Review: The Three-Body Problem

The Three-Body Problem by Liu Cixin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I've been meaning to read this for a while, partly because it is a book which has had some buzz, but also I'm getting interested in how science fiction is manifested in other cultures. The main premise focuses on the interactions between Earth and Trisolaris, which (as is implied by its name) is experiencing the Three Body Problem in reality, as it navigates both Chaotic and Stable periods. The setting starts in the Cultural Revolution in China and follows Wang Miao as he tries to figure out why leading theoretical scientists are committing suicide. In his investigations and playing out of a video game based on Trisolaris, Wang discovers a conspiracy and a crisis.

I really did like this book, but have to concede it isn't the easiest read. Thankfully, I didn't get bogged down in the science very much and I did engage with the characters. But I could see how the book would be a slog. Still worth reading, I think, but not easy.

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Review: Sunrise on the Reaping

Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is the most recent of the Hunger Games prequel novels, which follows the Hunger Games of Haymitch Abernathy, the eventual mentor of Katniss in the Hunger Games. The story tells how Haymitch won his Hunger Games, while angering pretty much everyone connected to the games and, especially, President Snow. Written in Collins' signature style, we get into Haymitch's head and see how much the games cost him. It explains so much about how Haymitch appears in the main Hunger Games novels as well as the fact that being a victor really is only the beginning of the torture inflicted by the Capital. No wonder he is an alcoholic hermit by the time Katniss comes around.

There's some interesting parallels between Sunrise and the later books, especially the second one. We see some of the older victors in this book, but we also see a similar attempt to break the arena as we eventually see successfully used in Catching Fire. It doesn't quite work, but the attempt becomes part of the games and, actually, helps determine the winner.

This is definitely worth reading and completes the list of District 12 victor stories.

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