Perdido Street Station

Always one to be up with the latest trends, I finally read this book a couple of months ago. What surprised me most about it was how it wasn’t quite what I expected. Mieville’s books are usually described as dark and even twisted, but I don’t see that all in this book. New Crobuzon (the city in which it’s set) is decadent and corrupt, but there’s almost an innocence to the way the story proceeds. I think that this is partly due to the fact that Mieville never editorialises, never passes judgement on his characters – he leaves that to the reader. In clear, readable, articulate prose, he guides us through the maze (both literal and metaphorical) within which the story’s events unfold. We see horrors and joys, demons and monsters, lovers and criminals. And, at the story’s end, we are not handed a “happily ever after” or anything like it. But, despite the bleakness, it’s not depressing. Mieville presents his characters too well for that.

Perdido Street Station by China Mieville

In the world of New Crobuzon, magic works, and is studied as we study science. There are many (and unique) intelligent species living together in a city resembling a blend of 19th and 20th Century Londons with a character all of its own. The story centres around Isaac, a kind of freelance scientist-wizard who, while trying to help a client fly (he’s a sort of man-bird who’s had his wings amputated), accidentally releases a flying horror onto the city. As we discover the true nature of this monster and its kin, we learn how the city works and why. In the course of defeating the monsters, Isaac loses much that he values but learns a great many new things about himself and his world. In all, a truly excellent book with few flaws, none of them too jarring, that deserves every page of its length. Essential reading.

Paperback: 880 Pages
Publisher: Tor (23 February 2001)
ISBN: 0330392891
My Rating: Rating: 5-0 Buy from Amazon