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mobyskine's review against another edition
3.0
My first of Salman Rushdie and I'm quite nervous about it. Heard a lot about this author and been thinking to try out reading a book or two by him but haven't had a chance, yet. But luckily I got this short stories book from the Big Bad Wolf so I guess it will do as my first reading from Salman Rushdie.
The book separated to three part-- East, West and East, West. I really love the East part, enjoyed reading all of the 3 stories-- narratives were gripping, took me into a journey of cultural and tradition, family and religious. While the West part was a bit confusing and thought-provoking for me (I actually twice reading the Christopher Columbus story pheww!). I was a bit blurred at this part and really trying my best to enjoy my read. The writings took me into an imaginary and bizarre feeling but somehow I love the writing style a lot. It seems 'heavy' but quite impressive. East, West was my favorite as well, the balance of the other two parts-- I love Chekov and Zulu so much! Wonderful prose and entertaining.
A very intriguing book, I may say. Not bad for my first. 3.5*!
The book separated to three part-- East, West and East, West. I really love the East part, enjoyed reading all of the 3 stories-- narratives were gripping, took me into a journey of cultural and tradition, family and religious. While the West part was a bit confusing and thought-provoking for me (I actually twice reading the Christopher Columbus story pheww!). I was a bit blurred at this part and really trying my best to enjoy my read. The writings took me into an imaginary and bizarre feeling but somehow I love the writing style a lot. It seems 'heavy' but quite impressive. East, West was my favorite as well, the balance of the other two parts-- I love Chekov and Zulu so much! Wonderful prose and entertaining.
A very intriguing book, I may say. Not bad for my first. 3.5*!
mobyskine's review against another edition
3.0
My first of Salman Rushdie and I'm quite nervous about it. Heard a lot about this author and been thinking to try out reading a book or two by him but haven't had a chance, yet. But luckily I got this short stories book from the Big Bad Wolf so I guess it will do as my first reading from Salman Rushdie.
The book separated to three part-- East, West and East, West. I really love the East part, enjoyed reading all of the 3 stories-- narratives were gripping, took me into a journey of cultural and tradition, family and religious. While the West part was a bit confusing and thought-provoking for me (I actually twice reading the Christopher Columbus story pheww!). I was a bit blurred at this part and really trying my best to enjoy my read. The writings took me into an imaginary and bizarre feeling but somehow I love the writing style a lot. It seems 'heavy' but quite impressive. East, West was my favorite as well, the balance of the other two parts-- I love Chekov and Zulu so much! Wonderful prose and entertaining.
A very intriguing book, I may say. Not bad for my first. 3.5*!
The book separated to three part-- East, West and East, West. I really love the East part, enjoyed reading all of the 3 stories-- narratives were gripping, took me into a journey of cultural and tradition, family and religious. While the West part was a bit confusing and thought-provoking for me (I actually twice reading the Christopher Columbus story pheww!). I was a bit blurred at this part and really trying my best to enjoy my read. The writings took me into an imaginary and bizarre feeling but somehow I love the writing style a lot. It seems 'heavy' but quite impressive. East, West was my favorite as well, the balance of the other two parts-- I love Chekov and Zulu so much! Wonderful prose and entertaining.
A very intriguing book, I may say. Not bad for my first. 3.5*!
bibliophile_37's review against another edition
4.0
A frequent question I receive as a bookseller was if Salman Rushdie is really as big a deal as he's made out to be. The answer was and is unequivocally that he’s a far superior writer than any of the sensationalism about him and the legendary fatwa would lead people to believe. If you’ve never read Rushdie, East, West is a perfect way to start. The book is a collection of nine short stories and it demonstrates his style in shorter snippets than the dense, voluminous novels he’s better known for.
Rushdie’s work always contains themes of alienation, displacement and rootlessness, the sort of themes that anyone who has ever lived or worked in a country different to their homeland would understand. As an emigrant from India living in Britain, Rushdie writes about the disillusionment of feeling alienated from the culture one has come from and equally as unsettled in the new one they are going to. Rushdie writes of the experience, “it felt as exciting as any voyage beyond rainbows. It may be hard to believe, but England felt as wonderful a prospect as Oz.” East, West frames this experience in three sections with three short stories per section. Each one is brimming with pop culture references, as well as alluding to the exoticism and influence of Indian culture in the West.
The collection always feels fresh upon every read and serves as a reminder of the power of visual media. For example, in a passage from At the Auction of the Ruby Slippers, Rushdie writes of the famous shoes worn by Dorothy in the film version of The Wizard of Oz (in the written story of the same name, Dorothy’s shoes were silver);
“High feelings are anticipated, and accordingly, in addition to the standard facilities provided for the comfort and security of the more notable personages, extra-large bronze cuspidors have been placed in the toilets, for the use of the physically sick, and psychiatrists of differing disciplines have been installed in strategically located neo-Gothic confessional booths, to counsel the sick at heart.
Most of us nowadays are sick.”
It’s a shame that The Satanic Verses is his most well-known work, beautiful though it is, it is also shrouded in notoriety, which can detract from the story being told. East, West was written in 1994, during which time Rushdie was living in isolation due to the fatwa placed on him by Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran. The collection serves as a reflection on a time where perhaps the loneliness of expressing oneself provided great creative output. The nature of a short story collection allows the reader more time for percolation too. For these reasons, East, West remains a comforting, colourful volume.
Rushdie’s work always contains themes of alienation, displacement and rootlessness, the sort of themes that anyone who has ever lived or worked in a country different to their homeland would understand. As an emigrant from India living in Britain, Rushdie writes about the disillusionment of feeling alienated from the culture one has come from and equally as unsettled in the new one they are going to. Rushdie writes of the experience, “it felt as exciting as any voyage beyond rainbows. It may be hard to believe, but England felt as wonderful a prospect as Oz.” East, West frames this experience in three sections with three short stories per section. Each one is brimming with pop culture references, as well as alluding to the exoticism and influence of Indian culture in the West.
The collection always feels fresh upon every read and serves as a reminder of the power of visual media. For example, in a passage from At the Auction of the Ruby Slippers, Rushdie writes of the famous shoes worn by Dorothy in the film version of The Wizard of Oz (in the written story of the same name, Dorothy’s shoes were silver);
“High feelings are anticipated, and accordingly, in addition to the standard facilities provided for the comfort and security of the more notable personages, extra-large bronze cuspidors have been placed in the toilets, for the use of the physically sick, and psychiatrists of differing disciplines have been installed in strategically located neo-Gothic confessional booths, to counsel the sick at heart.
Most of us nowadays are sick.”
It’s a shame that The Satanic Verses is his most well-known work, beautiful though it is, it is also shrouded in notoriety, which can detract from the story being told. East, West was written in 1994, during which time Rushdie was living in isolation due to the fatwa placed on him by Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran. The collection serves as a reflection on a time where perhaps the loneliness of expressing oneself provided great creative output. The nature of a short story collection allows the reader more time for percolation too. For these reasons, East, West remains a comforting, colourful volume.
dyno8426's review against another edition
4.0
Salman Rushdie's occasional magical realism elements, occasional cliffhangers find themselves sprinkled in this medley of short stories, which carry the theme of intermingling of Indian-foreign cultures and fates. These stories by themselves are rendered beautiful not just by the author's panache in narration, but also by this complex palate and diversity of styles across stories which make any curation of objects interesting. Some deal with Indians immigrating/immigrated to England in a post Indian-independence world and making/trying to make a future within the usual hostility towards an outsider, and accompanied by the loneliness that distance naturally creates. Some are well adapted and have embraced/have been embraced to feel that they belong in this modern world that exists beyond national boundaries and conflicting pasts. Some are just caught in the after-effects of the changes that the colonial British left in their wake. And then there are stories which are just happening irrespective of the space and time, but have this exploratory element of human nature which connects everything. The dichotomy of the two opposites that east and west represent are first observed separately, and then, as naturally as we think of the confluence point of these two poles in our mind, do we arrive at probably the highlight, the east-west section that concludes this anthology where the author shows us his acumen for changing styles like one changes clothes.
- Good Advice Is Rarer Than Rubies - The pathos of unconventional romance, a signal for modernity and western freedom.
- The Free Radio - An unfulfilled reality compensated by imagination, the universal allure and caution of foreign promises.
- The Prophet's Hair - (Probably the most magical-realist of all) The corrupting and potential of native beliefs.
- Yorick - (One of the most creative ones!) Imagines the childhood of Prince Hamlet and how he is driven towards scheming patricide through his jester - The controlling grip of passions and consequences of abandoning reason in the face of it.
- At The Auction of the Ruby Slippers - (My favourite, by far!) Some underground bidding over a pair of shoes whose magic can solve any world problem - A powerful symbol of how lives are universally pivoted and altered around the fantastical pursuit of certain dreams advertised as the solution-to-all-problems.
- Christopher Columbus and Queen Isabella of Spain Consummate Their Relationship (Santa Fé, AD 1492) - A tribute to the spirit of exploration and challenge that individuals feed on to fulfil a sense of purpose in their lives.
- The Harmony of the Spheres - Friendship between a Welsh and an Indian origin person connected by a love for occult and dark magic - The allure of escapism and how it dangerous it can be.
- Chekov and Zulu - Friendship between two Indian origin British officials who were connected by a love of Star Trek - A contrast between how two people adapt to lives in a foreign place and diverge paths despite an endearing connection.
- The Courter - (Brilliant conclusion!) Courtship between an Ayah/house-help and a porter - The mis-fitness of two foreigners connects them through love and brings vitality to the otherwise draught of their own lives.
East
West
East, West
dean_the_bean's review against another edition
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
yeshi's review against another edition
4.0
This was a good collection of short stories, couple of which bordered into fantasy - which to my greater delight and surprise - I enjoyed! This book has three parts - East, West, East-West, with very different writing styles. East was a collection of stories which very much reminded me of someone like Manto - the writing style of his translated work. The themes/stories not as evocative for me. 3/5. Though the story 'the prophet's hair' in East collection was a giant ball of absurdity which I enjoyed. West - 4.5/5+. I loved it! The writing style, subtle humor, narrative and touch of fantasy! Pleasurable. Fun! It led me to want to explore Rushdie more. :) East-West was good. Overall, a good enjoyable collection.
boxcar's review against another edition
3.75
Some good stories, especially the last, the courter. I feel that rushdie might be better suited to the novel. he writes in a very roundabout, wordy manner, and while i love it generally, i don’t think it was my cup of tea in short form.
mark_von_oink's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed every one of the short stories, besides Yorick which to me seemed a bit messy and hard to follow. I really enjoyed 'The harmony of the Spheres' and 'Chekov and zulu' in particular. These stories definitely will make me keep an eye out for some of his full size books to read.
elena_ceuppens's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.5