Where should I start?

[Fried Egg]

I haven't read anything by China Mieville but am curious about what I've heard about him. What book would be the best place to start to introduce me to his work?

[Rich_SP]

ANY! lol
I personally started with his short story compilation; Looking For Jake, which have some truly remarkable stories,,,except 'Tis the Season'. i'm a socialist and I still hated it lol.
However, details is entirely horrifying, Foundations is equally uneasy but absolutely amazing, I couldnt get the title story out of my head for weeks, and An End To Hunger is immensely enjoyable.
and then there's Jack, my particular favourite
overall every one of the sotries is worth a read (cept Tis the Season :P)
I then went on to read the Bas Lag novels in order, before finally getting my hands on a copy of King Rat. Perhaps you should start from the beginning with King Rat... it serves as a kind of introduction to his later works as it sort of eases you into his fantasy world...
But just dont start with Iron Council, i reckon that should be read last, after the other Bas Lag novels.
It is also my favourite of his works.
hope that helps :P

[kaelcarp]

I think it depends on what sort of story you like most. While all of his books are quite good, I think some appeal marginally to more tastes than others. I would definitely start with one of the Bas-Lag books, though...

Perdido Street Station:
Start here if you: Like amazingly inventive worlds and ideas; like urban settings; prefer depth rather than breadth of setting; horror elements mixed in with fantastical ones.
Don't start here if you: Want a fast moving plot that (it takes over 200 pages to get to the meat of the story, but the journey is a treat); want an expansive view of the world (it is almost entirely confined to one city).


The Scar:
Start here if you: Want a expansive view of the world; like a somewhat but not completely unusual story structure; like seafaring stories.
Don't start here if you: Want very sympathetic characters; want a feeling of a big payoff (the story features a series of elements that are put before you and pulled back, which some have found disappointing).

Iron Council:
Start here if you: Are into leftist politics; want a story that takes off running from the first page; like odd story structures; like westerns.
Don't start here if you: Prefer apolitical stories.

My favorite is The Scar, but I probably wouldn't have appreciated it as much if I hadn't read PSS first. If you're not sure, start with PSS. You really can't go wrong.

[ravenus]

Mieville works better in novels than shorts, I guess he needs the space to flex his chops. The Tain a novella from Looking for Jake is one of the best parts of that collection. I started with PSS and was totally gobsmacked although he does sometimes frustrate by endless detail when you want the plot to race forward.

[kaelcarp]

Originally Posted by ravenus

Mieville works better in novels than shorts, I guess he needs the space to flex his chops.

I agree. Looking for Jake was very cool overall, but a little uneven. While it contained some great stories, like "Details", some others were a little flat to me. But all of his novels are top-notch.

[Connavar]

I read a very wierd short story of his in the mammoth collection of Future Cops.

I was impressed by his powerful writing style.

Has he written any other SF ? I dont see novels of sf but maybe another short story.

Otherwise there isnt much choice than trying the first book of his famous series for me.

[Ragnar]

I'd start with Perdido Street Station as its the first one of the series - if you don't like it, then you probably won't like the rest.

[Fried Egg]

Well, thanks for your advice and recommendations. I plan to start with "Perdido Street Station". I'll report back when I've read it and let you know what I thought.