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thenextgoodbook.com
What’s it about?
This novel is supposed to be a short summary of a 24,000 verse epic poem from 14th Century Southern India. The writer is a woman by the name of Pampa Kampana. Pampa Kampana is introduced to us as a 9-year-old girl. She has a divine encounter with a goddess shortly afterwards and goes on to create the city of Bisnaga. She spends the next 250 years in Bisnaga and is instrumental to the city’s history. Salman Rushdie has taken the actual 14th Century kingdom of Vijayanagara in Southern India and sprinkled it with some magic to bring us this story.
What did it make me think about?
I was just in awe of the storyteller- what a world he has created on these pages.
Should I read it?
This was my first Salman Rushdie novel. My assumption was that this would be a hard book to get through. It was not! It is a good old-fashioned fable. I am so impressed with Salman Rushdie’s storytelling skill, and even more with his imagination. This novel did not pull on my heartstrings (so 8 stars instead of 9)- but it did keep me interested and turning the pages. Lots to dig into concerning religion, politics, feminism, and history. Don’t be afraid to read this one- and then you will definitely want to talk about it!
Quote-
“It was by no means certain that the people would choose sophistication over barbarianism. The party line regarding members of other faiths- we are good, they are bad- had a certain infectious clarity. So did the idea that dissent was unpatriotic. Offered the choice between thinking for themselves and blindly following their leaders, many people would choose blindness over clear-sightedness, especially when the empire was prospering and there was food on the table and money in their pockets. Not everybody wanted to think, preferring to eat and spend. Not everybody wanted to love their neighbor. Some people preferred hatred.”
What’s it about?
This novel is supposed to be a short summary of a 24,000 verse epic poem from 14th Century Southern India. The writer is a woman by the name of Pampa Kampana. Pampa Kampana is introduced to us as a 9-year-old girl. She has a divine encounter with a goddess shortly afterwards and goes on to create the city of Bisnaga. She spends the next 250 years in Bisnaga and is instrumental to the city’s history. Salman Rushdie has taken the actual 14th Century kingdom of Vijayanagara in Southern India and sprinkled it with some magic to bring us this story.
What did it make me think about?
I was just in awe of the storyteller- what a world he has created on these pages.
Should I read it?
This was my first Salman Rushdie novel. My assumption was that this would be a hard book to get through. It was not! It is a good old-fashioned fable. I am so impressed with Salman Rushdie’s storytelling skill, and even more with his imagination. This novel did not pull on my heartstrings (so 8 stars instead of 9)- but it did keep me interested and turning the pages. Lots to dig into concerning religion, politics, feminism, and history. Don’t be afraid to read this one- and then you will definitely want to talk about it!
Quote-
“It was by no means certain that the people would choose sophistication over barbarianism. The party line regarding members of other faiths- we are good, they are bad- had a certain infectious clarity. So did the idea that dissent was unpatriotic. Offered the choice between thinking for themselves and blindly following their leaders, many people would choose blindness over clear-sightedness, especially when the empire was prospering and there was food on the table and money in their pockets. Not everybody wanted to think, preferring to eat and spend. Not everybody wanted to love their neighbor. Some people preferred hatred.”
I loved this book. The world-building was amazing and I loved the mythology and the analysis of mother-daughter relationships woven into the story. Might be my top read for this year but it’s early to tell.
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