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A review by bangkok67
The Golden House by Salman Rushdie
4.0
http://cavebookreviews.blogspot.com
Salman Rushdie's new novel, The Golden House is a story about family, culture, and love. A wealthy man from Mumbai suddenly leaves India with his three sons and settles into an enclave of townhouses in Greenwich Village, NY. Nero Golden has adopted a new name for himself and his family, hoping, it seems, to escape his past in Mumbai. The townhouses where the Goldens live open to a beautiful communal garden shared with the residences of the quadrangle on Sullivan and Houston.
Rene, the son of a couple who lives in the townhouses, narrates the story. Rene's parents are both professors and Rene has only known the gardens, living there all his life. Rene is a film student and aspiring film maker, a believer in the auteur theory of cinema. He becomes friends with the sons of Nero Golden and tells their story and ours too. The time is 2008, and everyone in Rene's world is happy with Barack Obama, the new president. Hope is in the air. It seems that the Goldens are safe in their new home. Rene is innocent as are the three Golden boys. The story will unravel all hope and happiness for many.
To fully appreciate SR's novel, it will be helpful to know the great filmmakers. Much attention centers on the meaning of famous films and the connection with mythology. The 'Joker' (cue DJ Trump, Jr.) enters the picture on the periphery early, and we have him with us throughout the saga of the Goldens and Rene. Rushdie encapsulates absolutely everything happening in the USA from the beginning of the signs that Trump would run for president and even manages to include white supremacy, a foreshadowing of all we are living with now. No one can deny SR's genius and innate ability to gauge the temperature of civilization, either in the USA or India. It is a heartbreaking story from all sides, but we are given some small glimpses of hope from the author and must go on living our lives, as they are today.
Thank you to NetGalley, Salman Rushdie, and Random House for the opportunity to read this ARC.
Salman Rushdie's new novel, The Golden House is a story about family, culture, and love. A wealthy man from Mumbai suddenly leaves India with his three sons and settles into an enclave of townhouses in Greenwich Village, NY. Nero Golden has adopted a new name for himself and his family, hoping, it seems, to escape his past in Mumbai. The townhouses where the Goldens live open to a beautiful communal garden shared with the residences of the quadrangle on Sullivan and Houston.
Rene, the son of a couple who lives in the townhouses, narrates the story. Rene's parents are both professors and Rene has only known the gardens, living there all his life. Rene is a film student and aspiring film maker, a believer in the auteur theory of cinema. He becomes friends with the sons of Nero Golden and tells their story and ours too. The time is 2008, and everyone in Rene's world is happy with Barack Obama, the new president. Hope is in the air. It seems that the Goldens are safe in their new home. Rene is innocent as are the three Golden boys. The story will unravel all hope and happiness for many.
To fully appreciate SR's novel, it will be helpful to know the great filmmakers. Much attention centers on the meaning of famous films and the connection with mythology. The 'Joker' (cue DJ Trump, Jr.) enters the picture on the periphery early, and we have him with us throughout the saga of the Goldens and Rene. Rushdie encapsulates absolutely everything happening in the USA from the beginning of the signs that Trump would run for president and even manages to include white supremacy, a foreshadowing of all we are living with now. No one can deny SR's genius and innate ability to gauge the temperature of civilization, either in the USA or India. It is a heartbreaking story from all sides, but we are given some small glimpses of hope from the author and must go on living our lives, as they are today.
Thank you to NetGalley, Salman Rushdie, and Random House for the opportunity to read this ARC.