pickI enjoyed this more than I thought I would. The worldbuilding is weird in a good way. But the ending was a mess and it could have used a little bit more editing. Recommend the audio as well.
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Perdido Street Station | 
pickI enjoyed this more than I thought I would. The worldbuilding is weird in a good way. But the ending was a mess and it could have used a little bit more editing. Recommend the audio as well.
#Two4Tuesday @TheSpineView
1. Perdido Street Station
2. No (I only read two books in May, but at least I finished them both 😁).
Tag @RaeLovesToRead @eeclayton @dabbe @Yuki_Onna @CBee @ImperfectCJ @BarbaraBB
pickThis book was my companion on our many shinkansen rides while in Japan, and I finally finished it up today. Right up there with the best world-building novels I've read. New Crobuzon is a rotting, festering, open-sore of a city, a sprawling slum where both futuristic and primitive, steampunk-like technology rub shoulders with surreal scientific disciplines that border on magic. Reminds me a little of Gene Wolfe, esoteric vocabulary included.
pick🎧 I read this based on a recommendation. It‘s well written! The world is realllly interesting & well defined!
The narrator was good but I think reading the book might have given me a better experience as I never connected or loved/hated any of the characters.
The world is fantastically strange! Don‘t investigate. Read it for that!!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
pickThis epic fantasy is a wild and wondrous ride, fully deserving of the many awards it has garnered. I was fully immersed in a steam-powered world shared by humans, bird people, insect people, frog people, cactus people and conscious metal constructs, and their love, loyalties and betrayals. 24 hours in audiobook, superbly performed by John Lee.
The image is from Shaun Tan‘s Creature: Paintings, Drawings and Reflections. It suits the mood of Miéville‘s Perdido Street Station perfectly: strange creatures, living feathered cheek by metal jowl, and dirigibles in the airspace.
Recent Reads January 17: Queer TBR Tackle; Canada Reads; Immigrants; Monsters; Retellings; and a really long audiobook
https://youtu.be/j9jaZPkbUNY
Finding this much easier to get into than any other Mieville book - it usually takes a couple of chapters for my brain to synch with his writing style. The story is just as compelling as other Mieville books, but I'm finding the lead protagonist almost entirely unlikeable. Interesting that the non-human character, Lyn, feels much more likeable and sympathetic than the human character Isaac - who is a dick.
My time so far for the #JoyousJanuary #readathon is not great. So busy with The Great Library Clean plus spending time with my grandsons that reading has been put on the back burner😱I know. Bonus though is that once we‘re done,I‘ll be able to put my hands on any book that takes my fancy coz they‘ll be where they‘re supposed to be for a change! Taking a break from this really wordy SFF for now,might do a reread or a novella instead. #JumpStart2022
For the 2nd #WeekendReading of 2022 I‘m still working my way through Perdido Street Station, a Speculative Fiction set on the world of Bas-Lag in the city of New Crobuzon,a dingy metropolis peopled by numerous species from all over the galaxy.When a scientist unwittingly lets loose an alien terror, the city explodes with violence. It‘s a strange story but very compelling so far though not much reading was done today coz of The Great Library Clean!
One hour into the #JoyousJanuary #readathon and I‘m only on Chapter Three.I‘m liking it but it‘s very word heavy so far “Lin‘s escapades-broadly hinted at, never denied, never made explicit-would be the subject of louche discussion and innuendo. Her love-life was an avant-garde transgression” So it‘s taking a bit more concentration to read but a lot of SciFi,especially classic SciFi, is like that.How are you doing in the first hour? #JumpStart2022
bailedI really wanted to like this book, but every page was a struggle for me. I admit the world building was breathtaking, but it was like nothing but world building; and even after 200 pages, the wtf/page ratio was too high for my taste.
DNFed at 25%.
1. Tagged. But also: Annihilation, City of Stairs, Dune, Geek Love, The Anubis Gates, the Chanur series ...
2. Probably Approximately Correct by Leslie Valiant
#Two4Tuesday
so-soMaybe it was just me, maybe I missed something important somewhere along the way, but I couldn't keep track of what was going on half the time even when I tried going back over sections. It felt to me more like a series of short stories haphazardly strapped together and roughly attached to a central plot than a cohesive book.
Bookish song Nr. 16: Rockefeller Street
Me: I want a song for Perdido Street Station
Deezer: Here you go.
And I saw all the streets, the lights, the monsters and souls living in this special city and above all: Perdido Street Station.
#BooksAndMusic
pickWow, what an experience! I've only ever heard the name of the book, but had no clue about it. Happily I've finally read it!
This book is special, different. It's dark, it's touching, it's though, it's soft. I never knew what would happen next. The city is fascinating, the characters are das, the plot is fascinating.
What I missed in the German edition was a glossary, but at least it had a cool map 🗺
#20Series20Days: Bas-Lag
Fantasy, politics, and weird fiction. This is the series that introduced me to China Miéville and I'm so glad it did. I think I feel a re-read coming.
@Andrew65
@Clwojick
🌟 - I can‘t fathom why anyone on the planet would ever want or need to read this mess.
🌟🌟 - I was actively bothered, but hey, someone out there in this wide world might enjoy it.
🌟🌟🌟 - Solid. Did what it set out to do. A balance of good & bad.
🌟🌟🌟🌟 - I enjoyed myself thoroughly, though I have nitpicks.
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 - I will carry it in my heart for all time, & feel a rush of happiness when I see it on my shelf or in the wild.
My area is experiencing an invasion of moths right now (good info at https://extension.colostate.edu/docs/pubs/insect/millermoths.pdf). My cat, who thinks moths are fun, is delighted, but the humans not so much.
Meanwhile I'm having a sudden urge to reread Perdido Street Station, a book about terrifying, giant evil moths.
Kicking off my #MarchBookHaul which was also my #BirthdayBookHaul with a classic SF novel which was recommended when I searched for books like Neuromancer by William Gibson. Isaac is an eccentric scientist in the city of New Crobuzon, spending his life working on his research. But then the Garuda, a half human half bird creature comes to him with a request, and Isaac can‘t resist his curiosity, not realising what it will unleash.
pickSlow going at first as the reader's mind gets adjusted to the fever dream quality of the work, but my, is it entertaining!
pickA reread for me: Miéville never disappoints! Meeting Issac and Lin, Yagharek and Derkhan, while sinking into the steampunk world of New Crobuzon thrilled me as much as I remembered it did the 1st time. I was equal parts horrified, entranced, and enthralled with Miéville‘s writing. Can‘t wait to reread The Scar so that I can read the third book of the trilogy, The Iron Council, for the first time! Fantastic mix of scifi, fantasy, and horror! 5/5⭐️
pickA disgruntled scientist and his allies—including a de-winged hawkperson, steampunk cyborgs, a bug-headed artist, and a badger—all tackle a corrupt government. And nightmarish dream-eating insects. Also robot mobsters, the Ambassador of Hell, swashbuckling mantis-armed bandits, shapeless horrors, and Devices That Tamper With the Stuff of Reality. An absolute blast
I have to work this weekend, so I‘m not formally participating in #24in48 this time around, but I did send my class to the computer lab so I could catch up on a little reading!
#guiltypleasure #teaching #englishteaching #ESL #ESLteaching #24in48Readathon #badteacher
Fresh 2019 book tracker! Hopefully I can fill in a book or two on my flights back to Indonesia. Starting off the year with some China Miéville.
#BulletJournal #BuJo #booktracker #books2019 #booksof2019 #2019books #bookgoals #bujotracker
pick⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This book grabbed me and had me hooked from the first paragraph. The world building was fantastic and was probably my favorite aspect of the novel. The city actually felt like a real place. I loved the first half. The second half dragged at times and I found some of the characters and aspects of the plot a bit lacking, but this was still a great read.
#booked2018 #steampunk #catsoflitsy #Ember
I‘d hoped to read 25 books this year, but last night I finished the tagged book and hit 50! 😄🎉🎊
#goodreadschallenge #2018stats
As I expected, I haven‘t gotten much reading time in this month, so I‘ve been reading this book very very slowly. I‘m so close to finishing though. Just three chapters left! 😄
I‘m feeling like I‘m not going to end up getting much reading in this month because of Christmas, but that‘s alright. I‘ve read 49 books this year (a personal record!) which I‘m very happy about. So my goal for the month is just to finish reading this book and bring my total up to 50. If I get more in, great, but if not, 50 sounds like a nice number to end the year on. 😃👍🏽
#Phoenix decided to be my reading buddy tonight. #catsoflitsy
Yay, it‘s here! Thank you so much, @Schlinkles! 😄
#bookmailisthebestmail #catsoflitsy #Phoenix
Getting a jump on this deceptive chunkster for this month‘s sci-fi book club
Tagged is my current & final read (#Steampunk) for the 2nd season of #Booked2018 ! I really loved each of the other books I read for these prompts 🤗
#ChildhoodFavorite: Speak
#AboutEnvironment: Lab Girl
#RefugeeMC: Map of Salt and Stars
#Friendship: Simon vs. the Homo Sapeins Agenda
#SwordOnCover: Children of Blood and Bone
pickThe world building was amazing and I enjoyed the first half a lot. The second half dragged a bit and since I listened to the audiobook, I noticed that my mind kept wondering to other things. I am curious about Miéville's other books.
pickBrilliant. Fantastic. Horrifying. Mesmerizing (some of the characters might say literally). Compelling. And on & on & on. Miéville has created one of the most intriguing & unusual worlds I‘ve ever read & populated it with a cast of characters who defy expectations. Isaac is a brilliant scientist. He‘s approached by a half-man/half-bird creature who asks for help & so the story begins. What happens next makes for a most excellent read. Recommended.
1. Also Love, Hate & Other Filters for a book club.
2. I don‘t remember ever not reading—my mom is likely responsible.
3. Any time at all.
4. So many rattling around my head: LoTR, Jane Eyre, Pride & Prejudice, Grasshopper Jungle, Carry On, Eleanor and Park, I‘ll Give You the Sun, Treasure Island, Mr. Croup & Mr. Vandemar, Marko & Alana, Austin, Simon and Baz, Kaz Brekker, Victor Vale, Darrow...I could go on...😂
#manicmonday @JoScho
This book is so fantastically weird. It‘s also a book you pick up to read a few pages only to find yourself so completely absorbed in the story when next you look up it‘s hard to reorient yourself. I love it when a writer can do that as it is no easy thing to completely disconnect a reader from their own situation. Is this book for everyone? Probably not. But for those who are up for pushing boundaries & some adventurous reading, definitely!
Just want to say, I‘m about a third of the way into this book and I have no idea what I‘m reading but I like it!!! It‘s strange and fantastic and weird and wonderful and much like other books such as Autonomous and Ancillary Justice makes you think about the future in different & unexpected ways. Definitely a good recommendation from my friend. Ok, that‘s all I wanted to say...
When in Boston on a Friday night, one most of course visit the Harvard Bookstore. I mean, what else are you going to do? The tagged book is one my friend picked for me while The Changeling is what I picked for myself. I picked Y The Last Man Vol. 1, The Library at Mount Char and Americanah for her. So much excellent reading!!!
Picked up the surprisingly large Perdido Street Station for #Booked2018 #Steampunk & couldn‘t leave without the paperback of Age of Anger (which I‘d somehow held out on buying in hardcover). Looking forward to reading something new in the Miéville. #BookHaul
