The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie

Like most people, I wanted to see what it was about this book to make Ayatollah-Assholea tell every Muslim in the word to kill Salman Rushdie. Of course it is only because there is a depiction of Mohamed, and various other reasons concerning Islamic beliefs. I don't really remember the pope putting a hit out on Nikos Kazantzakis for THE LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST, or on Scorsese for making the same novel into one of the greatest films ever made.

That aside, it took me a long time to read this books, longer than it took me to read MIDDLESEX. It took a while to read it primarily because of my first semester of graduate school. Also, it is a long book. It is a book that is very cerebral. Mr. Rushdie's tale of the nature of good and evil is just short of being an epic. The only thing that keeps it from being epic is that it is not written in dactylic hexameter, or any other poetic rhythm for that matter. This is not a leisurely summer read, it is hardcore literary art. This book would have won a Pulitzer Prize, if Mr. Rushdie were American. He is British Indian for those curious. I think that he may be a good candidate for a Nobel Prize.

This is a novel that is difficult to describe. My experience with it may be different that your experience with it. That is what this book is; an experience. I learned a lot about Islam, India, and Indians living in London. The magical realism, that is what we call highbrow fantasy, works out so well. I am taken aback at the artistry that Mr. Rushdie possesses.