Book Club May Review: The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu and Ken Liu

I was recommended this book several times, and after the Netflix show came out it jumped up my list so that I could read it before watching it. Plus CY banned me from choosing another fantasy book for this month, so I had to branch out into a different genre.

The Three Body Problem is a high level sci-fi novel set in China during and after the cultural revolution. The novel begins with a depiction of the civil wars between the red guards during which we meet Ye Wenjie. The story then follows her as she tries to deal with her grief and despair at the state of humanity whilst navigating the political difficulties faced by citizens of China after the cultural revolution. The novel then abruptly switches to the story of Wang Miao, whose world is thrown into chaos after he experiences strange happenings that lead him to question everything he thought he knew about science and the universe.

The Good Stuff

I was so intrigued by this book from pretty much start to finish. On the whole it is a very well written and creative book with a story that constantly keeps you guessing. At first the context about the cultural revolution had me very confused as to what was going on, who the characters were and who was fighting whom. But after it became clearer what was happening, both CY and I found this insight into Chinese history so interesting it made us want to learn more about it.

There was a nice symbolism in quite a few moments throughout the book, such as when we see Ye's perspective of the landscape surrounding the village that takes her in later in the book, which correlates with the landscape that Wang Miao sees when he first logs into the three body game. The concept of the game itself was very intriguing, I found the imagery in the game very creative and it made me laugh quite a few times at how bizarrely it is portrayed (dehydraaaaaatttteeee!).

The structure of the book is different from what I'd usually expect to see, which comes off a bit awkwardly in the translated version, but we both applauded the fact that this was done deliberately to maintain the Chinese style of writing. The characters were all so interesting, particularly Wang Miao who we really rooted for throughout the book as he was likeable and was trying to figure out the truth. I also loved Da Shi who was very funny and Ye Wenjie who we understand even if she does some questionable things. I also won't say too much to not ruin it for those who haven't yet read it, but there is a plot twist that neither myself nor CY saw coming. Overall, Liu did a very good job of capturing the complexities of human nature whilst maintaining a captivating plot and creating relatable characters.

The Not So Good Stuff

I was confused for half of the book which made it a slow read for me at first, and there were moments in the book where some characters acted in a very convenient way that did not really make sense. There were also some loose ends that didn't get tied up, for instance what happens at the end of the countdown, but maybe we just need to read on to find those out. CY also didn't like that at times the timeline jumped within a chapter but I didn't mind this and found that Liu did a good job of weaving together the past, present and future.

Rating

CY - This book has left me pondering what it means to be human and how far we have destroyed our planet. It’s eye-opening and rich with thought-provoking ideas. 4/5.

Kay - Probably the most I've enjoyed a sci-fi book, it had me laughing, crying and feeling puzzled and intrigued all at the same time. 4.5/5.

Have you read this book or watched the Netflix series? Tell us your thoughts in the comments and be sure to come back to read our review of the series!