Liu Cixin, Ken Liu: Three-Body Problem (2022, Head of Zeus)
English language
Published July 19, 2022 by Head of Zeus.
The Three-Body Problem (Chinese: 三体; lit. 'Three-Body') is a science fiction novel written by the Chinese writer Liu Cixin. It is the first novel of the Remembrance of Earth's Past (Chinese: 地球往事) trilogy, but the whole series is often referred to as Three-Body. The trilogy's second and third novels are The Dark Forest and Death's End, respectively. The series portrays a fictional past, present and future where, in the first book, Earth encounters an alien civilization in a nearby star system that consists of three sun-like stars orbiting each other in an unstable system. The title refers to the three-body problem in orbital mechanics. The Three-Body Problem was originally serialized in Science Fiction World in 2006 and published as a standalone book in 2008. In 2006 it received the Yinhe [Galaxy] Award for Chinese science fiction, and in 2012 was described as one of the genre's most successful novels of …
The Three-Body Problem (Chinese: 三体; lit. 'Three-Body') is a science fiction novel written by the Chinese writer Liu Cixin. It is the first novel of the Remembrance of Earth's Past (Chinese: 地球往事) trilogy, but the whole series is often referred to as Three-Body. The trilogy's second and third novels are The Dark Forest and Death's End, respectively. The series portrays a fictional past, present and future where, in the first book, Earth encounters an alien civilization in a nearby star system that consists of three sun-like stars orbiting each other in an unstable system. The title refers to the three-body problem in orbital mechanics. The Three-Body Problem was originally serialized in Science Fiction World in 2006 and published as a standalone book in 2008. In 2006 it received the Yinhe [Galaxy] Award for Chinese science fiction, and in 2012 was described as one of the genre's most successful novels of the previous two decades. By 2015, a Chinese film adaptation of the same name was in production. The English translation by Ken Liu was published by Tor Books in 2014. The translation became the first Asian novel ever to win a Hugo Award for Best Novel, and was nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novel.
C'est la 2me fois que je le lis, et je l'ai appreciee encore plus, cette fois ci.
Terminado el primer libro de la trilogía. Sin aún conocer como serán el resto de libros de la saga, considero algo refrescante a lo que he leído en el género. Es un libro cuyo origen cultural es diferente al típico contexto occidental, ya que el libro fue escrito originalmente en Chino, aunque la traducción es muy buena, se nota algo en como se estructuran las ideas y las frases, entendería que a alguien le pueda resultar algo molesto pero para mi le da un valor añadido.
Esta historia empieza en la revolución cultural china, algo ya de por si, bastante interesante como occidentales, ya que la historia China no es algo a lo que aquí tengamos muchas nociones. Pero rápidamente avanza a un futuro próximo. Los demonios de la revolución cultural, como condición de partida en una acumulación de causas afectos (haciendo la analogía al problema físico al que da …
Terminado el primer libro de la trilogía. Sin aún conocer como serán el resto de libros de la saga, considero algo refrescante a lo que he leído en el género. Es un libro cuyo origen cultural es diferente al típico contexto occidental, ya que el libro fue escrito originalmente en Chino, aunque la traducción es muy buena, se nota algo en como se estructuran las ideas y las frases, entendería que a alguien le pueda resultar algo molesto pero para mi le da un valor añadido.
Esta historia empieza en la revolución cultural china, algo ya de por si, bastante interesante como occidentales, ya que la historia China no es algo a lo que aquí tengamos muchas nociones. Pero rápidamente avanza a un futuro próximo. Los demonios de la revolución cultural, como condición de partida en una acumulación de causas afectos (haciendo la analogía al problema físico al que da el título a este libro) lleva a la humanidad a un futuro caótico donde se enfrentará a consecuencias impredecibles.
El libro aborda algunos de los problema clásicos de la ciencia ficción mientras desarrolla una compleja trama de investigación y misterio, sobre aparentes hechos sobrenaturales y extrañeces que están empujando a los científicos de primer nivel a la locura y la desesperación a lo largo y ancho del planeta tierra.
No es un libro perfecto, no se termina de desarrollar algunos conceptos que pone encima de la mesa y otros se simplifican, pero es un deleite poder leer referencias de física, matemáticas e incluso de computación y programación.
Con ganas de leer sus próximas partes.
I've read all three books before writing this review; and I can say: the first is the strongest and most exciting of the series. Hard science concepts are mixed with interesting characters and novel problems that may be feel a sense of scale and wonder as I read.
Content warning Spoilers
Arrrancó muy pero muy bien, pero toda la parte final con los sofones al final del libro fue muy tirada de los pelos. Aún así, es una lectura muy atrapante y entretenida.
Another mediocre read, I’m not having much luck at the moment! This started off so well, I was absolutely hooked by the clever, sophisticated scientific concepts and Liu’s easy writing style. The sections set in 1960s China were fascinating, it kind of felt like a sweeping historical sci-fi. I was also really invested in the main characters early on, and I especially loved Da Shi, the noir-ish detective with a bit of an attitude.
But then somewhere around the halfway mark things got really bogged down with the science, in fact the science became the main character. The scientific concepts became very hard for a casual reader to grasp and Liu would spend pages, sometimes entire chapters, dissecting and analysing these complex ideas. Quite frankly, I got bored and felt quite alienated as a reader. All of the momentum went out of the storytelling and character development, which just felt …
Another mediocre read, I’m not having much luck at the moment! This started off so well, I was absolutely hooked by the clever, sophisticated scientific concepts and Liu’s easy writing style. The sections set in 1960s China were fascinating, it kind of felt like a sweeping historical sci-fi. I was also really invested in the main characters early on, and I especially loved Da Shi, the noir-ish detective with a bit of an attitude.
But then somewhere around the halfway mark things got really bogged down with the science, in fact the science became the main character. The scientific concepts became very hard for a casual reader to grasp and Liu would spend pages, sometimes entire chapters, dissecting and analysing these complex ideas. Quite frankly, I got bored and felt quite alienated as a reader. All of the momentum went out of the storytelling and character development, which just felt criminal as they were such interesting characters. It was such a disappointing turn of events as I was loving it up until this point, and was so excited to read the other books in the trilogy.
« Le problème à trois corps » est trilogie de SF chinoise, voire de hard-SF. En 2021, le roman avait déjà une belle renommée car il avait obtenu le prix Hugo (en 2015) et que Barack Obama en avait fait l‘éloge public. Comme j‘écris ma chronique avec 3 ans de retard, je peux ajouter qu‘elle a encore gagnée en visibilité cette année, puisqu‘elle a été adaptée en série par Netflix !
40 ans plus …
« Le problème à trois corps » est trilogie de SF chinoise, voire de hard-SF. En 2021, le roman avait déjà une belle renommée car il avait obtenu le prix Hugo (en 2015) et que Barack Obama en avait fait l‘éloge public. Comme j‘écris ma chronique avec 3 ans de retard, je peux ajouter qu‘elle a encore gagnée en visibilité cette année, puisqu‘elle a été adaptée en série par Netflix !
40 ans plus tard, alors qu’une étrange vague de suicides frappe la communauté scientifique internationale. Wang Miao, un scientifique expert en nano-technologies, se voit confronté à d’étranges phénomènes qu’il va rapidement relier à un nouveau, et mystérieux, jeu de réalité virtuelle.
J‘ai trouvé ma lecture passionnante, et palpitante, mais j‘ai quand même quelques réserves. Le livre est complexe, ce qui est assez naturel pour un roman de hard-science, mais je l’ai aussi parfois trouvé confus. Si les aspects scientifiques sont (vraiment) bien traités, les personnages, eux, ne sont pas assez développés. À l’exception notable de Ye Wentje, et peut-être de Shi Qiang, les personnages sont à peine ébauchés et cela m‘a gêné pour apprécier réellement ma lecture.
Je suis néanmoins content de l’avoir lu… mais je n‘était manifestement pas pressé ni d‘écrire à son sujet, ni de lire la suite 😉
ciencia ficcion, puray dura, profunda investigacion fisica, matematica, social, geopolitica, para crear a partir de un problema de modelo matematico, ( los tres cuerpos) una novela innovadora, un salto cuantico en la ciencia ficción
Tak jo, toto mě bavilo. Nečekaně vystavěný příběh, všechno do sebe nakonec zapadá (jen pár věcí zůstalo na konci prvního dílu s otazníkem, tak doufám, že vysvětlení přijde v dalších dílech). Bylo to místy hodně náročné čtení, už jen proto, že nejsem fyzik, ale když se člověk smíří s tím, že to všechno do hloubky prostě nepochopí a prostě tomu jenom „věří“, tak to vlastně zas tak náročné nebylo. Nejvíc mě bavila civilizace s lidským počítačem!
A bunch of interesting ideas, but miles away from a great book.
És un llibre enrevessat amb un punt psicodèlic interessantíssim i utilitzant la cultura xinesa com a base que això, des del nostre occident mediterrani, el fa suggerent. T'obliga a repensar els límits del nostre propi pensament i, fins i tot, algunes creences. Un d'aquells llibres de ciència-ficció que són complets, que ho aborden tot. A vegades em recorda a la Fundació, a la Fi de la Infància o fins i tot a Encontres amb Rama.
I read this book a few years ago now, and found it very thought provoking, It certainly gave me pause for thought about the world and universe we live in.
I would hightly recommend this book.
I read the bok a few years ago now, and it was very thought provoking, first in a trilogy and certainly gave me pause for thought about the world and universe we live in.
I would highly recommend this book.
Interesting premise but could get a bit wordy at times and once i read all three I couldn’t help but think back to the implied/embedded nationalism and misogyny. Or how being a historian of China ruins everything 😅
I liked the plot and the unusual idea for the story, but the characters are somehow not so well detailed and it was hard to immerse myself into the book. Nevertheless, I'm going to read the second one in this series.
Imaginative and thoughtful "hard" science fiction. Fingers crossed that Netflix will do a good job with the series. The setting in China was interesting. Some parts were excellent, while others were a little tiresome (e.g., some of the military/police conversations), but I enjoyed it quite a bit overall. The chapter with Newton, Von Neumann and the human-formation computer was a fascinating and humorous highlight for me.
