The City & The City
Written by China Mieville
Published in 2009
Hugo Award, Best Novel, 2010
First of all The City & The City is totally not a classic Sci-Fi Book, which is exactly why it is such a good Sci-Fi Book. There are no robots, aliens, spaceships, monsters or any other classic science fiction elements – other than some mysterious metals that may or may not have ‘special properties’ – in it. The book has the feel of a classic European Crime Noir Novel and is centered on the hard-boiled police Inspector Tyador Borlu and the no nonsense Constable Lizbyet Corwi try solving the mysterious death of young woman who doesn’t belong.
The story is set in the fictional city/state of Beszel, somewhere on the edge of Europe. To complicate things Beszel is locked into a permanent cold war like stand off with its neighbor and oldest rival, Ul Qoma, which just happens to occupy the same territory. Luckily a detente is achieved between Beszel and Ul Qoma, which through some very extensive social engineering allows both sides to 'unsee' each other. By unseeing each other, both countries go with their lives independent of the other while avoiding the usual route that most civilizations follow by fighting a bloody civil war.
On face value I find the idea insane that two countries could live side by side each other just by unseeing the other. However, as a good Londoner, I was pondering this idea the other day on my way to work when I dutifully step over the homeless guy that has set up camp outside the tube station. He asked for change, and I did my best to unsee him.
I had committed the same crime.
This ‘unseeing’ isn’t just a fiction problem. How many different worlds do we live in and how much of it do we choose to unsee? Or even more worrying, how much of the world around us do we just plain don't see – the unknown, unknown problem. The problem is only going to get worse as society simultaneously grows more complex and as the traditional bonds of society fall apart. I think as a species we are in trouble.
Speaking of unseeing, The City & The City was on my radar to read for a long time, but it wasn’t at the top of my list. However, the BBC played my hand when they made it into a four-part miniseries. As a good book nerd I always hate watching a TV/Film adaptations before reading the book because you can never unsee the actors, but to my surprise, I think the did a great job. Both David Morrissey and Mandeep Dhillon nailed the parts of Inspector Borlu and Constable Corwi. The sets were awesome and gritty reminding me totally of other BBC 1970’s based crime dramas like Life on Mars. They did tinker around with the story a bit, but for the most part it did help the flow. Plus they left a little wiggle room at the end in case Borlu and Corwi had another case pop up in the future.
Overall The City & The City is worth the read.
Page Views: 1685
Robert Ben Parkinson
Copyright 2021
Made by RBP