Laozi's Dao De Jing: A New Interpretation for a Transformative Time by Laozi, translated by Ken Liu (Hardcover)

Novelist and translator Ken Liu, known for The Paper Menagerie and his English version of The Three-Body Problem, offers a new translation of the Dao De Jing. Written around 400 BC, Laozi's short classic questions the cleverness of elites and the pride of scholars and honours plain, everyday wisdom. A good entry point for newcomers to Daoism and a fresh read for those who know other versions.

• A deliberately plain translation that lets the elusiveness of the text show
• Liu's personal notes on his struggle with the verses
• The commentary grows sparser and finally disappears, echoing the idea that wisdom slips past words
• Presents the Dao as the eternal principle linking finite lives to the infinite

Details

• Author: Laozi
• Translator: Ken Liu
• Publisher: Apollo
• Year: 2025
• Format: Hardcover, 176 pages
• Language: English
• ISBN: 9781035917624