City of Belmont - Ruth Faulkner Public Library

Salman Rushdie’s second novel, Midnight’s Children, was an immediate success following its publication in 1981. The winner of both the Booker Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize that year, it also went on to win the Booker best all-time prize in both 1993 and 2008. Written in the magical-realist style that Rushdie is renowned for, Midnight’s Children follows Saleem Sinai – a child gifted with extraordinary powers after being born at the exact moment India becomes independent. The captivating events that unfold act as an allegory for India’s transition from colonialism to independence as Saleem finds himself 'handcuffed to history', with his fate entwined with that of his newly independent state. Midnight’s Children is both comedy and tragedy, blending the real with the surreal as an enthralling family saga unwinds against the backdrop of a postcolonial India. A stunning story, rich with vibrant images and delightful characters, it thoroughly deserves its place as a modern masterpiece and an inspiration for a whole generation of future Indian writers. About the author One of the most celebrated and controversial authors in modern literature, Salman Rushdie is a multi-award-winning British Indian novelist whose writings on magical realism and postcolonialism have inspired and enchanted millions of people around the world. Born in Bombay in 1947, his early years were spent in India before moving to England and eventually reading history at King's College, University of Cambridge. Rushdie first gained fame following the publication of his second novel, Midnight’s Children, but it was the publication of his fourth book, The Satanic Verses, that resulted in global notoriety. Iran’s Ayatollah Khomeini issued a fatwa against him which resulted in death threats and the banning of the book in 13 countries. A winner of dozens of the highest awards in literature, Rushdie was also the recipient of a knighthood in the UK in 2007.

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Midnight's Children