Salman Rushdie’s 1990 novel Haroun and the Sea of Stories is a joy, and an excellent book for both children and adults, though a fairly little-known one in the US. Its wordplay, play with lots of genres and literary traditions, and playful approach to characters and creatures and imagery are all just delightful. Its reflections on where stories come from and why they’re important are insightful and sometimes downright beautiful.
I love this part (spoken by a Water Genie, of course):
I am having my time wasted by a Disconnector Thief who will not trust in what he can’t see. How much have you seen, eh, Thieflet? Africa, have you seen it? No? Then is it truly there? And submarines? Huh? Also hailstones, baseballs, pagodas? Goldmines? Kangaroos, Mount Fujiyama, the North Pole? And the past, did it happen? And the future, will it come? Believe in your own eyes and you’ll get into a lot of trouble, hot water, a mess. (63)
Try it–you might like it!
[image credit: photo by G. Christopher Clark, made available under Creative Commons license]
Where do stories come from?: Haroun and the Sea of Stories
I love this part (spoken by a Water Genie, of course):
Try it–you might like it!
[image credit: photo by G. Christopher Clark, made available under Creative Commons license]