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A review by inquisitrix
Sinopticon: A Celebration of Chinese Science Fiction by Jiang Bo, Gu Shi, Ma Boyong, Anna Wu, Regina Kanyu Wang, Zhao Haihong, Han Song, Hao Jingfang, Bao Shu, Nian Yu, Tang Fei, A Que, Wang Jinkang
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-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? No
5.0
Sinopticon 2021 is a fascinating new look into a rich and vibrant world of speculative fiction that remains largely unfamiliar to Anglophone readers. I hadn't read a great deal of Chinese SF before this collection, but I'll be actively seeking it out from now on.
The 13 stories in this collection engage both with tropes and notes familiar to readers of Western SF and with ideas perhaps more specific to Chinese culture, literature, and society. The result is a set of stories that both feel familiar enough to immediately engage an Anglophone SF reader and fresh enough to not be completely predictable.
As in any short story collection, particularly one featuring work by multiple authors, some of these stories grabbed me more than others. Two particular highlights for me were "Flowers of the Other Shore"--a poignant and ultimately hopeful love story set against the backdrop of zombie apocalypse--and "Starship: Library", a wonderfully touching meditation on artificial intelligence, purpose, life, death, and the eternal value of books, reading, and learning. None of the stories were uninteresting, though, and thanks to all of them being translated by the same person--Xueting Christine Ni--the collection feels satisfyingly cohesive.
In all, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience of reading Sinopticon 2021, and I'll be looking out for more translated work by these and other Chinese SF authors. I would highly recommend this book to any fan of short science fiction.
I received a free e-ARC of this collection via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
The 13 stories in this collection engage both with tropes and notes familiar to readers of Western SF and with ideas perhaps more specific to Chinese culture, literature, and society. The result is a set of stories that both feel familiar enough to immediately engage an Anglophone SF reader and fresh enough to not be completely predictable.
As in any short story collection, particularly one featuring work by multiple authors, some of these stories grabbed me more than others. Two particular highlights for me were "Flowers of the Other Shore"--a poignant and ultimately hopeful love story set against the backdrop of zombie apocalypse--and "Starship: Library", a wonderfully touching meditation on artificial intelligence, purpose, life, death, and the eternal value of books, reading, and learning. None of the stories were uninteresting, though, and thanks to all of them being translated by the same person--Xueting Christine Ni--the collection feels satisfyingly cohesive.
In all, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience of reading Sinopticon 2021, and I'll be looking out for more translated work by these and other Chinese SF authors. I would highly recommend this book to any fan of short science fiction.
I received a free e-ARC of this collection via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.