About the book
In the depths of mountains shrouded with ignorance and superstition, a man dedicates his life to igniting a passion for science and culture in children’s hearts. As his life draws to an end, he uses his dying breaths to impart knowledge on others. Fifty thousand lightyears away, in the depths of outer space, an interstellar war that has lasted for twenty thousand years draws to an end. In order to preserve the Milky Way’s many civilizations, the victor begins to exterminate lower-level life forms. When they reach Earth, they pose a test. The eighteen children deep in the mountains use the last lesson their teacher taught them to shine bright the hope of civilization...
Samples
Awards & Honors
Golden Dragon Award
About the Author
- Zhang Xiaoyu was born in 1975 in Guizhou, China, and graduated from the Guizhou Art Institute in 1997, working as a graphic fiction artist ever since. He is among the few artists creating Chinese graphic fiction that has had international influence, making him one of the leading figures among young graphic fiction artists.
From 1997 to 2005, he worked for the magazine Science Fiction World as editor, then head art supervisor, and finally chief editor. In 2005 he joined Beijing Total Vision Culture Spreads Co., Ltd. as a full-time graphic fiction artist. Ten works of his own appeared in this period: Cross Soldier, Bloodline, Fly, Clown, Song of the Frogs, Saving Mankind, Savage Highway, Masheng's Revenge, and Lanruo in the Clouds, as well as contributions to works like Casterman in Belgium, Glénat and Ankama in France, and Humanoids from the USA, all graphic works famous in Europe and America.
In 2001, his work Fly won first prize in the third China Animation and Comic Competition. In 2005, his work Saving Mankind won top prize and for best screenplay at the fifth CACC. In 2008, his work Clown won for best graphic novel at the seventh competition. In 2014, his representative works Lanruo in the Clouds (Le temple dans les nuage) and Masheng’s Revenge (La vengeance de masheng) appeared in China and France. The same year, he won the Golden Elephant prize for audience favorite at the 38th Chambery Savoie Festival International de la Bande Dessinee, as well as the Golden Monkey prize at the tenth International Animation and Comics Festival in China.
As an outstanding member of China's graphic arts, Zhang Xiaoyu's twenty years of artistic creation have helped revitalize original graphic art in China, and serve as a great contribution to the international expression and global dissemination of Chinese culture.
