
Once in Henan, Liu developed interests in space travel and weapons technology, crafting homemade gunpowder and reading up on complex astronomical theory. In search of a more peaceful existence for their child, Liu’s parents sent him to live with his grandparents in Henan province. The family relocated to the city of Yangquan, where Liu lived in fear of the near-constant violence outside his door.

As a toddler, Liu’s father-who had fought on the communist side in the Chinese Civil War-was fired from his job for the mere fact that his brother was anti-communist.

The trauma of the Cultural Revolution, which serves as a backdrop for the events of The Three-Body Problem, was something Cixin Liu experienced firsthand.
