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Great timing. I literally just 2 hours ago finished reading Three Body Problem, a sci-fi book mentioned in the article. The description of sci-fi books, not as
by whack 10y ago
Great timing. I literally just 2 hours ago finished reading Three Body Problem, a sci-fi book mentioned in the article. The description of sci-fi books, not as predictions about the future, but as allegories for the present, is dead on. As someone who virtually always reads western books by western authors, Three Body Problem was one of the best books I've read this year. It was gripping, suspenseful, intelligent, and most interestingly, offered a perspective of the world that differs dramatically from that found in western books.
I think a truly global literary scene, featuring writers, ideas and perspectives from all over the world, has the potential to usher in the next golden age of literature.
- twhid 10y agoCurrently reading Three Body Problem and agree on all points.
- Mieaou 10y agoIs there a TL;DR version?
- paavokoya 10y agoThat's called a summary. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Three-Body_Problem https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Three-Body_Problem
- curiousgal 10y agoStrange times we live in.
- pizza 10y agoThis seems very interesting! Thanks for linking the summary. I was intrigued by GP comment but this was the catalyst I needed to peruse. Thanks.
- option 10y agoread it a year ago. now reading "dark forest" - sequel to 3-body. I agree, both are excellent books, but now "dramatically" different from western scifi
- pigscantfly 10y agoIf you enjoy allegorical, non-Western sci-fi, I would highly recommend the work of Arkady and Boris Strugatsky, two prolific brothers who collaborated on a wide range of largely science-fictional material during Soviet times. Most of their work was heavily censored for allegorical references to the contemporary Soviet society and ideology; unredacted English translations have been published over the past fifteen years or so with epilogues written by Boris covering the censorship process. I would recommend beginning with "The Dead Mountaineer's Inn," which I started with, although "Hard to be a God" and "Monday Begins on Saturday" are more strongly allegorical. I read their entire catalogue after reading a book review last year and becoming (mildly) obsessed.
- PerfectDlite 10y agoStrugatsky are hardly a sci-fi. Soviet (and post-Soviet) fiction writers are surprisingly bad at sci-fi. For a decent sci-fi I'd recommend to check Stanislaw Lem, especially 'The Invincible' and 'The Futurological Congress'.
- wdr1 10y agoI just finished Death's End (the third book). The whole series is a fun ride.
- TeMPOraL 10y ago> The description of sci-fi books, not as predictions about the future, but as allegories for the present, is dead on. I just finished reading Three Body Problem today. Curiously, in the afterword for American readers, the author explicitly states that he doesn't write sci-fi to discuss present-day problems in disguise.