Honestly, I don't have a very high opinion of this book, but I think a good part of that derives from the fact that I felt like I missed the point to this book. Babel Tower seemed unduly long to me (by about 400 pages), with quotations from other books and trivial conversations filling up the bulk of the book. It also is written, in my opinion, incongruously, the storyline fluctuating rapidly and character's actions unjustified. For example, it irked me that in Frederica's trial that the fact that Nigel assaulted her father and her brother in law was largely disregarded (it was mentioned once) and instead the court focused on the hearsay evidence about Nigel throwing an axe at Frederica. Why wasn't her family in court defending her? Why wasn't the instance when Nigel came to her family's home and called her a bitch mentioned? Nigel is allowed 3 witness who clearly would never side against him, while Frederica has no one (but her family is 'supportive' of her). It makes no sense, and I chalk it up to a flaw in the author to present a fictional reality as she saw fit, rather than a work of fiction based in reality.
The story line itself had potential, Frederica is the epitome of a 'modern' woman in the late 1960s, well educated, career driven, and sexually free, and after filing for divorce with her husband, she demands custody of her child, who it is questionable how much she loves him and would actually provide a good home at times. There are definitely two sides of the coin: Nigel, a violent and unstable wealthy man, could provide Leo (their son) with a stable and loving environment between him and his three stables. However, Nigel is gone for long stretches of time, and as I mentioned before, he is of a violent nature, prone to temper tantrums, and would use Leo as bait to bring Frederica back.
Yet, Frederica, although emotionally stable and affectionate towards Leo, is barely financially stable and has questionable morals (it isn't a stable environment for a child if you are sleeping with different men based on your mood). I wouldn't want Leo to live with either of them, honestly, but if I had to choose, I would probably choose Frederica just on the premise that she lives with Agatha and Saskia, who are a stable and happy mother daughter pair and would provide a positive influence for Leo.
The book also goes into another subplot about a controversial book published at the same time. Honestly, I didn't follow that plot line as well because it seemed to just be 'added' on later in the book to add more excitement.
I honestly wouldn't recommend this book to people who follow my literary tastes. I guess if you like books about human emotions (and not necessarily their veracity) and drama, this might be a good read for you.