Vagabonds by Hao Jingfang

A century after the Martian war of independence, a group of kids are sent to Earth as delegates from Mars, but when they return home, they are caught between the two worlds, unable to reconcile the beauty and culture of Mars with their experiences on Earth in this spellbinding novel from Hugo Award–winning author Hao Jingfang. This genre-bending novel is set on Earth in the wake of a second civil war…not between two factions in one nation, but two factions in one solar system: Mars and Earth. In an attempt to repair increasing tensions, the colonies of Mars send a group of young people to live on Earth to help reconcile humanity. But the group finds itself with no real home, no friends, and fractured allegiances as they struggle to find a sense of community and identity, trapped between two worlds. Fans of Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go and Naomi Alderman’s The Power will fall in love with this novel about lost innocence, an uncertain future, and never feeling at home, no matter where you are in the universe. Translated by Ken Liu, bestselling author of The Paper Menagerie and translator of Cixin Liu’s The Three-Body Problem, Vagabonds is the first novel from Hao Jingfang, the first Chinese woman to ever win the esteemed Hugo Award.

Two quotes I want to save,

"That's one way to think about it," Reini continued in a calm tone. "Freedom, merit, and equality---any of these alluring words will always be pursued by a generations." -Chapter 38 Luoying"did you know that I wasn't certain about this movement at all? For a long time I debated with myself whether I should participate. In the end I decided to join because I didn't know what else I could do, where else I could find the feeling I wanted. I was looking for a sense of life, a surging sensation of releasing my self, a ... meaning. I wanted to do something that felt worthy of devoting my whole self to. I just wanted that feeling. I wasn't thinking much about the goal or the movement itself. I never even really thought about whether the movement was right. Simply, I wanted my life to burn, to feel that burn." -Chapter 38 Luoying

Nuanced and masterful

Mars has been colonized and successfully fought for independence from Earth. Now in the 22nd century, after decades of isolation, Mars and Earth take up talks again and organize delegation visits. Built around competing philosophies, the cultures of the two planets couldn't be more different. Terrans live in a world of extreme capitalism where everyone sells private information for gain, while Martians freely share intellectual property for the greater good in a highly structured society. Yet all societies breed unrest and the wish for reforms.

There's a lot to like about this novel and the philosophical questions it poses. How do societies diverge in isolation? Are revolutions a natural developmental step for humanity? Does the size of our environment influence the structure we organize into?

As this is written by a Chinese author, it's hard not to see Mars as China and Earth as the western countries. Her main protagonists grew up on Mars, yet got to spend a few years on Earth. Now on returning, they see their home planet in a new light, and need to compromise the freedoms they experienced on Earth with the security their home planet offers. It's hard not to read this as a metaphor for the experience many Chinese must have after spending years abroad.

Great social scifi setup, and I loved a lot about it, that's why I'm even more annoyed by the small imperfections. I found the first part really strong, but then felt it partially diverged into YA territory in parts 2 and 3, with more plot inconsistencies and an unnecessary focus on romantic entanglements. My biggest disappointment probably is, that this is written by a woman, yet in her vision of the 22nd century, politics is still ruled by men, and all engineers are men, while the female characters dabble in dance, fashion and poetry. Which makes it hard to rate.