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Title: China Miéville's book of short stories
Review: China Miéville is a novelist, that's where he really shines. The novel form gives him the room he needs to develop his ideas and evoke the sort of bizarre, surreal, often grotesque milieu (often just a sideways step or a blink of the eye away from reality) at which he so excels.The short story form doesn't really give him the room he needs to work his magic. Oh, this book does have its moments, definitely. One story in it is even in the New Crobuzon universe of some of his most successful novels and gives a bit of backstory to one of the legendary characters in those books. However, on the whole the short stories are not quite up to the quality of his novels. They're just a bit lacking in depth.On the other hand, if you've already read all his novels or are looking for a book of short weird fiction, by all means pick this one up.
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