The Three-Body Problem graphic novel a hit at Frankfurt fair

The graphic novel adaptation of The Three-Body Problem created by artist Wu Qingsong combines traditional Chinese painting with a modern touch to vividly depict the grand world of the sci-fi story, says Zhang Yu, chief editor of Yilin Press under the Phoenix Publishing and Media Group. Zhang was speaking during an international copyright promotion event for the adaptation at the 76th Frankfurt Book Fair that closed on Oct 20.

The graphic novel showcases the charm of Chinese traditional culture and is an innovative way to tell Chinese stories, Zhang says.

As the first work from Asia to win the Hugo Award for Best Novel, The Three-Body Problem by Liu Cixin has been translated into more than 35 languages and sold in excess of 4 million copies overseas.

The first book of the graphic novel adaptation series of The Three-Body Problem will be released in January.

This is the first time the book has been adapted into a graphic novel. Primarily targeting adult readers, it employs both visual and textual narrative techniques to create a work of high artistic and literary quality.

Over the past 20 years, Yilin Press has become one of the leading sci-fi publishers in China, translating and publishing the works of world-class sci-fi writers such as Polish author Stanislaw Lem, American-Chinese writer Ted Chiang, US authors Philip K Dick and Andy Weir, and Japanese writer Shinichi Hoshi.

At the Beijing International Book Fair in June, Yilin Press acquired the rights to the graphic novel project of The Three-Body Problem trilogy that the copyright owner the Three-Body Universe had been planning for four years.

As a popular sci-fi novel, The Three-Body Problem has drawn a lot of attention worldwide, especially when the streaming platform Netflix launched its production of the first season of the TV series adaptation in March.

According to a report released by the China Science Writers Association, from 2014 to 2023, global searches involving The Three-Body Problem were on an upward trend and peaked in 2023, attracting widespread interest in countries in Asia, Europe, the Americas, and Africa.

Consul Tang Liwen from the Chinese Consulate General in Frankfurt praised Yilin Press for its efforts in managing the overseas rights of the graphic novel adaptation of The Three-Body Problem, saying that the publisher has not only set a new benchmark in the domestic publishing industry but also acted as a bridge in international cultural exchanges, introducing outstanding Chinese traditional culture and stories to the world.

German Sinologist Martina Hasse is the translator of The Three-Body Problem trilogy, which won her the Kurd-Lasswitz Prize (a sci-fi award) for Best Science Fiction Translation into German.

At the promotion event at the book fair, she recounted her meeting and communicating with Liu Cixin, and shared the captivating aspects of The Three-Body Problem from the perspective of overseas readers. She says that this graphic novel, with the author's personal involvement, exceptional artistic creation, and publication by a top German publishing house Carlsen Manga, will be successful.

Currently, publishers from multiple countries have expressed interest in acquiring the rights for the graphic novel adaptation of The Three-Body Problem, with rights already sold for German and Spanish editions, and negotiations ongoing for English, Japanese, French, Portuguese, Turkish, and other language editions.