Welcome to Litsy!

I read 8 books in January.
2 5⭐ Babel and The Girl With the Pearl Pin
4 4⭐ The Road Through Wonderland, So Help Me God, The Girl That Vanished, Love Me Fierce in Danger
1 3⭐ 8 Miraculous Months in the Malayan Jungle
1 2⭐ Better the Blood

4 books for #AlphabetChallenge 2023
5 books for #Bookspinbingo
1 book for #SeriesLove2023
3 books for #ISpyBingo
2 books for #OffTheShelf2023
1 book for #Chunkstersof2023

@Andrew65 @Tove_Reads

⭐️⭐️⭐️½
This was pretty good, but I wanted to be blown away. The concept is so enticing! A world where translation and the understanding of etymology + linguistics provide actual magical power to a select few! Where a secret society is working to end, or at least redistribute, that power for the good of humanity! Young people leading a revolution! The unmasking of colonial power players! Betrayal! IT HAD SUCH PROMISE!

(Cont'd in comments)

I enjoyed this book more than I expected. In fact it felt a bit like reading Harry Potter to me, with the main character and his friends, college, the teachers and a bit of fantasy. The main difference is this book‘s focus on colonialism, and all its horrible implications. For colonized nations, and especially for linguistics. I enjoyed the latter parts the most, and I learned a lot. A surprising #ToB23 read!

I‘m updating my #ChunksterChallenge2023 monthly, and in January, I finished two almost chunksters: Babel, which was a surprise hit, and Age of Vice, which was an overhyped disappointment. Onto February! πŸŽ‰

"By the time professor Richard Lovell found his way through Canton's narrow alleys to the faded address in his diary, the boy was the only one in the house left alive."

STRONG opening there, Babel.

Two more to go for this year‘s #ToB23 Tournament of Books.

Liked but didn‘t love this one, like so many of you.

I think I share the same views as many Littens on this book from the #tob shortlist. I loved the language / linguistics elements (how clever to be able to dream up such a storyline?!) but found the colonialism debate rather heavy-handed.

It did feel a bit YA in places to me, despite all of the deaths, so I‘m not sure it deserves to be on the shortlist. I did thoroughly enjoy it though, which I didn‘t expect to do!

This made me chuckle! I'm very excited for this book!

#JanuaryJazz Day 26: A #secret society that attempts to take down the monarchy? Yes, please.

After a succession of slim, spare literary novels, Babel is the #tob23 book I've been waiting for. It has been an absolute delight to read. The world-building is excellent, I am enjoying the characters, and the novel itself is the kind of book you can just fall into and immerse yourself. I have about 150 pages left and I'm going to be sad to finish it.

And, with my reading of Babel, I‘ve completed the β€œAlmost a Chunkster” level of the #ChunksterChallenge2023! πŸŽ‰

Now to pick my next chonky book. I‘m not ready to pick up The Count of Monte Cristo yet, and I definitely don‘t have the emotional fortitude for A Little Life right now. I‘m thinking about Kristin Lavransdatter or The Little Strangerβ€”or maybe I‘ll pick up The Agony & the Ecstasy since it‘s been on my shelf since the early 2000s πŸ˜†

I finished this a couple nights ago and am still mulling it over. It‘s excellent in so many waysβ€”characters, historical context/world-building, magic systemβ€”but it‘s the implications of and responses to colonialism that are going to have me thinking about this one for a while. This was a fantastic #AuldLangSpine pick from @Karisimo β€” I‘m really enjoying your list!

Sadness is when you don‘t finish a book before the library snatches it back.

In 7 days I was able to listen to 16 hours. I have about 6 hours left. It‘s a chunkster that could have done with a bit more editing. However I am loving it! Fingers crossed I get it again soon.🀞I need to know how it ends!

This is genuinely one of the best things I've ever read; I'm not even sure how to put it into words. Everything about it is so stunningly powerful; to be honest I'm a bit (read: very much) in awe

The bedtime dilemma: I only have 80 pages left in Babel. I really want to know what happens next. But once I dive in, I‘m pretty sure I‘ll NEED to finish it and I should really go to bed sooner than 80 pages from now. So maybe I should just read a reasonable amount of Before Green Gables instead. There are no bad choices here. Just a responsible choice and a less-responsible choiceβ€¦πŸ˜ #KindredSpiritsBuddyRead vs. #ChunksterChallenge2023

Read this for my book club with my co-workers. I enjoyed this novel, especially the footnotes, which are written as facts and personal accounts.

While learning about the fears, joys, struggles, and blind loyalties of the characters, we also learn the prejudices, ignorance, and neglect English nobles and academics uphold in the story.

Readers who love dark academia woven with magic and mystery will find this satisfying from beginning to end.

I'll say 3,5 🌟
I loved the idea how language is a resource on its own.
The book tries to capture various points of view but somehow misses some topics completely (sexism in other cultures and its effect on the characters and conflicting religious beliefs are only very remotely touched)
The in depth exploration of what it takes for people to use violence as their last resort is well written and believable.
I strongly recommend the audiobook!

#JanuaryJazz Day 23: #NationalPieDay reminded me of the spinach pie or spanakopita we had earlier this week - paired with baklava cheesecake in one of our favourite Greek restaurants in Abu Dhabi. πŸ’• Paired book is fascinating - I feel like such a nerdy student learning about the etymology of words, syntax and morphology, and structure/function of language - and its role in oppression and domination and empire-building.

In this novel, Kuang does a brilliant job of modifying the history of the industrial revolution just enough to make the effects of colonialism clear. The contrast between personal and communal success/happiness/opportunity is very effective. Although the story drags just a little about fourth-fifths through (where it feels like both the characters and the author aren't quite sure how to proceed), mostly this novel had me by the lapels. #tob2023

I enjoyed this ambitious, carefully constructed, clever work of Historical Fantasy and learned a lot about oppressive colonial capitalism; and even more about language. I loved all the mini word translation lessons. Occasionally heavy-handed? Maybe. Too long? For me, yes. I sped it up to 2x for the second half and the main character‘s inner monologue of doubt and confusion grew tiresome. I did appreciate the ending and occasional flashes of humor.

Next up! #JumpStart2023

It is bold to start this one so early on in my 100 book challenge but it looks so good and I am determinedπŸ’ͺπŸ˜‚

#99ponkindle #ukkindledeal

I absolutely loved this novel, and highly recommend the superbly narrated audiobook version. Kuang did a superb job of integrating the themes of colonialism, racism and language into a page-turning story. I had spent several days in Oxford last summer and my experience with some of the locations made the book even more enjoyable.

#ToB2023
#JoyousJanuary @Andrew65
#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

β€œBy the time Professor Richard Lovell found his way through Canton‘s narrow alleys to the faded address in his diary, the boy was the only one in the house left alive.β€œ

#FridayReads #FirstLineFriday

β€’ #OUABC 2023 Reading Challenge: 40 Prompts (32. A Book set in a school)
#StoryGraph: fantasy historical literary dark emotional | 544 pages

β€œ1828. Robin Swift, orphaned by cholera in Canton, is brought to London by the mysterious Professor Lovell. There, he trains for years in Latin, Ancient Greek, and Chinese, all in preparation for the day he‘ll enroll in Oxford University‘s prestigious Royal Institute of Translationβ€”also known as Babel.”

That's Camille snuggled against my head as I listened to the beginning of the tagged book instead of sleeping last night. (The light purple band is the headband of my sleep headphones.) So far I'm finding myself totally pulled into Babel. My spouse told me yesterday he might have a work trip to England this spring, and I'm feeling even more jealous now that I'm reading all about London and Oxford. My passport needs some action!

#kindledeal #ebooksale

I went into this book with low expectations and MAJOR trepidation but….I was instantly pulled into this #GaslampFantasy and I never lost interest. Narration was outstanding and really helped to keep me engaged. A story about the power of words, language, heritage, obligations, greed, corruption and institutions. I know, sounds dull but SO captivating. Might be my front runner in the #ToB23 shortlist πŸ₯°

Hold finally came in and it‘s goooood!

Just under 5 hours left on audio and im happy to report im still VERY MUCH enjoying this very dense story. The author definitely has an agenda but that‘s ok. Her message about colonialism, greed, war and privilege is a worthy one to write about. There are a few decisions the protagonists make that are highly questionable but this is fiction after all.

I am listening to this book and am surprised by how readable it is and how much I am actually enjoying it, especially the bits about translation seen in a historical (read: colonial) context. I am at 40% now, and hopeful I‘ll end up with a pick! #Tob23

#JanuaryJazz Day 17: Homemade iced #Cafe and freshly baked Reese‘s coffee cake with peanut butter chips and brown sugar streusel topping plus a subversive linguist/translator. πŸ’•β˜•οΈ

I enjoyed this book. I learned a lot of things about languages I never even thought about before.
I had no idea what this was about when I chose it to be my book of the month.
I thought the ending dragged on a tiny bit but it is worth a read if you have the time, it is a long one!

When a book has garnered such attention and praise, I feel like any personal opinion partially to the contrary should begin with an acknowledgement and an apology. I recognize the accomplishment that is this book. How fluidly it conveys the breadth and depth of the wrongs wrought by colonialism and racism; how irrepressible the enthusiasm for language and etymology is despite how dark the circumstances. 1/?

Pigs must be flying @julesG @TrishB because I‘m really enjoying this #GasLightFantasy story - really sharp but accessible
A love letter to linguistics, language, learning, cultures, identities and Oxford. I‘m only a little bit in so I‘m hoping my admiration doesn‘t begin to fizzle out. Audio narration is OUTSTANDING πŸ™ŒπŸ»πŸŽ§πŸ’Ÿ #ToB23 shortlist

I have mixed feelings. During this journey, I experienced the extraordinary and the mundane. Perhaps my expectations were too lofty, or perhaps that was the point. Anywho overall this read was fascinating, and shouldn‘t be missed. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

It‘s a brilliant book that is a historical fantasy. It‘s written almost like a history book with footnotes that sometimes are true but mostly not. It had me looking at certain things in a different perspective and I always enjoy books that do that. Kuang is only 26 and has accomplished enough that anyone would be proud of in a lifetime. I wonder how she‘s going to be able to top what she‘s already done.

My obsession with Babel 100% inspired this entire list πŸ˜‚

bookriot.com/dark-academia-science-fiction-and-fantasy/

Loving the etymology tidbits found along the way...

Listening to audio, especially while driving! Makes it particularly difficult to capture quotes. But I caught a pie mention this morning on my second drive in to work (ahem), at about 35% in:
β€œProfessor Playfair looked as though he got caught with his thumb in a pie.” (Scene before he explained which words to NEVER ever ever use in a silver wordsmithing charm. )

Between my buddyreads and challenges I haven‘t had time to read anything else. My goal for this readathon is to read Babel, which I just want to read.
#joyousjanuaryreadathon

Starting 3..2..1 🎬

I'm so goofy 😜. It dawned on me today I could finish Babel on phone🀦

This was amazing. I think I covered every emotion during this book. Now, I want to read her other books, and I usually don't do fiction.

Was a little nervous with the comparison to Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell (an excellent book but a slog) but this is has the same elevated tone while being totally readable/ bingeable. It‘s literary fiction / alternate history fantasy and I am completely drawn in!

I loved the setting and world building. The story started of good but the last third was a drag and took me ages to get through.

Ugh! My Kindle won't charge. It's my charger and I like 25% in my book. My charger is supposed to be here the 9th, but I hope I get it before then.

Not even close to my goal this year. I hardly read at all the last 3 months. Setting the same goal for 2023, let's see!

#12 booksof2022 October
I loved this one.