Book Cover

I've always felt that the greatest and most beautiful stories in the history of humanity were not sung by wandering bards or written by playwrights and novelists, but told by science.

# Review

I’ve been meaning to read this book for years and with the release of the Netflix show 3 Body Problem (and my girlfriend asking to watch the show together), I finally got around to reading the book. The story is a series of intertwining stories, taking place both in the present and in the past, that unveils a grand scientific conspiracy.

When I decided to read this book, I wasn’t sure whether to read it in Mandarin, its original language, or the English version translated by Ken Liu. I ended up reading the translated version because it may actually be truer to Liu Cixin’s original vision. Liu Cixin’s Mandarin version was subject to Chinese censors while Ken Liu’s English version was not; as a result, Ken Liu’s version was able to do what Liu Cixin’s could not, such as starting the story with the Cultural Revolution.

The story is interesting and the Chinese cultural elements feel familiar, as I spent my early childhood in China. The story explores many interesting themes, such as the influence of culture on science and the role that basic sciences plays in society. I also really enjoyed the mystery elements which bordered on the absurd. The character development is decent but my favourite aspect of the book is the elaborate and grand scientific theories behind the story. While I appreciate reading through the scientific explanations of the various phenomena, the lengthy explanations often broke the flow of the narrative. Despite this, science nerds (such as myself) will enjoy this well-researched cerebral sci-fi conspiracy.

# Conclusion

A stellar example of Chinese science fiction.

# Overall rating: 8.2

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