Miri

Supernova Era by Cixin Liu, translated by Joel Martinsen
Rating: 2 stars (out of 5)
Genre: science fiction
Read 20 in 2020 Challenge category: book by an author from Africa, Asia, or Oceania
Review: The premise behind this book is really interesting.  Essentially, it posits that a supernova gives everyone over the age of 13 radiation poisoning, and they all die.  Only children 13 and under are left in the world.  It's like Miri, a Star Trek episode from 1966, except on a global scale, and with a full-length novel to flesh out the idea.  Unfortunately, the execution doesn't fulfill the promise of the idea.  We can argue whether a children's world would really turn into a "Candytown" free-for-all, or if children would really start massive war games over Antarctica, with actual casualties.  I didn't find either very likely, but I respect the imaginative process that went into creating those scenarios.  My problem was that the writing/translation is very clunky, making the children's world hard to read about, even if I could get behind the ideas.

FTC Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher in exchange for this review.