Haroun and the Sea of Stories by Salman Rushdie

Title: Haroun and the Sea of Stories

Author: Salman Rushdie

Genre: Contemporary literature, fantasy, children's

Publisher: Granta, 1990

Source: Library

Haroun and the Sea of Stories is the fantastical tale of Haroun, son of the greatest storyteller that ever lived (called the Ocean of Notions by his admirers and the Shah of Blah by his enemies). Haroun and his parents live in a city so sad it has forgotten its name, but the Ocean of Notions manages to bring smiles and entertainment to its residents until the sadness of the city creeps into their own family and he loses the Gift of Gab. Haroun is determined to help his father and ends up on an exciting journey on the Sea of Stories, meeting the Chups and Gups and finding the source of all stories.

I read this book as an(other) introduction to Rushdie's work - I heard that this story, written for his son Zafar, gave a good glimpse into the world of magical realism without stretching too long or confusing.

And I have to say it - I. Love. Magical realism! I've heard so many negative reactions to this sub-genre, and I expected to have a similar reaction. I hate not understanding a book or feeling like I have to read a research paper or nonfiction explanation in order to understand a story. I enjoy getting at the deeper layers of meaning, but I don't like being completely incapable of grasping a story on any level without having done research beforehand. I thought this would be the case with magical realism, but I was mistaken, at least in this case. It was fun!

This book really reminded me of Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, a book that I really thought I'd enjoy after seeing the various movie incarnations, but that didn't end up working for me at all (I think I was just too old when I finally read it). I know there are all kinds of hidden agendas in Alice, but I wasn't familiar with them or desirous to ferret them out.Haroun also had these hidden agendas and clever wink-wink moments, but they delighted me instead of eluding me completely. (A little glossary at the back of the book helped immensely - many of the names in the book have double meanings). There were several allusions to other works, including "I Am the Walrus" by the Beatles, which I wrote about a few weeks ago. Two of Haroun's companions are named Iff and Butt. These little elements could have been distracting, but they added up to a tight and cohesive story - everything had some importance, some meaning. Loose ends were not left untied.

The story itself was beautiful and charming - an intriguing fairytale of how stories come into existence. The stories themselves are described as beautiful colored threads in the waters of the ocean, and the pains the Gups take to save those stories are both fascinating and heroic. While this story was written for children, it definitely appeals to the adult as connections are made and Haroun is taken on an epic journey to save stories. Rushdie examines why we should care about stories instead of allowing them to be extinguished by Khattum-Shud (the evil prince of the Chups and the word for "The End"). He incorporates romance, adventure, and fantasy into a story with a simplicity that allows the beauty to be more clearly manifested, rather than dumbed down. Children will probably enjoy this odd adventure, but I think adults will also find meaning and enjoyment in Haroun's adventures.

4 stars

Warnings for the sensitive reader: very vague allusions to infidelity in marriage

Literary Lyrics: I Am the Walrus

(Photo Source)

If you are at all familiar with the song "I Am the Walrus" by the Beatles (specifically, John Lennon) you might wonder why on earth I'm including it as a literary example of contemporary music, because the song is pretty much an acid trip. (In fact, the first few lines were written by John while he was on an acid trip). However, there are at least three different literary connections with this song, which I found so interesting that even though the song itself isn't necessarily aesthetically pleasing, I had to use it for my next Literary Lyrics post.

Several different aspects went into writing the song - for a good breakdown go here because I am only focusing on a few. First of all, part of the inspiration for this crazy song was a letter John received from a student at his old school telling him that a teacher had the class analyze the Beatles' song lyrics. John decided to give them a song that they couldn't possibly analyze. I think this is pretty interesting and possibly a window into what some authors and songwriters feel about all the attempts at analysis and trying to discern what caused the author to write what they did. I'm not saying it's a bad thing to do, even if the author doesn't like it - once they release their work into the wild people will have their own experiences with it that may have never entered the mind of the creator. But I like John's little plan of messing with the analyzers is pretty amusing.

Secondly, the title of this song comes from Lewis Carroll's poem "The Walrus and the Carpenter" in Through the Looking Glass. I won't put the whole poem here because it is very long, but click on the link if you'd like to read it. It is the poem containing the famous lines, "'The time has come,' the Walrus said,/'To talk of many things:/Of shoes--and ships--and sealing-wax--/Of cabbages--and kings--/And why the sea is boiling hot--/And whether pigs have wings.'" In this poem, the Walrus and the Carpenter coerce some little oysters to run and do their bidding so they can eat them. Allegedly Lennon did not realize that the Walrus was the villain in the poem until after he wrote the song, but decided to keep it anyway. Some have said Carroll's poem was a commentary on capitalism - I honestly didn't read it thoroughly enough to get that, and Carroll himself never specified that it was meant to be a political tirade. (All this information is straight off wikipedia, the information bank for the lazy, so if any of you have more reputable sources or information I would love to have it!)

I found it interesting enough that the inspiration for the Walrus was literary, but it was even more interesting to me when I found references to the song in Salman Rushdie's Haroun and the Sea of Stories (review forthcoming). Haroun travels with Iff, a Water Genie, to the land of Gup in hope of saving his father's story-telling ability and meeting with the Walrus, director of the house of P2C2E (Processes Too Complicated To Explain). The Walrus' facility is peopled by Eggheads, bald people in white lab coats who scurry around working on the P2C2E machines. At first I wasn't quite sure if this was a real reference because it seemed too ridiculous to be true, but when I came to the sign on the Walrus' door ("GRAND CONTROLLER OF PROCESSES TOO COMPLICATED TO EXPLAIN. I.M.D. WALRUS, ESQUIRE. KNOCK AND WAIT") I almost clapped my hands with happiness at how absurd it was. The Walrus also introduces his team by saying, "They are the Eggheads. I am the Walrus," very similar to the song.

I thought it was awesome and hilarious that the song was being used in this way in Haroun and the Sea of Stories, but I was even more struck with it when I learned that Lennon's inspiration for the song partially came from Through the Looking Glass, because Haroun really reminded me of Lewis Carroll's two Alice books. It is crazy to me how all these different ideas made a circle. I don't know if Rushdie intended to complete the circle or not, but it was striking to me.

So there you have it - my own (short) literary analysis of one or two lines of "I Am the Walrus." The video at the bottom has all the lyrics - feel free to offer any of your own interpretations.

Short Story Spotlight: "The Shelter of the World" by Salman Rushdie

I'm introducing another new feature this week - my Short Story Spotlight. I have had an appreciation for the short story since eleventh grade honors English, when my teacher, Mr. Dempsey (published here, if you're interested) gave us packet after packet to analyze. My short story reading has dwindled in the last few years, and I decided an every-so-often post devoted to a short story would up my reading and understanding of the art. To me, a short story is a chance to experiment, to try out a plot device or character without complete commitment to the story. You can be a little weirder in a short story than in a novel (and I think authors often are). I think short stories are also occasionally intentionally obscure, which drives me insane.

But enough about that. The short story I am spotlighting today is "The Shelter of the World" by Salman Rushdie. It was recommended to me by my English-genius friend Allison, who has written several blog posts about Mr. Rushdie. (Her own personal blog and our group of friends' book blog) I have two of Rushdie's novels sitting on my nightstand right now, but am still nervous to start - he is intimidating to me. Allison suggested reading a few of his stories as an introduction, so I arbitrarily picked this one and gave it a read.

Very weird - check. This is about the Emperor Akbar the Great (translation: Emperor the Great the Great), who has invented a perfect wife among his harem of beautiful women, a wife who develops her own will and personality after his imagination gives her life. He also begins to experiment with the idea of referring to himself in the singular instead of the plural, thinking this will give new dimension to their relationship. When it fails, Jodha the imagined wife falls in his eyes and their relationship changes.

I'm not sure if I fully grasped the intention of the story. I followed the plot points. I know what happened. But I think I'm missing the undercurrent of meaning. Maybe I would be better at interpreting things if I'd kept studying English instead of switching to neuroscience (which may have been the most random choice in the history of the world, but I think it was a good one other than the fact that I can't understand Salman Rushdie).

However, despite feeling slightly out of the loop, this story is a delight in its writing. Rushdie's style is soothing and elegant, yet straightforward. His tone is that of a storyteller weaving magic words to paint a colorful picture. I had this same impression when I went to Borders and ended up buying The Satanic Verses - as I sat in the chair reading through the first chapter, I was slightly baffled by what was happening (two actors falling through the air, singing to each other? Say what??) but spellbound by the words. And for me, that is the best part of reading - the sheer magic brought by beautiful words. That is the most satisfying thing to devour - not the scandalous stories or the thrilling plot twists.

So while "The Shelter of the World" did not by any means lessen my anxiety about reading 600+ pages by Rushdie as opposed to just 8, it didn't turn me away either. My doubt about understanding everything he says is increased, but my security in knowing I will enjoy the book is equally increased. Now I just have to make the move to pick it up.

Reading Challenge

Well, I'm slowly making my way into the world of "book bloggers" and therefore have decided to participate in my first ever reading challenge. The challenge is to read books from your birth year. My choices are ...

Satanic Verse by Salman Rushdie. I have been wanting to read this one for awhile and was therefore happy to see that it was written in 1988!

The Alchemist by Paolo Coelho. My husband read this recently so I will have someone to talk it over with. :)

Lioness Rampant by Tamora Pierce. OK, confession on this one. I read it in middle school. But the ironic thing is, I have been thinking about that series lately and wanting to reread it. My friends all read the Alanna books together and obsessed over them - I remember learning "A Time For Us" on the piano and thinking it fit Alanna and Jonathan's lives so perfectly. Anyway, so I have an emotional attachment to this book. Must be because it was written in the year I was born.

Anyway, if I can get through one of these each month, I should be able to defeat the reading challenge by December. I'm excited because I win a book if I meet my goals. According to Hotchpot Cafe, who is hosting this challenge, it will be "a gently used trade paperback." But a free book is a free book, when you can't afford to buy anything because you are busy saving all your money for nursing books and dental school interviews.