Liu Cixin is a science fiction writer for scientists. Leaning fully into the elements of "hard science fiction," Liu's craft is powerful and provocative in this collection of stories and essays. A View from the Stars is my first foray into Liu's work beyond The Remembrance of Earth's Past, and I was pleasantly surprised.

This book intersperses essays on science fiction writing and concepts with short stories from Liu's career that were not included in The Wandering Earth. In a couple of very potent moments, you get to hear how Liu came to write a story followed by the story itself. Although this entry was weakened by the fact that several of the stories referenced in the essays I have not read (Ball Lightning, Supernova Era, stories from The Wandering Earth), reading A View From the Stars has made me excited to jump back into Liu's catalog. 

Of the stories I did hear, I was particularly drawn to The Messenger and Butterfly. Liu's views on the end of the atomic era are poetic and mournful while how Liu writes about chaos theory is invigorating and made me wonder about the true potentials of that field of science. While not every story is a hit in this collection, getting to hear Liu's thoughts progress over time (every chapter starts with a description of where and when Liu was when he wrote it) was a joy. 

Surprisingly, I found this book incredibly easy to listen to. Of late, I've struggled a lot with audiobooks, and I did not expect detailed science fiction to break the pattern. However, the short story format, paired with Liu's impeccable style, made this book a breeze to listen to.