Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie
not for me to give this a score out of ten
Oh, I have struggled to read the 647 pages of this book, but I made myself do it, because it has won such acclaim. And, of course, I'm glad that I worked hard on it. Not all books should be light and breezy, easy peasy.
Like mountains, the harder one has to work, the greater the achievement and one's perspective is changed by it.
Midnight's Children has more detail and to-ing and fro-ing backwards and forwards through time than I felt comfortable with. My poor brain wouldn't hold it all, so I know that I didn't get as much from it as I should. Living, as I do, in the North-West of England, I live alongside a lot of people who have migrated (or their parents, or grandparents did) from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, and so I am glad to read books that teach me more about these countries and their people. I suspect that my lack of knowledge of history, though, stopped me from really understanding a lot of what Salman Rushdie was trying to tell me. I knew a bit about the history of Partition, and the divisions and issues around it.
I think he probably used allegory and metaphor that I didn't see, though I had some wonderful moments of enlightenment. His idea of capturing history and its flavours in pickle jars, at the end, was a bit spine-tingling.
What I learned; that this is a master craftsman in writing, that I wasn't bright / knowledgable enough to fully appreciate the book, that things went on in India in the 1970s that I was completely oblivious to, that Midnight's Children needs to be read again.
I need to read something easier for a while, I think.
not for me to give this a score out of ten
Oh, I have struggled to read the 647 pages of this book, but I made myself do it, because it has won such acclaim. And, of course, I'm glad that I worked hard on it. Not all books should be light and breezy, easy peasy.
Like mountains, the harder one has to work, the greater the achievement and one's perspective is changed by it.
Midnight's Children has more detail and to-ing and fro-ing backwards and forwards through time than I felt comfortable with. My poor brain wouldn't hold it all, so I know that I didn't get as much from it as I should. Living, as I do, in the North-West of England, I live alongside a lot of people who have migrated (or their parents, or grandparents did) from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, and so I am glad to read books that teach me more about these countries and their people. I suspect that my lack of knowledge of history, though, stopped me from really understanding a lot of what Salman Rushdie was trying to tell me. I knew a bit about the history of Partition, and the divisions and issues around it.
I think he probably used allegory and metaphor that I didn't see, though I had some wonderful moments of enlightenment. His idea of capturing history and its flavours in pickle jars, at the end, was a bit spine-tingling.
What I learned; that this is a master craftsman in writing, that I wasn't bright / knowledgable enough to fully appreciate the book, that things went on in India in the 1970s that I was completely oblivious to, that Midnight's Children needs to be read again.
I need to read something easier for a while, I think.
I read this back in 1987/88 - I can be pretty precise as I used to do a lot of travelling on trains between L'pool and Chester at that time, and my reading increased by around 400%. I too struggled with all the details, the places, names and context - all, literally, foreign to me. It involved a lot of skimming back and forth checking earlier pages to remind myself of who such-a-body was, where such a place fitted in. However, I persevered and got to really care about the protagonist and key characters- and I mean REALLY care, so that when at quite a way in - after much investment in ensuring understanding of the complex family dynamics, I was totally shocked and incensed at a .....well, I'll not spoil it for people who may see this who then go on to read the book - but you'll know what "event" I mean Jackie! I was furious!!! So surprised and moved I squealed and probably swore out loud (forgetting I was on a train) - I was furious!!! I slammed the book shut and couldnt bring myself to read any more for about a month!! Then I had to continue and see what happened and had to adjust my view of this "world" and reconstruct everything I thought I understood. I guess that was the point!
ReplyDeleteI loved this book; I decided at this point Salman Rushdie was probably the most ingenious story teller I'd ever come across. I'm less sure of that now, but nevertheless, he's pretty amazing.
I've still got that tatty copy as I've declared for years my intent to re-read it now I am older and -supposedly - know and understand more than I did than in my twenties. Haven't got to it yet, but it still sits there on the shelf, and one day....
Thanks for that Cathy. Funnily I'm not sure which event you mean - that got you so furious - I think there might be one or two that fit that bill. I'm not sure that I understand what the whole Midnight's Children thing meant. I demand that you read it again, and then you can explain it to me.
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