![]() This is an excellent collection of stories that challenge and astonish, pushing the boundaries of what we know about (Chinese) science fiction and our world. There are beautiful moments of overt confusion and subtle clarity that leave the readers in an introspective haze. ![]() This list merely highlights some of the stories, but the rest explore similar issues of identity and values in deeply imaginative and surreal settings. The story of the “Invisible Planets” serves as a metaphor to describe the different lenses of science fiction we must wear as well as the varying perspectives of our world. “The Fish of Lijang”, “TongTong’s Summer” and “The Flower of Shazui” question the choices we make in our culture and what the meaning of these actions are. To avoid overgeneralizations or plot summaries, stories such as “The Year of the Rat” and “The City of Silence” explore issues of prescribed societal roles and how we manage these roles. Each of these stories are more than meets the eye, exploring issues of identity and essential questions of what our future holds and who we are as humans. The art of short story writing is one that requires great restraint and careful world building. ![]() ![]() This is all proceeded by three essays that deal with the subjects of Chinese science fiction, its history, and its authors. Liu offers a wonderful inventive mixture of stories, preceded by a great cautionary warning not to fall into a typical East versus West mindset. Invisible Planets is a brilliant anthology of Chinese science fiction. ![]()
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