Who's read/is reading Rushdie?
 

So the other day I decided to pick up a copy of The Satanic Verses yesterday, and the looks started as soon as I reached the register. This is fine with me, I expected it. People can be silly and close-minded and ignorant sometimes... No big deal. I start walking around with this book and reading it, around neighbors, family, friends, and nobody didn't flinch when they saw what I was reading, save one good friend. One guy even took a swing at me. I'm tempted to keep my reading it on the down-low, but I think it should be perfectly acceptable for me to read what I want, when I want, without fear of getting sucker-punched.

Now I can understand a certain amount of it, as I said before, but the possibility of physical harm got me wondering. Who else around here has read this? What kinds of reactions did you get? Thoughts on the subject?

i read his seas of stories in 9th grade. i always told people it was for school. didnt get to many wierd looks though. then again it isnt as controversial as the satanic verses but it was by rushdie. imo i thought it was a great book.

What is the Satanic Verses really about? Obviously the title is suggestive, but many books have titles that don't directly correspond to the contents ( Of Human Bondage comes immediately to mind). I was reading all the Modern Library's 100 best books, and Midnight Children by Rushdie was on there (I haven't read it yet) so I thought Satanic Verses might be a bit different from what the title suggests.

I don't think it's Rushdie that people are keying off of, but the word Satanic. IMO his others should be safe. Although for someone to try to hit you because of a book seems extreme.

hi there,
there is a god synopsis of the book here :

http://www.bookrags.com/short/satanic_verses/

i really recommend the book. it is fantastically well written and engages the reader in a theological discussion that gets right to the root of identity and in particular of how one identifies oneself with a culture or religion and the personal crisis that are faced in reaching this identification.


texanavenger, i can't believe that your reading of this book has caused so much furrowing of brows. reading is accessing information and should be a learning exercise that expands a persons mind and viewpoint and should never be restricted.
you should encourage the people who trouble you to read the book and then sit down over a beer and talk aboutit with you...otherwise you should use it to beat them toa pulp ;)

I know people're getting turned off by the word 'satanic' here more than the fact that it's Rushdie, but still... I should clarify that a lot of the people around here seem to be a particularly nasty breed of southern baptist. I'm not trying to say anything about most southern baptists, or christians in general, but the people around here seem to act as though their mindset is, "Agree completely or your ass is going to hell." You know the kind, even if you're not one of them.

I have encouraged some of my friends to read it too, it's fairly fantastic reading, but so far I've only got one who's actually decided to.

I've refrained from beating anybody yet over this issue. But if I start to think it's necessary to protect the freedom to read by force, I'm coming out swinging.

I read the book when it was all over the press that Rushdie was given a death sentence over it -- it was a interesting read... a work of fiction... the struggle between good and evil.... the characters were muslim but they could have been sue and bob from topeka... it was fiction...

Just when I think I am the most uptight person that I know... I hear about people like that... Grrrrr

Growing up, my mother was an English teacher, so in our house, reading of any form was good, it didn't matter what you read, as long as you did read. My younger brother learned to read by reading the sports pages.

I must have been in 7th or 8th grade, and I had turned in a book report on the book Are You There God, It's Me, Margaret by Judy Blume. I got an F on the report, got detention and got my parents called in for reading such an inappropriate book. I got my 12 year old niece a copy of the book for Christmas, the look of horror on my sister's face was soooo perfect... :D

I just find it astounding that anyone, ANYONE, would get that upset about a book, just because it says, Satanic on the cover.

a) they probably have no clue who Rushdie is...
b) they probably haven't a clue what the book is about...

God, I love the way Rushdie writes. I get plenty of weird looks as is (a pig destroyer shirt with a man dismembering himself, and 1" holes in my ears PROPABLY factors), but i never had anyone say anything to me at all about Rushdie. Are they still calling for his death in Iran?

satanic verses and midnights children are both brilliant books.

as for "reactions"--who really cares? Stupid People are Legion. let them react as they like.

I read The Satanic Verses but it did not appeal to me. I can not relate to the ways in which other people think - especially as described in fiction. Reading fictional interior monologues always strikes me as experiencing the thoughts of alien beings and I have limited interest in that topic.

I did not experience any social antagonism as I am a known "intellectual."

Hmm, I bought the book when it first game out back when I was about 16yrs old. Obviously I bought it just to see what all the hub-bub was about. I remember erading about the first 150pages and realizing I had no idea what was about, I guess my 16 yr old small town boy mind just couldn't wrap around it.

It's still on my parent's book shelf, I should try it again now that I'm "all growed up."

I don't mind it so much, I expect people to tell me it's "wrong" to read it. It's mostly the guy throwing a punch at me that's got me riled up. I'm not really worried about it, just surprised as hell that somebody would've reacted that way when they had nothing but that book to base my character on, regardless of their ignorance.

Hmmm,

I've always intended to pick up a copy of it, but now I have more incentive, as I would love to have someone take a swing at me over my reading habits :D

I tried to read it once, but found it horribly turgid and dull to be honest

um... they didnt declare a fatwa on him "just because it said Satanic on the cover"

I think the name of the book itself was the problem more. It refers to an alleged passage of the Qu'ran in which Muhammad accepts the reality and power of a Goddess who is other than Allah - said passage is supposed to be later removed.

you should try reading the koran and see what reactions you get.
i've had a few weird looks when i was reading that.
i decided to read it when it appeared that we (the west) were beginning a hatewar on islam and i figured that i should at least try and read it before i was clouded against it. this was soon after 11th september 2001 and i was doing a lot of travelling with work at the time...people looked at me funny in airports, go figure...