Shame
Salman Rushdie · b. 1947 · India / England
Why it matters
Two entangled families, modeled loosely on Bhutto and Zia, act out honor, humiliation, and revenge in a hallucinatory Pakistan Rushdie insists is 'not quite' the real one. A ferocious political fable written in Midnight's Children's afterglow.
At a glance
magical realismsatirepolitical novel
Difficulty 7/10medium pace320 pagesNonlinear, essayistic digressions and a dense political allegory require tracking two intertwined family lines.
Where to go next
Salman Rushdie · 1981Midnight's ChildrenLvl 8Medium pace
Salman Rushdie · 1988The Satanic VersesLvl 9Slow burn
Salman Rushdie · 1990Haroun and the Sea of StoriesLvl 2Fast paced
Salman Rushdie · 1995The Moor's Last SighLvl 7Medium pace
Arundhati Roy · 1997The God of Small ThingsLvl 7Slow burn
Gabriel García Márquez · 1967One Hundred Years of SolitudeLvl 6Medium pace