Hard-SF is Cixin's forte. When he combines it with rather close-tied Chinese themes, including traditional poetry set against universe-shattering themes, I think he's pretty mind-blowing. a lost passage of Pindar quoted by Strabo (3.5.5) was the earliest reference in this context: "the pillars which Pindar calls the "gates of Gades" when he asserts that they are the farthermost limits reached by Heracles"; the passage in Pindar has not been traced. After, he had gone to the province’s main city, which had an oncology hospital, and asked a doctor there how much such a surgery would cost. The doctor told him that, considering his situation, he could stay in the hospital’s welfare ward, and that his other expenses could also be reduced commensurately. The final amount wouldn’t be too much—around twenty thousand yuan. Recalling that his patient came from such a remote place, the doctor proceeded to explain the details of hospitalization and surgery. The best thing I can say about this story is that it was short. It included some interesting sci-fi technologies, two that I’d call sci-fi classics and one that was new to me. There were two reasons I didn’t like this story anywhere near as much as the previous two: First, I found the protagonist unlikable, and second, there was way too much exposition. This one was a miss for me.

According to Hesiod, Theogony 507–511, Clymene, one of the Oceanids, the daughters of Oceanus and Tethys, at Hesiod, Theogony 351, was the mother by Iapetus of Atlas, Menoetius, Prometheus, and Epimetheus, while according to Apollodorus, 1.2.3, another Oceanid, Asia was their mother by Iapetus. Atlas] perfected the science of astrology and was the first to publish to mankind the doctrine of the sphere. and it was for this reason that the idea was held that the entire heavens were supported upon the shoulders of Atlas, the myth darkly hinting in this way at his discovery and description of the sphere." Bibliotheca historica, Book III 60.2 It could be that Atlas was chosen because of his superior knowledge of the stars, making him an expert at navigation and travel. Even today, a military leader with a superior understanding of troop movement is more likely to win a battle. Why Did Atlas Give Hercules the Golden Apples?Atlas had several famous children in Greek mythology. Atlas’s daughters included the mountain nymphs known as the Pleiades, the famed Kalypso, and the Hesperides. These female deities played many roles in Greek mythology, often as antagonists to Greek heroes. The Hesperides also protected the golden apples at a time, while Calypso captured the great Odysseus after the fall of Troy. The Titan, however, had remembered a prophecy that told of someone who would steal the golden apples and be called “the son of Zeus”. He was not aware that the prophecy referred to Heracles, rather than Perseus, but had made plans to protect his orchard anyway. He surrounded it with walls and had it watched over by a large dragon. Atlas refused to let Perseus pass, and yelled, “Go far away, lest the glory of the deeds, that you lie about, and Zeus himself, fail you!” He tried to physically push the adventurer away. Perseus tried to calm the Titan and convince him that he had no interest in the apples, but the Titan grew angrier still. He enlarged himself to the size of a mountain, his beard becoming trees and his shoulders into ridges. It is fascinating to see how things have changed for women in China (or at least for those ones in my family) over the last 100 years. My mum still talks about the liberatory movement for women as if it’s one of her fondest memories, even though she also admits women in China have to suffer a double burden, as they are still expected to handle domestic chores while preforming to the same professional standards as men in their work place. The idealism behind “Women Hold Up Half the Sky” may seem a bit redundant at this post-feminist era, however, it cannot be denied, the social development behind such ideology did radically improve the status of women in modern China. There is still a long way to go, but, one step at a time. This was another weird one, but it had its good parts, particularly in the latter half. It had a bizarre blend of the ridiculous and the grim that I’m not sure if I liked or disliked. There was a pretty dire situation facing humanity in this story that I didn’t think was treated with enough weight or urgency. It was an interesting concept, but I wish it had been explored further. Experience the limitless and pure joy of Cixin Liu's writing and imagination in this stunning collection.

Prior to the burden of the sky being forced on Atlas, the only thing that kept it from falling was the presence of Hyperion, Iapetus, Krios, and Koios at the four corners of the world. a b Beekes, Robert; van Beek, Lucien (2010). Etymological Dictionary of Greek. Vol.1. Brill. p.163. According to Plato, Atlas was the first king of Atlantis, the mythological city that got swallowed by the sea. This Atlas was a child of Poseidon and his island was found beyond the “Pillars of Hercules”. These pillars were said to be the furthest the hero had traveled, as going beyond was too dangerous. Atlas of Mauretaniaok haus hans ok gerðu þar af himin ok settu hann upp yfir jörðina með fjórum skautum, ok undir hvert horn settu þeir dverg. Þeir heita svá: Austri, Vestri, Norðri, Suðri. Atlas is heard moaning under the weight of the sky when Percy and his friends find themselves at Mount Othrys. Also, when Percy falls out of the sky onto a strange island, it is discovered that the girl on the island, Calypso, is another daughter of Atlas.

Lemprière, J. (1833). Anthon, C. (ed.). A Classical Dictionary. New York: G. & C. & H. Carvill [etc.] LCCN 31001224. OCLC 81170896. Keuning, J. (1947). "The History of an Atlas: Mercator. Hondius". Imago Mundi. 4 (1): 37–62. doi: 10.1080/03085694708591880. ISSN 0308-5694. JSTOR 1149747. Cixin's trilogy is SF in the grand style, a galaxy-spanning, ideas-rich narrative of invasion and war' GUARDIAN

Table of Contents

Full-Spectrum Barrage Jamming (2001, tr. Carmen Yiling Yan) - dedication to the people of Russia and their literature, which influenced the author a great deal - military sci-fi through and through. I don't really like war stories, but this one was nicely wrapped up. 3/5 To Hold Up The Sky' gives us a window that looks out over a different sci-fi landscape than we've seen in decades. Because science fiction was like this once upon a time: strange and alien, liberated, trope-less, exuberant, young.

Poseidon says that the Titan's Curse can only be forced on a child of Ouranos and Gaea. However, Atlas is a second-generation Titan, the son of Iapetus and Klymene. Cloud of Poems (2003, tr. Carmen Yiling Yan) - close related to the story "Devourer" from The Wandering Earth: Classic Science Fiction Collection. Another allegory on how art (poetry here) surpases technology, and that's not the only idea. 5/5

More by Cixin Liu

In some versions, [20] Heracles instead built the two great Pillars of Hercules to hold the sky away from the earth, liberating Atlas much as he liberated Prometheus. Roman, Luke; Roman, Monica (2010). Encyclopedia of Greek and Roman Mythology. Infobase Publishing. p.92. ISBN 978-1-4381-2639-5. stars - How does a touching story of a dying village teacher relate to an interstellar war fought over 20 millenia 50k lightyears away in the center of the Milky Way? An oddly contrasting narrative that worked as tribute to some of most underrated heroes of our world - teachers. The story about the teacher moved me to tears!! Experience the limitless and pure joy of Cixin Liu's writing and imagination in this stunning collection.Praise for Cixin Liu: