Babel (Collector's Edition)

R. F. Kuang's instant #1 New York Times bestselling novel is now available as a stunning Deluxe Collector's Edition featuring a stamped faux-leather case with gold foil; beautiful illustrated endpapers; bookmark ribbon; designed edges; and intricate interior black-and-white illustrations from Nico Delort. Babel is 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?