Midnight's Children: A Novel (Modern Library 100 Best Novels)

Remarkable book and off course well deserving of not just Booker but Best of Booker. What this literary masterpiece does is it tells the story of a country (India) since 1947, intertwined by a child born, coming to age and adulting along with the new country; and one begins to wonder is it the story of the country and its people or of these individuals. This book falls into the category of historical fiction; blending history and fiction seamlessly. It tries to summarize millennia’s of thoughts and ways of being from the subcontinent in the characters of the book. The book has ability to transport you to time and places in a way the words actually paint the scene. It’s captivating, it’s a page turner, it’s crude sometimes and welcomed, and it’s comic. Lyndam Gregory did amazing narration in the Audible/ Audiobook version; it’s award worthy in itself. It’s unfortunate books and authors are banned; this book has nothing as controversial as its projected, or the political elite Congress / Nehru - Gandhi dynasty mustn’t endure as a price of being a ruling class; people who are offended the most do so without even reading it. And what’s in that book that any Indian wouldn’t have thought already. Honestly, I don’t really see why anyone gets bent out of shape about this book; at worst it makes fun, a parody of all of us; even better, atleast someone knows to self critique and laugh at themselves. Regardless, you will not regret reading this one especially if you are from South Asia or are curious / infatuated by South Asia. I hope there is ultimately a sequel to this book. I have so much respect for the author Salman Rushdie. “What cannot be cured, must be endured!”.

Although Midnight’s Children is proclaimed as Rushdie’s masterpiece, I did not enjoy it as much as I did Shalimar the Clown. It’s epic in its scale and ambition. There is so much here it may be difficult for some readers (myself included) to digest it all. There are a staggering number of minor characters, all realized with Rushdie’s customary skill. There are many passages of brilliance, wit, and wisdom. But these multitudinous characters slither in and out of the narrative making it difficult at times to follow, particularly considering that a novel of this length and complexity does not lend itself to a reading of one, or even just a few sittings. It is in the form of a three-volume “confession” by the narrator, Saleem Sinai, who is born at the exact midnight moment of India’s birth as a nation (hence the novel’s title), to his consort and fiancé, Padma. To add to the difficulties many of the characters have multiple names. Rushdie employs some literary devices that detracted from my enjoyment of the novel. At times it almost seemed as if he was indulging in technique for technique’s sake. One device is repetition. For instance, there’s constant thematic repetition of “knees and nose, nose and knees”, Saleem being the nose and his arch-enemy and rival, Shiva, being the knees. After a while my response was I get it, their fates are intertwined, but I don’t get why I need to read this formula yet again (maybe I don’t get it? I’m not even quite sure why the formula couldn’t be reversed. Are knees aggressive and the nose sensuous? A lot of hammering on one nail.) Another is Rushdie’s use of obscure vocabulary without any clear purpose that I can understand (even when I understand the words without looking them up). For example the words apocrine and eccrine keep popping up in the narrative without any clear reference (at least to me). Another problem I had, particularly with Volume 3 (spoiler alert – don’t read further if you want to remain in suspense), is where we learn of the identity of “the Widow”, who is the villain of the piece. It’s Indira Gandhi. The anti-Gandhi theme introduced here seems a bit overheated. Although Indira Gandhi did do some bad things, particularly the suspension of democracy during the “Emergency” of 1975-77, which is the background for a significant part of Volume 3, they seem pretty small beer when compared with the great historical crimes of the twentieth century. In fact she seems not obviously better or worse than many of the Prime Ministers India has experienced before and afterwards. So the tone of outrage and focus on her as the villainous “Widow”, while it may have been understandable from Rushdie’s perspective at the time Midnight’s Children was completed (1979), seems rather dated. All that said it would be unfair not to note that there are many passages in Midnight’s Children of great beauty and wisdom. Rushdie is unparalleled in capturing the sweep of life in India and Pakistan (and Bangladesh) and his genius for this is at its most expressive in this novel. He is also a writer of great learning and knowledge of what he writes -- knowledge which is fully on display here (in a good sense). The Bombay of which he writes is the Bombay of his own childhood; he himself was born in 1947, the year of India’s independence, the same as Saleem, the “hero” of the piece. Along the way, he gives us all sectors of Indian society, from the wealthy and privileged to the underclasses, and he does it with a true novelist’s eye (and nose!) for the telling detail and without editorializing. He succeeds in interweaving the private incidents in the lives of the characters he has created with historical events of the period: from the early part of the twentieth century to the late 70s, when the book was completed. It’s just a shame that because of their sheer number we don’t get to know some of them better. But maybe that’s inherent in Rushdie’s method; he himself has acknowledged his debt to Charles Dickens, and I guess one should no more expect to probe the depths of Nussie the Duck’s or Parvati-the-Witch’s psyches any more than those of Mr. Micawber or “Barkis is willing”.

Having red the "Satanic Verses" a few years ago I definitely waited too long to pick up "The Midnigt's Children". For anybody who can appreciate the literature and prefers a gourmet meal to chicken fried steak- stop reading reviews and start this book right now- it is a masterpiece. BTW - to those who give it three stars or fewer- I can only hope that they write something better and show us what a good novel should be- forgive my sarcasm. Initially the book may not be the easiest too read, as although the story is told mostly in chronological manner, it is interwoven with obscure at the time glimpses of the future. In Rushdie's world everything is connected, no thing is too small or inconsequential. Ideas, objects and small events initially loosely connected shape Saleem's life. As the story develops everything starts coming together, making sense, no longer obscure. Therefore the book becomes easier and easier to read and even more engaging the further you get into it. The reality and fantasy are tied together in this novel- typically for this author, fantasy serves to highlight and magnify the reality. The life of the protagonist, Saleem Sinai is magically tied to the life of the nation as he is born in the exact moment when India is born as a nation independent from the British rule. In the same hour 1000 of other children possessing supernatural abilities are born in India. Some say that the idea of magical children is not fully utilized by the author or perhaps even unnecessary, as the reality of the times is captivating enough. This is debatable, but in any case don't expect the magical children fighting villains, this is not Avengers or Fantastic 4. The extraordinary abilities of the children are more a curse and a source of misfortunes than they are a blessing as the world is not ready for them. Superstition, backwardness of the adults, causes them to pass the suffering on the children. The adults "make children the vessels into which they pour their poisons" of unhappiness, prejudice and intolerance. As the protagonist grows up, the insults from surrounding him adults and his own peers are replaced by much worse mayhem unleashed on him and the whole nation by the politicians and tyrants. As such the broken life and body of the midnight's child becomes a mirror of what happens to the fractured nation, divided by languages, religions and political ambitions. In this aspect the novel is a powerful accusation and the author takes no prisoners, historical figures even the reverend ones come under the fire of his literary weapons. Even though the optimism of the people is shown as a disease and completely unjustified the author leaves room for a sliver of hope- symbolized by the little Aadam. The use of visions, prophecies, colors, objects loaded with meanings, historical events and psychological insights along with rich and almost poetic prose create a book that is full of impact and should not be passed.

To say I've devoured this book would be a lie, so I'll just state the truth. It took me two weeks to finish it, and this is all due to the enormity, the greatness, the ever expanding world of this book. There are longer books in literature, yes, but this book, in its almost 650 pages, manages to give several points of discussions about a different variety of topics. The story, which starts from the end like most magic realist books, is meant to be the autobiography of Saleem Sinai. Saleem tells us who he is, as every respectable biography does, and he says that his birthday is important because he was born on August 15th, 1947, on the stroke of midnight, right when India gained its Independence from the British rule. Now he's about to turn 31, but the clock is ticking, and he needs to tell his story before he forgets and it is lost forever. In a meta-narration where Saleem, our narrator, tells us about the past but also comments in the present about what happened in a precise moment, we are thrown back into pre-Independence India as Saleem starts the story by recounting his grandfather's Aadam Aziz story of how he met his grandma, in 1915, Kashmir. The place is not casual at all, because Kashmir will be one of the most reclaimed territories by both India and Pakistan after the Partition, and it's not casual everything started there, in that paradise. It's not a coincidence the grandfather is called "Aadam". It all starts from a perforated sheet where Aadam sees bits of his future wife Naseem. The perforated sheet, as well as the theme of holes in general, is recurring in this book, and greatly connects the beginning and the end that you can't fail to see the parallels, the mirrors. In this story, nothing is casual, especially the fact that Saleem was born on midnight. He, and the other children born at midnight of the same day, possessed great powers. But there are secrets behind Saleem's birth, secrets that will make or break relationships, obsessions, love and hatred. You know what they say, the more powerful you are, the more feared you will be. I wish I could say more than this, but I don't want to spoil anything to you, because this book really manages to shock you until the very end. The writing is flowing, fresh, you never get annoyed because you want to know how did that happen, what will be of this or that character. The story may seem all over the place because Saleem starts retracing his origins back to his grandfather, but it isn't at all. It is a story full of history, hybridity, identity, religion, politics... it is a world in its own right, with tragic moments made less sad by the grotesque, by the irony and the sarcasm Rushdie is able to deliver majestically. It isn't just Saleem's story, it is a story of a country divided, partitioned. A country that is looking for a mother, for a father, someone to guide them, to mend the cracks. But Saleem knows that it's impossible, because there are cracks - like the one in the perforated sheet - that you can't mend, that you won't be able to mend, especially if your fate is doomed. Rushdie is a British author but he is also Indian, which mean this novel also deals with the problem of hybridity, because Saleem also moves to different places in his life. I could say more but I think you should read for yourself the waste number of topics that this book discusses, because they can't be narrowed down. I think lovers of magic realism but also fantasy will like this book.

The modern history of India written in magical- realistic style.

‘Midnight’s Children’ is a coming-of-age, satirical, farcical, magical realist story, filling more than 600 pages, about India’s transition from British colonial rule to independence and partition. The tale is told by its chief protagonist, a telepath named Saleem Sinai, who recounts his life-story and the history of post-colonial India to his wife. Although Saleem’s reflections are set in the context of historical events, the details contain factual errors and suspect claims. He asserts the veracity of all that he says, not because it is accurate, but because he remembers it that way. ‘I told you the truth,’ I say yet again, ‘Memory’s truth, because memory has its own special kind. It selects, eliminates, alters, exaggerates, minimizes, glorifies, and vilifies also; but in the end it creates its own reality, its heterogeneous but usually coherent versions of events; and no sane human being ever trusts someone else’s version more than his own.’ Saleem is born at midnight on 15th August 1947, India’s first Independence Day. He discovers that all children born between midnight and 1 a.m. on that date in India have special powers too. One of these children, Shiva, born with the abilities of a matchless warrior, is switched at birth with Saleem. As a consequence, Saleem is raised by prosperous parents in Bombay, while his future enemy, Shiva, is raised in poverty. Using his telepathic powers, Saleem assembles a ‘Midnight’s Children Conference’ bringing the gifted children together, to see and hear them, to connect with each other. He joins them ‘every midnight, and only at midnight, at an hour dedicated to miracles.’ Pakistan and Bangladesh feature in the novel, but it is predominantly set in India. Rushdie, like Saleem, was raised in Bombay. He presents a Bombay teeming with people, hidden treasures, diversity and a furious energy. His writing mirrors Bombay; even Saleem’s story has to fight its way through an overcrowded manuscript of secondary events. ‘Midnight’s Children’ received prodigious critical and popular acclaim upon its publication in 1981 and continues to be lauded and studied more than forty years later. This capacious and grand novel, deeply-rooted in history, is a joy to read. Its florid descriptions, humour and darkness, peppered with untranslated Indian words, will keep you turning each of its many, many pages.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this. It's very well written. It is a captivating journey right from the beginning, to the very end!

Rushdie es un genio! Esta novela es un paralelo a la independencia de la India. El más puro realismo mágico, verdaderamente se goza!