As the author publishes a new story collection, we rate the work that made his name – from his dazzling Booker winner to an account of the 2022 attack that nearly killed him
“It makes me want to hide behind the furniture,” Rushdie now says of his debut. It’s a science fiction story, more or less, but also indicative of the sort of writer Rushdie would become: garrulous, playful, energetic. The tale of an immortal Indian who travels to a mysterious island, it’s messy but charming, and the sense of writing as performance is already here. (Rushdie’s first choice of career was acting, and he honed his skill in snappy lines when working in an advertising agency.) Not a great book, but one that shows a great writer finding his voice, and a fascinating beginning to a stellar career.
Rushdie’s love for pop culture – he was inspired to write his first story, aged nine, after watching The Wizard of Oz – was never more evident than in this rompy rewrite of Don Quixote that references Back to the Future, Disney’s Pinocchio, Beavis and Butt-Head, Starsky & Hutch and more. The eponymous character is driven mad by watching too much TV – but his story is itself being written by a washed-up spy novelist. In its layers within layers it’s as hyperactive as Grimus, but a bit more controlled. And even if Rushdie in this book is half-charming raconteur, half pub-bore, the energy will keep you bouncing merrily along.
