Book Review – Perdido Street Station
Author: China Mieville
Cover Artist: Edward Miller
Publisher: Macmillan
Binding: Paperback
Publication Date: March 2000
Fantasy? Science Fiction? “Urban” fantasy? “Gothic” fantasy? “Dark” fantasy? “Science” fantasy? How do we classify Perdido Street Station? Steampunk? Moorcockian? How about Lovecraftian? New Wave? I’ll take the author of the novel, China Mieville’s word for it and call it New Weird, and add what doesn’t change no matter what efforts anyone makes to pigeon hole the work. It’s damn brilliant. China Mieville’s second novel, Perdido Street Station, was the canvas the London born wordsmith used to fulfill the promise readers of King Rat witnessed, but delivers on a level in Perdido Street Station no one could expect.
“Mieville moves effortlessly into the first division of those who define and create the fiction of the coming century.”– Neil Gaiman
Perdido Street Station introduces us to Mieville’s world of Bas-Lag, which would come to be the setting for his next two novels The Scar, and Iron Council. More specifically the backdrop is the city of New Crobuzon. Mieville spares no details through out the novel depicting the city, not only differentiating its many districts merely with names, but offering us the history of each district, the denizens that inhabit them, their race, their social position, their political affiliations, and the social and political truths that govern their everyday lives, and does so with such assuredness in his mastery of the language his prose at times can be described as positively audacious:
“Sometimes I thought the rocks shaped like looming figures, with claws and fangs, and heads like clubs or hands. Petrified giants; unmoving stone gods; mistakes of the eye or the wind’s chance sculptures.”
We are first introduced to an intimate couple, Isaac a scientist of some merit even if not calculable by achievement, a good man – as good as one could ask for – and his mate Lin a talented artist who also happens to be a Khepri, which is in essence a humanoid bug. Thus at the onset of the novel Mieville immediately introduces us to a world most fantasy readers would not expect beginning with introducing us to a taboo relationship. Perdido Street Station, nor any of Mieville’s work is used to provide an “escape” from familiar truths, whether social, political, or in this case human condition. Instead he entertains us and enthralls by depicting to readers these truths unabridged. Besides the obvious differences in this couple, they do share at least two things in common, one they are indeed in love, and secondly both are about to have very interesting days that promise to begin the most fascinating works of their careers. Isaac will meet Yagharek, a Garuda, a half-human, half-avarian, creature who seeks Isaac’s expertise to aid him to fly again; his wings hacked off for a crime untold, he traveled from afar to fly again. As introductions to each section Mieville offers us a POV of Yagharek, his thoughts, and impressions as he travels to New Crobuzon to seek Isaac’s aid. Again Mieville’s prose is vivid, describing Yagharek’s impressions of the city:
“That is what protects me here; that and the illusion I have fostered, the source of my sorrow and of my shame, the anguish that has brought me to this great wen, this dusty city dreamed up in bone and brick, a conspiracy of industry and violence, stepped in history and battened-down power, this badland beyond my ken. New Crobuzon.”
At the same time, Lin receives an intriguing offer, from the Crime Lord of New Crobuzon, an “offer she can’t refuse” if you will, to be commissioned for a sculpture that would make her very wealthy, but more importantly to her satisfy the artisan in her.
The primary storyline of Perdido Street Station centers on a threat to the city of New Crobuzon, a scientific experiment that went awry. Five winged, moth-like predators are loose, and they are feeding. They are ultimate predators, their wing hypnotical, and with no natural predators, they circle the city above, and at night feed on any sentient creature. They do not distinguish from the good or evil, the poor or rich, they do not take into account which of the many races Mieville populates Bas-Lag with they feed on. Whether Human, Khepri, Garuda, Cacti, Hand-lingers (parasitic beings), or Vodyanoi (amphibians), the Slake-Moths care not. Due to the extremity of the threat, the government of New Crobuzon (who know what the threat actually is) armed with their highly trained militia, and led by Mayor Rudgutter is actively trying to restore the peace. Mieville, in what is one of the more enjoyable segments of the novel, exhibits to the reader that the threat of the Slake-Moths should not be underestimated through a meeting Rudgutter (knowing the Slake-moth are over his head) has with an ambassador from Hell itself to ask for aid against the Slake-Moths, in which the ambassador declines aid, wishing no part in any confrontation with the Moths.
Perdido Street Station on the surface is about a number of different groups trying to rid the city of the Slake-Moths, whether Isaac and Yagharek (for personal reasons), mayor Rudgutter and the government of New Crobuzon, The local Crime lord Motley, or a creature born amidst trash, the beginning of Artificial Intelligence. All seeking the same goal but for decidedly different reasons, all explained, in great detail by Mieville, and offers a terrific, imaginative experience, however what separates Mieville, and what makes Perdido Street Station an absolute masterpiece are three thing in my opinion. One, all the characters, no matter what race, are given individuality, they are three-dimensional, at times capable of greatness, but more times than not flawed, which is to say normal. He not only tells us of the flaws of his characters but also depicts the ramifications of some of those flaws; some of which are truly macabre in nature. Characters on numerous occasion have to make decisions, and in doing so Mieville doesn’t limit the choices to right or wrong, but relays the consequences of them. He depicts both sides, from one perspective what can be a good decision, is betrayal from another, and Mieville seemingly revels in illustrating it. Secondly, the absolute feat in world building Mieville achieves with Bas-Lag is monumental. Mieville doesn’t rely on existing fantasy traditions to ease his efforts in populating his world, or to attempt to create a pre-existing familiarity with the reader to Bas-Lag. Any affection or acclaim for his creatures and races are attributed to Mieville alone and the strength of his imagination and remarkable description. One of the most fascinating characters I have ever read about resides in the pages of Perdido – the Weaver. Deemed so dangerous by the Mayor Rudgutter, that he was only asked for assistance AFTER the ambassador of Hell declined, The Weaver, is a dimension shifting giant spider, with human hands and is described at various times, as alien, and at other times a god, whose apparent sole concern is the perfection of the “weave”, the weave is best described by Yagharek:
“Every Intention, interaction, motivation, every colour, every body, every action and reaction, every piece of physical reality and thoughts that it engendered, ever connection made, every nuanced moment of history and potentiality, every toothache and flagstone, every emotion and birth, and banknote, every possible thing ever is woven into that limitless, sprawling web. It is without beginning or end. It is complex to a degree that humbles the mind. It is a work of such beauty that my soul weeps.”
The Weaver is completely committed to the weave, not unmindful, but simply without care to the ramifications or ends it must, and more importantly WILL achieve for the weave. The Weaver is just an incredibly imaginative creation, who also seemingly has an affinity for scissors:) Mieville also introduces us to other character representative of various factions in society, Derkhan, a reporter-activist, and Lemuel a classic middle-man, both aid Isaac in the novel each to extent believable by their established pasts reflected by their actions, and Isaac’s thoughts of them. A noted earlier Mieville through his narrative touches on all levels of society, from sewer dwellers, to the poor, to the middle class, to the upper class, factory workers, artisans, dock workers, the government, educators, the criminal underworld, of all races, where they live, where they work, even what bars they patron, painting a complete picture of a city in rare detail. Bas-lag is a a pillar in the exercise of worldbuilding Third, and I harp on this a bit, but Mieville just has undeniable prose, incredibly descriptive, and prolific in his description (Peake like). There isn’t an author out right now who maximizes each paragraph like Mieville does in my opinion. Generally I like to discuss some weakness or flaws in works however I can only name one aspect of the novel that seemed strange to me in the sequence of events and that was the sudden appearance of a character Jack Half–a-Prayer, who don’t get me wrong seems fascinating, but his timely appearance did strike me as odd, but only a minor stumbling block for me, which is in truth the sole one I had in my reading.
It is true Perdido Street Station is a story about eliminating a threat to a city, but it’s a story that is offered recognizing the existence of society, racism, politics, technology, cultures, tolerance, hatred, love, taboo’s, the human condition, individuality and conformity, not denying these elements and hiding under perceived perceptions of fantasy. Included with these elements are fantastic, wonderfully imaginative creatures, the likes of which are expertly detailed by Mieville. Fantasy is an interesting genre, in which we are always looking for, or being told to look for the next Author “X”, or the Author “Y”. Or being told this author is the next author “Z” Works like Perdido Street Station make such notions mute, it’s not the next anything, it’s damn brilliant now on its own merit
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