Midnight’s Children

Salman Rushdie weaves this allegorical fantasy of the life of the children born around the hour of Indian freedom, who are somehow endowed with special powers to sense the events around them. Narrated through Salim, the one born exactly at the midnight hour and hence has the maximum power, it traces the history of India and Pakistan and their forever troubled relations over Kashmir. He believes that he represents every individual of India and whatever happens affects him and also the things happen because of him and the other midnight children. For example, the India Pakistan war of 1965 was fought indirectly only to eliminate his family because of his special power disturbs Indira Gandhi.

This book became a Booker winning classic and a perennial top seller not only for the story but mainly for the way it is told. The events of Indian history since independence are told not factually but as it makes sense and coherence in the life of the midnight children. It’s a story to be devoured by connoisseurs of exotic story telling for its unparalleled style and narrative mystery.