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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This took me forever to get through, and I lost track of what was going on numerous times. It was weird and sometimes ridiculous, but I did rather like it.
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses is a dazzling, provocative, and often hilarious whirlwind of magical realism. It throws you headfirst into the intertwined lives of two Indian actors who survive a plane explosion only to find themselves undergoing bizarre transformations. Gibreel Farishta, a Bollywood superstar, begins to have dreams where he embodies the angel Gabriel, while Saladin Chamcha, a voice actor, slowly morphs into a devil-like creature.
The novel fearlessly tackles themes of identity, migration, faith, and the nature of good and evil, all while playing with narrative structure and language in a way that's both challenging and rewarding. Rushdie's prose is rich, inventive, and brimming with literary allusions.
However, be warned: the book's satirical portrayal of aspects of Islam sparked intense controversy and even death threats against the author. While this context is important, the novel itself is a complex and ambitious work of fiction that continues to resonate with its exploration of a world in flux and the fluidity of identity.
In a nutshell: A challenging, rewarding, and fiercely imaginative novel that blends satire and magical realism to explore profound questions of faith and identity in a globalized world. Be aware of its controversial history.
The novel fearlessly tackles themes of identity, migration, faith, and the nature of good and evil, all while playing with narrative structure and language in a way that's both challenging and rewarding. Rushdie's prose is rich, inventive, and brimming with literary allusions.
However, be warned: the book's satirical portrayal of aspects of Islam sparked intense controversy and even death threats against the author. While this context is important, the novel itself is a complex and ambitious work of fiction that continues to resonate with its exploration of a world in flux and the fluidity of identity.
In a nutshell: A challenging, rewarding, and fiercely imaginative novel that blends satire and magical realism to explore profound questions of faith and identity in a globalized world. Be aware of its controversial history.
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Man, dat was een struggle.
☆☆☆☆☆ voor impact op de maatschappij, maar ☆☆ voor leesplezier.
Leest als een koortsdroom, mert hallucinaties in waanbeelden en half afgekapte zinnen.
Ik snap de commotie die het boek heeft veroorzaakt, het bevraagt kenwaarden van de Islam, en gaat daar zelfs mee aan de loop. Maar om daar nou een fatwa voor uit te schrijven.. wees gewoon zelfverzekerd in je geloof, dan bedreigt dit je toch niet?
Blij dat ik hem gelezen heb, al was dat meer huiswerk dan lekker lezen.
☆☆☆☆☆ voor impact op de maatschappij, maar ☆☆ voor leesplezier.
Leest als een koortsdroom, mert hallucinaties in waanbeelden en half afgekapte zinnen.
Ik snap de commotie die het boek heeft veroorzaakt, het bevraagt kenwaarden van de Islam, en gaat daar zelfs mee aan de loop. Maar om daar nou een fatwa voor uit te schrijven.. wees gewoon zelfverzekerd in je geloof, dan bedreigt dit je toch niet?
Blij dat ik hem gelezen heb, al was dat meer huiswerk dan lekker lezen.
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
funny
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Profane satire.
“From the beginning men used God to justify the unjustifiable. He moves in mysterious ways: men say.”
“From the beginning men used God to justify the unjustifiable. He moves in mysterious ways: men say.”
“A man who sets out to make himself up is taking on the Creator's role, according to one way of seeing things; he's unnatural, a blasphemer, an abomination of abominations. From another angle, you could see pathos in him, heroism in his struggle, in his willingness to risk: not all mutants survive. Or, consider him socio-politically: most migrants learn, and can become disguises. Our own false descriptions to counter the falsehoods invented about us, concealing for reasons of security our secret selves.”
My second book by Rushdie, his writing is at least as dense and full of wry humor as I remember from Midnight’s Children, but the crazy ride he takes us on in this book was less enjoyable for me. 1) It was maybe doing a little too much. His writing is so good that I don't want to say that he should have drastically cut parts of the book, but perhaps this particular book could have actually been cleaved in two? One focusing on the migratory experience, lambasting England and the rest of the West for it's racism, imperialism, etc. And, another solely focused on satirizing organized religion, asking the reader to question what other fallible men have told us is TRUTH - and yes, I am aware that to many even acknowledging "fallibility" in the particular circumstances is wildly blasphemous. 2) This is 100% human tragedy, bleak as all hell (on Earth) - I found it hard to like either of the two protagonists and by the end landed in a place that felt pretty nihilistic. All this being said, this is still an excellent book, Rushdie is an amazing writer, and to be fair comparing to Midnight’s Children is also unfair seeing as it sits in rarefied company on my all-time favorites shelf.
This is super sharp, critical, and darkly comic writing. Does it feel a little dated? Yeah, I think so. Does it also feel timeless in it's pointed criticisms and farcical situations? Absolutely (as sad as that is). We still see today that fearful men with power do not like to be made fun of and all to often are so self-interested and fragile as to lash out when you point out their manipulations and abuses, literally plotting petty revenge, calling for murder or effectively disappearing dissenters. Humanity is too often both cruel and ridiculous, we should be able to freely acknowledge and point out these aspects.
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes