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The Dragons of Babel | LitPick Book Reviews
The Dragons of Babel
The Dragons of Babel (Tom Doherty Associates Books)
The Dragons of Babel
Michael Swanwick
A fantasy masterpiece from a five-time Hugo Award winner! A war-dragon of Babel crashes in the idyllic fields of a post-industrialized Faerie and, dragging himself into the nearest village, declares himself king and makes young Will his lieutenant. Nightly, he crawls inside the young fey's brain to get a measure of what his subjects think. Forced out of his village, Will travels with female centaur soldiers, witnesses the violent clash of giants, and acquires a surrogate daughter, Esme, who has no knowledge of the past and may be immortal. Evacuated to the Tower of Babel -- infinitely high, infinitely vulgar, very much like New York City -- Will meets the confidence trickster Nat Whilk. Inside the Dread Tower, Will becomes a hero to the homeless living in the tunnels under the city, rises as an underling to a politician, and meets his one true love–a high-elven woman he dare not aspire to. You've heard of hard SF: This is hard fantasy from a master of the form.

Book Details

Genre: 

  • Adventure
  • Fantasy
  • Fiction

Age Level: 

  • 12 and up
Profile Picture

The Dragons of Babel is about Will, a young boy with responsibilities thrust upon him. Adopted by his Aunt as a young child, Will never knew his true identity. He was disowned by his village for events beyond his control, and thrown out into a world in which war is raging. Along the way, he encounters Esme, a girl with knowledge beyond her years, and Nat, a trickster who knows more about Will than Will does himself.

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