August / Rushdie Reading: Midnight's Children

[papayahed]

Hope I didn't forget anything...

[papayahed]

I'm on page 3.

[NickAdams]

I found Midnight's Children on the sidewalk- left for the department of sanitation- two years ago.

I enjoy the metafictional format of the work. Nothing original about his prose, but interesting incidents make up fo that. I love his grandparents courtship. Funny stuff. Reminds me of Hundred Years of Solitude in its hyperbole.

I enjoy Saleem's and Padma's position as Greek chorus; it has a lot of potential for humor, That Rushdie doesn't exploit- very natural.

I also found the assassination interesting.

Then there's the underground man!

[NickAdams]

Anybody else reading this book?

[papayahed]

I've made it to page 5. I'm having a hard time keeping track of what is going on between the mother, Adaam, and the chick behind the sheet.

[NickAdams]

I can't keep track of the characters, but I'm reading witout pause. I'll clarify it all when I'm done. Because Adaam is the Grandfather.

[papayahed]

Is Padma Adaam's mother?

[NickAdams]

Padma is Saleem's lover. Saleem is Adaam's grandson.

[applepie]

I'm likely to get my copy in the next couple of days. I've been trying to get through To the Lighthouse and I've given up on that. Instead, I'm going to participate in this reading.

[NickAdams]

Yeah! It's been only Papayahed and myself. I thought there were more voters who were interested.

[papayahed]

Yeah! It's been only Papayahed and myself. I thought there were more voters who were interested.

It's always like that...

And I must admit I haven't been much help so far...Although it is getting better, the first couple of pages were a bear.

[Scheherazade]

Depair no more boys and girls! Got my copy from the library today and read the first page already.

Yay me!

[spoilers4me]

Count me in NickAdams.

I happened upon this site while looking for something good to read and decided to join in on the August read. I picked up my copy of "Midnight's Children" from the library August 4th and I've been plugging away at it since.

I thought I may give up for awhile but after reading so many posts about finishing I have decided to carry on. I am on page 115 and things are getting quite interesting.

I hope to complete the novel and join in on the September read as well.

I enjoy the site I'm just not much of a poster.

[NickAdams]

I thought of giving up myself. I took a break to read, A Clockwork Orange and A Moveable Feast, but I'm back. I have a good feeling there is going to be quite the payoff.

[Pensive]

*takes a deep breath*

Yeah. Here I am. Last night, I completed about seventy pages and have so far loved the book. It's very interesting. The whole Naseem-Adam affair is fascinating. The point where Ghani ordered his daughter to throw off her Naqaab and declared Adam and Naseem young lovers made me have a fit of laughter. According to Islam, a woman has to cover it all in front of na-mahram (other than father, grandfathers, uncles and lovers), before her marriage. And Naseem was not married yet. But I think this whole points to this fact too that the women in even naqaab behind it start affairs. And find as Adam's mother put it well-educated and well-earning men. Eh, appearances only! Social creed too.

Naseem and Adam's days after marriage have been interesting to read. Again things which I found funny (some in a black-humour-ish way). Naseem's thinking about Western women (as she in her second wedding night calls them 'bad word women') doesn't seem to be different from some of the South Asian women today, yes, in 2007.

Now comes the part of Adam and Naseem's children - I enjoyed this part a lot too. When Adam stops their Maulvi Sahab, Naseem's reaction was as I had expected it to be. I think Adam is torn between believes. He wants to show himself as a modern Muslim man but he has to ignore some teachings of Islam in this way. Or perhaps I am wrong. Did anyone else get this feeling too? Anyway, back to Adam's children, Mumtaz being dark and mostly unloved by mother made me a bit sad. And then the way her marriage took place (I had a slight idea that Nadir wouldn't be there long because before that it had been mentioned somewhere that the eldest sister had to leave Sinai). Well, one sister had to sacrifice her love and the other got it. I am yet there. I wonder what happens next.

I have a question for those who can't understand Urdu/Hindi, how are you able to get through words like ghonday, purdah, chutney or chaprassi? I am very curious. There are many words and even references like this in the book which I think must be difficult to understand for non-natives.