Instant #1 New York Times Bestseller from the author of The Poppy War “Absolutely
phenomenal. One of the most brilliant razor-sharp books I've had the pleasure of reading that
isn't just an alternative fantastical history but an interrogative one one that grabs
colonial history and the Industrial Revolution turns it over and shakes it out.” -- Shannon
Chakraborty bestselling author of The City of Brass From award-winning author R. F. Kuang
comes Babel a thematic response to The Secret History and a tonal retort to Jonathan
Strange & Mr. Norrell that grapples with student revolutions colonial resistance and the use
of language and translation as the dominating tool of the British empire. Traduttore traditore
: An act of translation is always an act of betrayal. 1828. 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 Translation—also known as Babel. Babel is the
world's center for translation and more importantly magic. Silver working—the art of
manifesting the meaning lost in translation using enchanted silver bars—has made the British
unparalleled in power as its knowledge serves the Empire’s quest for colonization. For Robin
Oxford is a utopia dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge. But knowledge obeys power and as a
Chinese boy raised in Britain Robin realizes serving Babel means betraying his motherland. As
his studies progress Robin finds himself caught between Babel and the shadowy Hermes Society
an organization dedicated to stopping imperial expansion. When Britain pursues an unjust war
with China over silver and opium Robin must decide… Can powerful institutions be changed from
within or does revolution always require violence?
