The City & the City: China Mieville
a book review
China Mieville doesn’t seem to write straightforward stories, and The City & the City is no exception. The dual settings are Beszel and Ul Qoma, two sovereign States that share the same geographical location. How two cities were created in the same area is debated but never explained in the novel which focuses on the effects of this enigma on the citizens of each city. Tyador Borlu is a detective in Beszel who investigates the murder of a woman he believes was killed in Ul Quoma and dumped in his city. The who-dun-it part of the mystery is satisfying, but it’s the way Borlu negotiates his strange environment that’s the most compelling aspect of the story.
“But pass through Copula Hall and she or he might leave Beszel, and at the end of the hall come back to exactly (corporeally) where they had just been, but in another country.”
The main themes are:
The arbitrary nature of borders.
The ways nationality presents itself through customs, dress, language and architecture.
The use of fear and isolation as social control in repressive regimes.
Humans’ ability to ignore uncomfortable or dangerous truths – reflected by the ways in which citizens of both cities have learned to “unsee” each other – and the damage this does to our cognitive functions.
It takes a few chapters to become accustomed to the idea of “unseeing” or how things can be there but not there. Once you get used to how the narrative works, it’s a fascinating and entertaining read. Borlu is a sympathetic and engaging protagonist and, when he has to move his investigation to Ul Qoma, we see through his eyes the complicated dance required to see yet not see what is there.