire, racism and misogyny in 19th Century Britain. It is hard to describe in just a few words, not only because of the sheer amount of research, detail and care put into it, but also because of the impact its story and characters have: these four students, all marginalised by the very nation who needs their skills and claims to hold them in high regard, suffer in a society hostile to their very existence.