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emergencily's review
3.75
- a collection of sci-fi short stories translated to english from a diverse range of chinese authors
- as with any collection of stories, some hit high notes and some hit lows. but overall this collection has more mid and low points. some of the stories are pretty basic sci-fi premises and don't offer anything interesting to say about the world beyond what's immediately obvious
- the foreword discusses the editor's hope to represent chinese women authors in sci-fi through this collection; this makes the inclusion of a few stories with very old-school, trite misogynistic tropes extra irritating in retrospect!
- standout stories:
- tombs of the universe - a reflection on the evolution of human funerary practices in the age of space travel
- rendezvous 1937: a time travelling story about the atrocities committed by japan in nanjing during WWII
- flower of the other shore: an apocalyptic zombie story about a zombie falling in love. quirky love story, reminiscent of "warm bodies"
- starship: library - a love letter to libraries as the community spaces & living archives of humanity
pipn_t's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
goofymango's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
codercaitlin's review
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
humanignorance's review
3.0
3 stars. A collection of SF stories translated from Chinese. A collection of SF stories translated from Chinese. There’s a mix of good and bad. Collectively, aside from the cultural influences, which are generally neither a strength nor a weakness, there’s not much to distinguish them from Western SF stories. Individual star ratings for each story follow.
The Last Save, Gu Shi – 4 stars. Tombs of the Universe, Han Song – 3 stars. Qiankun and Alex, Hao Jingfang – 4 stars. Cat’s Chance in Hell, Nian Yu – 1.5 stars. The Return of Adam, Wang Jinkang – 3 stars. Rendezvous: 1937, Zhao Haihong – 1 star. The Heart of the Museum, Tang Fei – 1.5 stars. The Great Migration, Ma Boyong – 3.5 stars. Meisje met de parel, Anna Wu – 2 stars. Flower of the Other Shore, A Que – 2.5 stars. The Absolution Experiment, Bao Shu – 2 stars. The Tide of Moon City, Regina Kanyu Wang – 4 stars. Starship: Library, Jiang Bo – 4.5 stars.
The Last Save, Gu Shi – 4 stars. Tombs of the Universe, Han Song – 3 stars. Qiankun and Alex, Hao Jingfang – 4 stars. Cat’s Chance in Hell, Nian Yu – 1.5 stars. The Return of Adam, Wang Jinkang – 3 stars. Rendezvous: 1937, Zhao Haihong – 1 star. The Heart of the Museum, Tang Fei – 1.5 stars. The Great Migration, Ma Boyong – 3.5 stars. Meisje met de parel, Anna Wu – 2 stars. Flower of the Other Shore, A Que – 2.5 stars. The Absolution Experiment, Bao Shu – 2 stars. The Tide of Moon City, Regina Kanyu Wang – 4 stars. Starship: Library, Jiang Bo – 4.5 stars.
dee9401's review
5.0
What a fantastic collection of SF from Chinese authors. I found a recommendation for this work and picked it up end of 2021 and finally started reading it in January 2023. The introduction by Xueting Christine Ni was very good, setting up the stories and process for the book. I liked many of the stories and only a few left me wanting, hence the 5 star rating overall. A good choice for my first five star of the year.
“The Tide of Moon City”, by Regina Kanyu Wang, was one of the best stories in the collection. It reminds me of 70s New Wave in all its best attributes: love, science, politics, friendship, and inner thoughts. All beautifully woven here. A Que’s “Flower of the Other Shore” was also a standout in this volume. At times I grimaced with the parody or fourth wall breaking, but it was a great story well told. I also loved “Starship: Library” by Jiang Bo, and not just because libraries are dear to my heart. So well done.
I really liked Gu Shi’s “The Last Save”, with its cool time travel idea approached from unique perspective. Han Song’s haunting, philosophical “Tombs of the Universe” was excellent and nicely written to boot. I thoroughly enjoyed the very short “Qiankun and Alex” by Hao Jingfang, which explored a fun approach to AI between a machine and a child. A perfect nibble of a story. A more provocative story on AI that is growing more relevant in our age today was Nian Yu’s “Cat's Chance in Hell”. I also really enjoyed Anna Wu’s “Meisje met de Parel”, a thought provoking piece.
“Rendezvous: 1937”, by Zhao Haihong was an important that was hard to follow at the beginning. But, as the story progressed, it made great, and sad, sense. This is the style of work that many on the right would seek to ban today, that explores truth and hard realities.
Of the other stories, “The Return of Adam” by Wang Jinkang was an interesting idea but it had too much exposition. It was an early work by the author and one of the oldest in the collection as a whole, so that might partly contribute to why I didn’t like it is as much as the other stories. I thought Tang Fei’s “The Heart of the Museum” was just a little “too clever”. Ma Boyong’s “The Great Migration” was just okay too. “The Absolution Experiment” by Bao Shu was also an interesting idea but it was too short to work effectively. Immortality stories are very good but they need time to grow and develop.
Overall, I highly recommend this collection of stories.
“The Tide of Moon City”, by Regina Kanyu Wang, was one of the best stories in the collection. It reminds me of 70s New Wave in all its best attributes: love, science, politics, friendship, and inner thoughts. All beautifully woven here. A Que’s “Flower of the Other Shore” was also a standout in this volume. At times I grimaced with the parody or fourth wall breaking, but it was a great story well told. I also loved “Starship: Library” by Jiang Bo, and not just because libraries are dear to my heart. So well done.
I really liked Gu Shi’s “The Last Save”, with its cool time travel idea approached from unique perspective. Han Song’s haunting, philosophical “Tombs of the Universe” was excellent and nicely written to boot. I thoroughly enjoyed the very short “Qiankun and Alex” by Hao Jingfang, which explored a fun approach to AI between a machine and a child. A perfect nibble of a story. A more provocative story on AI that is growing more relevant in our age today was Nian Yu’s “Cat's Chance in Hell”. I also really enjoyed Anna Wu’s “Meisje met de Parel”, a thought provoking piece.
“Rendezvous: 1937”, by Zhao Haihong was an important that was hard to follow at the beginning. But, as the story progressed, it made great, and sad, sense. This is the style of work that many on the right would seek to ban today, that explores truth and hard realities.
Of the other stories, “The Return of Adam” by Wang Jinkang was an interesting idea but it had too much exposition. It was an early work by the author and one of the oldest in the collection as a whole, so that might partly contribute to why I didn’t like it is as much as the other stories. I thought Tang Fei’s “The Heart of the Museum” was just a little “too clever”. Ma Boyong’s “The Great Migration” was just okay too. “The Absolution Experiment” by Bao Shu was also an interesting idea but it was too short to work effectively. Immortality stories are very good but they need time to grow and develop.
Overall, I highly recommend this collection of stories.
phoenix0's review
3.0
I was introduced to Kehuan (科幻) through the common route of reading The Three Body Problem by Liu Cixin, to then go on to devour his works and that of Ken Liu's. Picking up Sinopticon, I was excited to read new voices and hoped to be exposed to many new perspectives.
Alas, the themes explored in this collection are commonplace. While I was tugged by, being a participant in this annual event myself every year pre-Covid, I couldn't help but finish the book with a little forlorn "That's It?"
Perhaps this book would ring very differently for readers who did not already grow up well acquainted with Chinese customs and stories, such as The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl (牛郎織女) and our annual visits to graves. While I enjoyed the translation of our age old culture into a sci fi context, I kept hoping for each of these threads to push into a new frontier, and was disappointed to find that they didn't.
Alas, the themes explored in this collection are commonplace. While I was tugged by
Perhaps this book would ring very differently for readers who did not already grow up well acquainted with Chinese customs and stories, such as The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl (牛郎織女) and our annual visits to graves. While I enjoyed the translation of our age old culture into a sci fi context, I kept hoping for each of these threads to push into a new frontier, and was disappointed to find that they didn't.
juliaz_13's review
3.0
Pretty uneven collection. Some were thoughtful and interesting and some very basic. I actually really enjoyed the translator notes which helped me contextualize the story. Highlights, Nanjing 1937 and the library at the end of the world.
books_and_keys's review
adventurous
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
thewulverslibrary's review
2.0
Xueting has introduced an impressively succinct collection of Chinese fiction that have each earned their place in this novel. Each story is a demonstration of intrinsic Chinese culture that discuss events, identity and customs.
These stories are varied but vastly entertaining. There are humorous space adventures and comedic apocalyptic tales. We go through cosmic exploration of the dead to time travelling choices. There are so many great authors here to devour and learn from. This is a stunning collection that has a story for every reader. This is a great introduction to a different perspective.
These stories are varied but vastly entertaining. There are humorous space adventures and comedic apocalyptic tales. We go through cosmic exploration of the dead to time travelling choices. There are so many great authors here to devour and learn from. This is a stunning collection that has a story for every reader. This is a great introduction to a different perspective.