Bestselling Chinese sci fi author Liu Cixin has joined giants of the genre after winning a Hugo Award, arguably the most prestigious prize in science fiction and fantasy.
“China’s answer to Arthur C. Clarke” – as the New Yorker dubbed him earlier this year – Liu is the first writer from Asia to receive the honor.
Liu won Best Novel for The Three-Body Problem, the first in a trilogy set during the Cultural Revolution, following a disillusioned young engineer who makes contact with an alien civilization and urges them to invade earth, saying, “Our civilization is no longer capable of solving its own problems.”
Speaking to Sina News, Liu said he was “obviously extremely happy to win the award” and gave equal credit to the novel’s English-language translator Ken Liu, who accepted the award on his behalf.
But while calling The Three-Body Problem his best work, Liu Cixin expressed a touch of regret, saying, “There are several things I wish I could change, but the book has already been published.”
Despite his modesty, Liu’s win gives a huge boost of visibility and legitimacy to China’s burgeoning sci fi scene. That should continue when a movie adaptation of The Three-Body Problem is released next summer. Shooting recently wrapped on the RMB200 production, which will reportedly have the largest investment in visual effects for a Chinese film.
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