Christine D. (christylisty) -
I love hard science fiction, so when I discovered Cixin Liu's trilogy, beginning with "The Three-Body Problem", I moved through multiple dimensions and galaxies for two weeks. It is amazing to find books in which most of the characters are physicists, living lives confronted with scientific challenges that threaten human as well as universal existence. It is even more amazing to see the technical paths they take to resolve these confrontations. This trilogy is so well imagined and presented that I feel that I have actually traveled into a fourth dimension, ridden a fusion-powered ship, and shared the threats to human civilization presented by the author.
What is even more stunning is that the author and translators present a story that while tailored to Chinese culture, appeals to any culture. This is what the very best science and literature does. Liu's Trilogy, which proceeds from "The Three-Body Problem" to "The Dark Forest" and to "Death's End", presents the darkness in cultures as well as the light; it imagines the structures of cities built in space, evolution toward the feminine and masculine, haunting axioms about the nature of trust in social structures, and the strengths of cynicism balanced against the ultimate need for nurturing.
As a woman, I find some male science fiction writers leaning almost exclusively toward a male perspective; and throughout this series, I was critical of the author for creating a series of weak, even destructive, female characters. I am so glad I resisted the temptation to stop reading. The author ultimately shows that the noblest characteristics in both sexes are what science and the universe requires.
What is even more stunning is that the author and translators present a story that while tailored to Chinese culture, appeals to any culture. This is what the very best science and literature does. Liu's Trilogy, which proceeds from "The Three-Body Problem" to "The Dark Forest" and to "Death's End", presents the darkness in cultures as well as the light; it imagines the structures of cities built in space, evolution toward the feminine and masculine, haunting axioms about the nature of trust in social structures, and the strengths of cynicism balanced against the ultimate need for nurturing.
As a woman, I find some male science fiction writers leaning almost exclusively toward a male perspective; and throughout this series, I was critical of the author for creating a series of weak, even destructive, female characters. I am so glad I resisted the temptation to stop reading. The author ultimately shows that the noblest characteristics in both sexes are what science and the universe requires.
