Wandering Planet

Name: Wandering Planet
ISBN: 9787547049020

Liu YangVolumes Publishing Company · ChinaSep 2022

3.8

Word count: 182K words
Chapters: 44
ISBN: 9787547049020

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Summary

This collection presents 44 outstanding short stories selected from past years' excellent submissions to the magazine Xiaokehuan. The included works range from classic, old-school science fiction such as "Jinyang Qiu" and "Three Thousand Rivers" to grand space operas such as "Wandering Planet" and "Trilobites on an Alien Ruin," and to innovative techno-science fiction such as "A Hundred-Year Dream" and "This Li Bai Is Not So Cold." From outer space to Earth's cities, from the distant past to the future, from land to sea, these wildly imaginative science fiction writers stage a brief but fierce contest of wits in this book.

Editor's review

Wandering Planet is another major work by Liu Yang after Perfect Doomsday, rated 7.9 on Douban. This work is not fan fiction of "The Wandering Earth" in the traditional sense; rather, it is an independent science-fiction universe built by the author on a solid physics background (Liu Yang holds a PhD in condensed matter physics). The book consists of several novellas and short stories, with its core exploring the survival paradox and civilizational choices of humanity in extreme cosmic environments. Liu Yang's writing style combines gorgeous imagination with cold, rigorous deduction, and its unique charm as hard science fiction shows especially in the reinterpretation of the concept of "ether" and the detailed depiction of cosmic navigation. Compared with works on similar themes that emphasize grand narrative, this book leans more toward a deep fusion of philosophical speculation and scientific setup; reading it feels more like taking part in a rigorous thought experiment. For science-fiction fans, its value lies in offering another possible perspective different from mainstream narratives: that the survival of civilization is not only a technical question but also an ultimate interrogation of ethics and the meaning of existence. The repeated subversion of the definition of "home" in the book is especially worth pondering.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Deep readers who prefer hard science-fiction setups and scientific logical deduction
Thinkers with a strong interest in cosmic sociology and the survival of civilization
Science-fiction fans who appreciate high-concept creative presentation within short-story frameworks
Readers who want original texts different from mainstream cinematic science-fiction narratives

Not a good fit for

Entertainment-oriented readers seeking fast pacing, strong plot conflict, and dense action scenes
Readers lacking patience for and grounding in physics concepts and philosophical discussion

Reading tips

Read in table-of-contents order, though each story is relatively independent and can be chosen by interest
Pay some attention to the implicit conceptual connections and world-building clues the author plants between chapters
Look up background on physics setups that interest you; this can greatly enhance the reading experience

About the publisher

Volumes Publishing Company China · Founded in 2003

Volumes Publishing Company is a comprehensive publisher known for its titles on Chinese classics and literature and the arts. Its publishing covers classical literature, essays and miscellaneous writings, folk literature, foreign literature, and exam preparation books. Judging from the 269 titles in the database, the company emphasizes making classic works accessible to a broad readership. Representative books include Letters from Fu Lei to His Son, The Four Great Classical Novels, Teahouse, The Classic of Mountains and Seas, Dawn Blossoms Plucked at Dusk, and Camel Xiangzi, with authors including Fu Lei, Cao Xueqin, Luo Guanzhong, Shi Nai'an, Wu Cheng'an, Lao She, Liu Xiang, and Liu Xin. The company has also developed series brands such as the Volumes Studio Chinese Classics and the Science Fiction Library, giving it a distinctive profile in organizing Chinese classics and promoting literary reading. Public information on its other publishing activities is limited.

版权信息
序
流浪星球
J3
百口莫辩
百年一梦
冰冷的救赎
成都是地上一座城
当雪花落下的时候
俄罗斯方块和前门鲁班石
过冷
恒日囚
凛冬
玛佐和她的鱼
失落飞船里的流浪诗人
冥王星密室杀人事件
庞贝之殇
潜伏
三千河
收藏
外星遗迹上的三叶虫
我的室友徐志摩
我请求成为天空的孩子
无所不知
心月狐事件
信使
须弥山上
寻
一步登天
伊苏欧曼
引力鱼
当当的梦想
地球故事
两个人的奥林匹克
长城
雨神
Q城霾事
霾海孤云
群星之宴
秀色
晋阳秋
七绝
楼兰往事
这个李白不太冷

FAQ

Is this book related to the film The Wandering Earth?

There is no direct relationship. This book is Liu Yang's original science-fiction collection. Although the theme involves planetary migration and survival crises, the world-building, stories, and characters are all independently created, and the core conception and direction of scientific setup are markedly different.

Are the stories in the book a continuous novel or independent short stories?

The main body consists of several independent novellas and short stories that share some foundational world-building (such as the "ether" cosmology), but each story has its own complete plot, characters, and themes, similar to "different reports on different facets of the same universe."

Can readers without a science background understand the scientific concepts?

The author strikes a good balance in the narrative, and the core plot does not depend on abstruse terminology. Key scientific concepts involved (such as "mind uploading" and "entropy increase") are naturally explained through the plot. General readers will have no trouble following the main line, though savoring the details of the setup may require some grounding or extra thought.

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About the author

Liu Yang Author · China · 1986

Liu Yang, born in 1986 in Neijiang, Sichuan, is a Chinese science fiction writer. He holds a PhD in condensed matter physics from Beijing Normal University and is currently an associate professor in the Department of Chinese Language and Literature at Chongqing University. He began publishing science fiction in 2012. His major works include the novels Mars Orphans, City in the Well and The Crack, as well as the short story collections Perfect Doomsday, Honeycomb and Wings of Flowing Light. He has won the Chinese Science Fiction Nebula Award several times. Beyond science fiction, the library also includes his works in law, computing, applied psychology, fashion and succulent plants, such as the 44th edition of A General Introduction to German Civil Law, Practical Federated Learning and several introductory books on succulents, showing interests that span the sciences and humanities. Public information is limited; his science fiction writing often draws on his scientific background and balances expertise with accessibility.