Science Fiction

Of Ants and Dinosaurs

Of Ants and Dinosaurs

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  • Create Date：2021-07-19 09:54:52
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
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  • Author：Liu Cixin
  • ISBN：1789546117
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Summary

A satirical fable， a political allegory and an ecological warning from the author of The Three-Body Problem。

In a sunlit clearing in central Gondwana， on an otherwise ordinary day in the late Cretaceous， the seeds of Earth's first and greatest civilization were sown in the grisly aftermath of a Tyrannosaurus' lunch。

Throughout the universe， intelligence is a rare and fragile commodity – a fleeting glimmer in the long night of cosmic history。 That Earth should harbour not just one but two intelligent species at the same time， defies the odds。 That these species， so unalike – and yet so complementary – should forge an alliance that kindled a civilization defies logic。 But time is endless and everything comes to pass eventually。。。

The alliance between ants and dinosaurs， was of course， based on dentistry。 Yet from such humble beginnings came writing， mathematics， computers， fusion， antimatter and even space travel – a veritable Age of Wonder！ But such magnificent industry comes at a price – a price paid first by Earth's biosphere， and then by all those dependent on it。

And yet the Dinosaurs refused to heed the Ants' warning of impending ecological collapse， leaving the Ant Federation facing a single dilemma: destroy the dinosaurs， destroy a civilization。。。 or perish alongside them？

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Reviews

Katie ，

While I enjoyed the slightly satirical portrayal of the dinosaurs who behave exactly as present-day humans do with greed and often with no regard for others or even the very planet we live on。 Some of the dialog was a bit nonsensical between the ant leaders and their dinosaurs counterparts but it still worked with the theme of the book。

George Siehl ，

Liu Cixin is a writer with great imagination and a strong science grounding。 Here， in， Of ants and Dinosaurs， he provide a work of fusion as rich as the blending of jazz and classical music: a thriller fable。 It is a gripping work。 The elements of fable， animals living and acting as humans to present a story with a moral， are present。 Superimposing a high tech threat with potentially catastrophic consequences is something new， and in this case requires a high suspension of disbelief。 From simple Liu Cixin is a writer with great imagination and a strong science grounding。 Here， in， Of ants and Dinosaurs， he provide a work of fusion as rich as the blending of jazz and classical music: a thriller fable。 It is a gripping work。 The elements of fable， animals living and acting as humans to present a story with a moral， are present。 Superimposing a high tech threat with potentially catastrophic consequences is something new， and in this case requires a high suspension of disbelief。 From simple acts of cooperation between ants and dinosaurs a symbiotic relationship develops over thousands of years。 The two species come to depend on one another。 Maintaining the working relationship is a task requiring constant effort。 The simple difference in size is drawn even larger by the differing life philosophies of the two species。 The development of a three-party conflict heightens the tension and turns the story into a page-turner。Highly， highly recommended。 It is not your usual science fiction tale， but is a great addition to the genre。 。。。more

Peter Saltzman ，

By the standards Cixin Liu set with The Three-Body Problem trilogy and other novels， this is relatively lightweight。 Not bad， by any means。 As is the norm with Liu， it deeply imaginative， playful， and cleanly structured。 Granted it's a novella， and very much in a parable style。 So Liu can be forgiven for the overly generalized plot。 What becomes annoying by the time you're about 2/3 in is the trite dialog and even triter characters。 Sure， they're ants and dinosaurs， but he could have made some m By the standards Cixin Liu set with The Three-Body Problem trilogy and other novels， this is relatively lightweight。 Not bad， by any means。 As is the norm with Liu， it deeply imaginative， playful， and cleanly structured。 Granted it's a novella， and very much in a parable style。 So Liu can be forgiven for the overly generalized plot。 What becomes annoying by the time you're about 2/3 in is the trite dialog and even triter characters。 Sure， they're ants and dinosaurs， but he could have made some more interesting， complex characters。Nevertheless， this is a fun—and quick—read。 。。。more

Tracy ，

Interesting analogy for life past， present and future。

Claudia ，

Thanks to Tomislav and his review， I have learned that this novella is different than the short story I have read in Liu Cixin's collection， The Wandering Earth: Classic Science Fiction Collection。 As a matter of fact， I think there are 3 different versions: this one， 256 pages， 18 chapters， preface and epilog， the short story with the same name in above collection which is 53 pages， 9 shortened chapters and a preface， and The Cretaceous Past， which is 192 pages， but don't know yet if it's exact Thanks to Tomislav and his review， I have learned that this novella is different than the short story I have read in Liu Cixin's collection， The Wandering Earth: Classic Science Fiction Collection。 As a matter of fact， I think there are 3 different versions: this one， 256 pages， 18 chapters， preface and epilog， the short story with the same name in above collection which is 53 pages， 9 shortened chapters and a preface， and The Cretaceous Past， which is 192 pages， but don't know yet if it's exactly the same as this novella or a smaller version。（LE: The Cretaceous Past has also 18 chapters， a prologue and an epilogue， so it's the same as Of Ants and Dinosaurs; the difference in pages is most probaly due to the format and font。）Anyway， I must say I have liked better the short story。 It's more condensed and it focuses mainly on the last war between the two great civilizations and its aftermath。 It's "A satirical fable， a political allegory and an ecological warning"， as it is stated in the blurb。 It resembles too much the human society， that's the reason I liked better the shorter version。 Nonetheless， it's one if his greatest stories。 。。。more

Doni ，

Everything I love about Cixin Lui: astrophysics and an apocalyptic battle。

Matt Mansfield ，

Back to the FutureA war between interdependent cultures， once friendly and now risking global catastrophe in a brinksmanship quest for world domination。 Sound familiar？ Well known to us today， this theme is explored as a sardonic explanation for the end of the dinosaurs and other worldly beings， some 66 million years ago。 Cixin Liu’s 2021 dark satire， “The Cretaceous Past”， is a science fiction look forward by reconstructing the past with familiar， disquieting results （originally published in 20 Back to the FutureA war between interdependent cultures， once friendly and now risking global catastrophe in a brinksmanship quest for world domination。 Sound familiar？ Well known to us today， this theme is explored as a sardonic explanation for the end of the dinosaurs and other worldly beings， some 66 million years ago。 Cixin Liu’s 2021 dark satire， “The Cretaceous Past”， is a science fiction look forward by reconstructing the past with familiar， disquieting results （originally published in 2020 as “Of Ants and Dinosaurs）。 By accident and self-motivated interests， two physically opposite species – dinosaurs and ants – form an unexpected mutually satisfying relationship building on each other’s skill sets。 This arrangement leads to 3，000 years of economic and technological prosperity throughout the era’s Gondwanan supercontinent。But not without tensions and competitiveness leading to first religious， then， nationalistic， species-bias motivated conflicts。 Dinosaurs are presented as creatively innovative but physically inept， while ants as micro fine-motor skilled legions of unimaginative technocrats。 Not unlike the breaking apart of the supercontinent at the time， the dinosaurs split into two competitive subgroups: one with an autocratic， monarchy feel， the other more republic-oriented by its description。 The parallels with the current world political orders for all three groups are apparent。 Will the conflicts be resolved or end in a sort of Dr。 Strangelove accidental finality marking a geologic boundary for future scholars and explorers to study？ While Liu’s dry humor and wit keep the narrative moving quickly forward， the characters， motivations and events are hard to empathize with – sort of like looking at an experiment in a Petri dish。 It is interesting， even entertaining， to see the results but at times hard to feel excited。A similar investigation worth reading is Czech writer Karel Capek’s 1936 brilliant science fiction satire of human motives at cross purposes with another species， “War with the Newts”。 And along the same lines about efforts doomed to repeat is Walter M。 Miller Jr。’s 1959 amusing and disturbing “A Canticle for Leibowitz"。You might be surprised by this quick read and find Liu’s fable confirms William Faulkner’s thought: “The past is never dead。 It’s not even past。" 。。。more

Mike Snodgrass ，

This was a fun read by China's most famous sci-fi author。 It explored an alternate history to the millions of years that dinosaurs existed before us。 Far fetched at times （or is it？） but definitely thought provoking！ This was a fun read by China's most famous sci-fi author。 It explored an alternate history to the millions of years that dinosaurs existed before us。 Far fetched at times （or is it？） but definitely thought provoking！ 。。。more

Ralph Carlson ，

An excellent book。 Well worth reading if you can get a copy。

Srinivas Nambi ，

I have zero idea how someone can conceive such an idea and write a book based on it。 Thoroughly enjoyed it and the implications of the story on the modern day society。I would say that this story should enter school shelfs。 It can be a fable， at the same time valuable knowledge to kids about impending ecological warnings。 The author seemed to have an political agenda in the beginning with the idea of Ant Federation， but as the story came to it's end he stood up as a writer and criticized both end I have zero idea how someone can conceive such an idea and write a book based on it。 Thoroughly enjoyed it and the implications of the story on the modern day society。I would say that this story should enter school shelfs。 It can be a fable， at the same time valuable knowledge to kids about impending ecological warnings。 The author seemed to have an political agenda in the beginning with the idea of Ant Federation， but as the story came to it's end he stood up as a writer and criticized both ends of the political world。 The story was short and sweet， but also I would have enjoyed this more if it had more details to it。 A must read， creative and scientific fable for whomsoever who loves fairy taleish kinda stories。 It is a reminder of how we humans play with things just beyond our scope of power to stay in power。 。。。more

Sercalunna Pautasso ，

Cixin Liu is an excellent sci-fi writer and this novella is based on a "what-if" that could change the history。We don't know if dinosaurs were clever or not but what could have happened if they were able to collaborate with ants and what would have happened ？I liked this story and it's a good introduction to this author。I received this arc from the publisher via Netgalley Cixin Liu is an excellent sci-fi writer and this novella is based on a "what-if" that could change the history。We don't know if dinosaurs were clever or not but what could have happened if they were able to collaborate with ants and what would have happened ？I liked this story and it's a good introduction to this author。I received this arc from the publisher via Netgalley 。。。more

Thomas ，

Ants and dinosaurs joined together to create the Earth's first great civilisation - dinosaurs providing the power and independent though， ants bringing providing the dexterity and engineering prowess。 Their societies coexist peacefully - most of the time - but are quite different。 Eventually hubris kicks in and they destroy other in a really tragic （and dumb） way。 I think there's a parable in there for us， somewhere。A fun concept， amusingly told， makes you think a little。Also fun: cool ant vs di Ants and dinosaurs joined together to create the Earth's first great civilisation - dinosaurs providing the power and independent though， ants bringing providing the dexterity and engineering prowess。 Their societies coexist peacefully - most of the time - but are quite different。 Eventually hubris kicks in and they destroy other in a really tragic （and dumb） way。 I think there's a parable in there for us， somewhere。A fun concept， amusingly told， makes you think a little。Also fun: cool ant vs dinosaur battles。 。。。more

Biv ，

I picked this up because the premise was so intriguing， and I had recently read Animal Farm and wanted to see what a more modern take on a similar premise might be。 Also because I'm 900% more likely to read anything that has dinosaurs in it， I've been in a sci-fi mood， and it looked a nice easy way to get into Liu Cixin's works。 All in all， I really enjoyed my time with it。 The story was well-paced （although the ending came very suddenly — intentionally， I think）， the author took his time to exp I picked this up because the premise was so intriguing， and I had recently read Animal Farm and wanted to see what a more modern take on a similar premise might be。 Also because I'm 900% more likely to read anything that has dinosaurs in it， I've been in a sci-fi mood， and it looked a nice easy way to get into Liu Cixin's works。 All in all， I really enjoyed my time with it。 The story was well-paced （although the ending came very suddenly — intentionally， I think）， the author took his time to explain each concept to us in a way that made me question my assumptions about what makes （and breaks） a society。 My favourite part was seeing how these civilisations evolved around each other; the potential of it was delicious food for thought。I can't say I loved the book， though。 I can't see myself rereading as my primary purpose in reading it was to find out what happens; now that I know， it doesn't seem worth to go back for the straightforward writing or one-dimensional characters。 It's an allegorical tale so the characters really don't stand up to analysis， but it also made it difficult to be attached to anything or anyone。 Furthermore， a lot of the behaviour of both the dinosaurs and later the ants in the latter half of the book became cartoonish and unbelievable to me。 I had to suspend some disbelief to keep enjoying the story — disbelief that I should point out wasn't raised by the absurd premise itself， or the glaring mistakes in dinosaur biology （I mean， come on， T。 Rex using its claws to do anything？）， so it's not like I'm not willing to go along for the ride if it does enough to convince me。 The themes of the story did leave me thinking， although the final premise we were left to ponder was such an extreme that I felt I had to work backwards to actually get to a midpoint in the story that I believed would apply to our reality。 It takes a pessimistic view of a self-destroying society， and maybe I don't like that because I don't want to believe that that's our future。 Interesting things to ponder regarding nuclear power， scientific progress， unsustainable industry and its destructive environmental impact， and the pitfalls of ignoring our co-dependent nature on each other and the planet。 I would recommend this book if it sounds at all interesting to you。 It's worth the time to read。 。。。more

Nell ，

A satire about the end of the worldCixin Liu is one of the few modern authors who understands and speaks of the dangers of nuclear war and mutually assured destruction。 I only wish he were more famous。 Without more hero’s like Liu who speak the truth， we are doomed。

Daný ，

Interesting read that made me think about Jeanette Winterson's The Stone Gods when I came to the end。 Interesting read that made me think about Jeanette Winterson's The Stone Gods when I came to the end。 。。。more

Scott Humphries ，

Another solid effort by Cixin Liu！

Sasch Stormcloak ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 A beautiful story。 It reminds me， to some extent， of the fable of the ant and the grasshopper。Little could those two ants have imagined that millions of years later， these new animals， who have been lucky enough to inherit both the brilliant mental qualities of the dinosaurs and the dexterous abilities of the ants， could end up making the same mistakes。 A metaphor for our own existence and how we too， like the dinosaurs and the ants， are often unable to put our differences aside， even if this ca A beautiful story。 It reminds me， to some extent， of the fable of the ant and the grasshopper。Little could those two ants have imagined that millions of years later， these new animals， who have been lucky enough to inherit both the brilliant mental qualities of the dinosaurs and the dexterous abilities of the ants， could end up making the same mistakes。 A metaphor for our own existence and how we too， like the dinosaurs and the ants， are often unable to put our differences aside， even if this can be detrimental to ourselves。 。。。more

Sebastien ，

This book is odd。 It was written when I was still in high school， when Cixin Liu hadn’t really honed his writing yet。 It is a novella about infuriatingly anthopomorphized dinosaurs and ants creating a society together。 It’s fun at times but the author takes a few things too far。 Ants can’t smile。 A tyrannosaurus can’t hold a hammer and use it。 Skyscrapers that are kilometres high are physically impossible to build。 These are basic truths we accept about life。 This book takes a few liberties with This book is odd。 It was written when I was still in high school， when Cixin Liu hadn’t really honed his writing yet。 It is a novella about infuriatingly anthopomorphized dinosaurs and ants creating a society together。 It’s fun at times but the author takes a few things too far。 Ants can’t smile。 A tyrannosaurus can’t hold a hammer and use it。 Skyscrapers that are kilometres high are physically impossible to build。 These are basic truths we accept about life。 This book takes a few liberties with animal behaviours， actions and abilities。 The characters also yell constantly and needlessly。 I’ve never read a book with so many exclamation points。Still， it is a novel， weird， fever dream of a book that might be superior to whatever else you were doing。 。。。more

Asani ，

A disappointing book from Cixin Liu， not up to his usual standards of excellence。 There are some nice ideas here， about an intelligent civilization of ants and dinosaurs collaborating with one another。 The ants providing the manual dexterity that the dinosaurs lacked and the dinosaurs providing the creativity and imagine that ants didn’t have。 But the narration is stodgy， there are no interesting characters to speak of， and the story seems to end in a hurry。 Cixin Liu seems to have written this A disappointing book from Cixin Liu， not up to his usual standards of excellence。 There are some nice ideas here， about an intelligent civilization of ants and dinosaurs collaborating with one another。 The ants providing the manual dexterity that the dinosaurs lacked and the dinosaurs providing the creativity and imagine that ants didn’t have。 But the narration is stodgy， there are no interesting characters to speak of， and the story seems to end in a hurry。 Cixin Liu seems to have written this book in a hurry as well。 。。。more

Will Jacks ，

Animal Farm meets the “Portia” section of Children of Time。 TL;DR: Interesting concept， ultimately boring。I like allegorical writing， I’m fascinated by the history of China and south east Asia， I love anything SF。 That being said， this book did a lot to not make me invested in the story it was telling and thus the themes it attempted to convey。 You can’t just introduce characters with names and roles， then 10 pages later start a chapter with ‘a millennium whizzed by。’ I don’t end up caring about Animal Farm meets the “Portia” section of Children of Time。 TL;DR: Interesting concept， ultimately boring。I like allegorical writing， I’m fascinated by the history of China and south east Asia， I love anything SF。 That being said， this book did a lot to not make me invested in the story it was telling and thus the themes it attempted to convey。 You can’t just introduce characters with names and roles， then 10 pages later start a chapter with ‘a millennium whizzed by。’ I don’t end up caring about what happens。This would have worked as either a much shorter fable， or as a longer and well-fleshed out novel that didn’t try to be funny。 It really wasn’t funny… 。。。more

Sami Köykkä ，

Nokkela iltasatuKepeä vaihtoehtoisen historian tarina， joka eteni suoraviivaisesti kuin satukirjan tarina。 Pikkuisen hupsu tyylilaji toi mieleen Stanislaw Lemin novellikokoelmat。 Liulta olisin odottanut mielikuvituksellisempaa sisältöä - nyt juoniaukoista olisi päässyt dinosauruskin läpi。 Olikohan tämä sittenkin jotain vanhempaa tuotantoa？ Jännittävästi jo kolmas kirja lyhyen ajan sisällä， jossa oli tietoisia hyönteisiä。

Chuck Tulloh ，

While a fan of this author， this one was massively disappointing。 He starts out immediately with sentient， thinking， ideating and communicating ants and dinosaurs and then builds from there。 I can't quite accept being plopped down into either species and instantly accept the premise。 I'm well aware that ants communicate in a hive mind sense but。。。。。。Sorry。 While a fan of this author， this one was massively disappointing。 He starts out immediately with sentient， thinking， ideating and communicating ants and dinosaurs and then builds from there。 I can't quite accept being plopped down into either species and instantly accept the premise。 I'm well aware that ants communicate in a hive mind sense but。。。。。。Sorry。 。。。more

Ryan Yan ，

Elizabeth Hanlon's translation is excellent Elizabeth Hanlon's translation is excellent 。。。more

Christian ，

More great ideas from Cixin LiuGreat concept， and follows through to an interesting conclusion。 Not sure why the dinosaurs never developed tiny tools and magnifying glasses。 The ants could have made them。

Jonathan Colan ，

A quirky novella from the author of The Three Body Problem questioning whether it’s really possible that NO intelligence or civilization developed during the hundreds of millions of years when dinosaurs existed。 Remember the fable about the mouse and the lion who do favors for each other？ The author takes a story like that about ants and dinosaurs and plausibly builds up from there the rise of a great Ant/Dinosaur civilization。 The allegorical aspects of the tale can be a bit heavy-handed， but C A quirky novella from the author of The Three Body Problem questioning whether it’s really possible that NO intelligence or civilization developed during the hundreds of millions of years when dinosaurs existed。 Remember the fable about the mouse and the lion who do favors for each other？ The author takes a story like that about ants and dinosaurs and plausibly builds up from there the rise of a great Ant/Dinosaur civilization。 The allegorical aspects of the tale can be a bit heavy-handed， but Cixin Liu’s writing is always worthwhile and the premise is terrific。 。。。more

Rose Cox ，

DNF 20%Hopefully will return to this when I am more patient。

Elias Flening ，

Sloppy and overbearing fableIt didn't meet the expectations from previous books。 The core premise is enough for an entertaining short-story， but falters at this length。 Sloppy and overbearing fableIt didn't meet the expectations from previous books。 The core premise is enough for an entertaining short-story， but falters at this length。 。。。more

Reading Reindeer 2021 On Proxima Centauri ，

In translation， this short novel of prehistoric alternate history [or， Alternate Prehistory] by Hugo winner Chinese Science Fiction author Cixin Liu postulates Evolution into civilization and collapse--not of Humanity， but of the divergent species of Ants and Dinosaurs。 In keeping with Mr。 Liu's background， there's a lot of Science， and a lot of Speculation。 Readers of Stephen Baxter's EVOLUTION and Adrian Tchaikovsky 's THE DOORS OF EDEN will surely benefit from THE CRETACEOUS PAST。 In translation， this short novel of prehistoric alternate history [or， Alternate Prehistory] by Hugo winner Chinese Science Fiction author Cixin Liu postulates Evolution into civilization and collapse--not of Humanity， but of the divergent species of Ants and Dinosaurs。 In keeping with Mr。 Liu's background， there's a lot of Science， and a lot of Speculation。 Readers of Stephen Baxter's EVOLUTION and Adrian Tchaikovsky 's THE DOORS OF EDEN will surely benefit from THE CRETACEOUS PAST。 。。。more

Meg Kruse ，

I actually read this a while ago for my club， and I'm so so glad my friend picked it out for us。 This book was like nothing I'd ever read before- there weren't any really well developed characters， and in some ways， it kind of read like a history book， but like a poetic， beautifully crafted， super interesting history book。 There is a fair amount of violence， so just be forewarned， but if a totally different science fiction book is something you're even a little interested in， I'd highly recommen I actually read this a while ago for my club， and I'm so so glad my friend picked it out for us。 This book was like nothing I'd ever read before- there weren't any really well developed characters， and in some ways， it kind of read like a history book， but like a poetic， beautifully crafted， super interesting history book。 There is a fair amount of violence， so just be forewarned， but if a totally different science fiction book is something you're even a little interested in， I'd highly recommend this one！10/10 。。。more

Minna ，

Thank you NetGalley， Subterranean Press， and Cixin Liu for the opportunity to read an ARC of this title。 An honest review was requested but not required。I've been wanting to try the author's 3 Bodies Problem series but never got the opportunity to start。 Side note， my kid is super into dinosaurs right now， so I have correspondingly been reading a lot about （and hearing a lot about） dinosaurs， too。 I thought， great， I will try out this author， and maybe come away with a cool dinosaur story to tal Thank you NetGalley， Subterranean Press， and Cixin Liu for the opportunity to read an ARC of this title。 An honest review was requested but not required。I've been wanting to try the author's 3 Bodies Problem series but never got the opportunity to start。 Side note， my kid is super into dinosaurs right now， so I have correspondingly been reading a lot about （and hearing a lot about） dinosaurs， too。 I thought， great， I will try out this author， and maybe come away with a cool dinosaur story to talk to my kid about。I didn't realize this was a novella。 It was definitely a quick read; I finished the whole thing in one hour during an evening run on the treadmill。 It read like a cross between a classroom writing exercise （suppose the following， and write how it would work） and a very detailed description of a particularly lengthy and lurid dream。 There was little plot， just a detailed description of a sequence of events， and then the end。 It could be viewed as sort of a parable or fable， I suppose， as there were some certain， not very coincidental I'm sure， similarities to the world today。 It was interesting to be sure， but not what I expected， and not really for me。 Your mileage may vary。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Of Ants and Dinosaurs

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Of Ants and Dinosaurs&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Of Ants and Dinosaurs&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0