Ésta es la historia de Saleem Sinai, nacido en Bombay al filo de la medianoche del 15 de agosto de 1947, en el momento mismo en que la India, entre fuegos artificiales y multitudes, alcanza su independencia. El destino de Saleem queda inexorablemente unido al de su país, y sus peripecias personales reflejarán siempre la evolución política de la India o serán reflejadas por ella. Es la historia de un hombre dotado de facultades insólitas pero también la de una generación y la de una familia, lo que la convierte en un retrato completo de toda una época y una cultura.

Great store, I liked the narrator for the audiobook (Lyndam Gregory) ( )

I don't know enough about the history of India to fully appreciate this, but the story was fascinating. I never knew what to expect next, and there were so many turns and beautiful characters. However, with an unreliable narrator and incoherent ending, I was left a bit lost as to what *actually* happened (which, I suppose, is the whole point...). For a book of its size (it's a big boy), I certainly never grew tired or frustrated with the story. ( )

Why 3 stars for what is widely considered a masterpiece? My ratings are based on personal enjoyment not perceived literary merit. While I can see the rationale for the acclaim it has received, it was not a particularly enjoyable reading experience.

Saleem Sinai is born at the moment of India’s independence, the stroke of midnight of August 15, 1947. The title comes from the one thousand other children born on the same day. Saleem can telepathically communicate with these other children. He believes his actions directly impact the course of India’s development as a nation. Now, whether or not he is delusional, or this is really the case is a matter for the reader’s interpretation. He is either a mirror or a megalomaniac. It is, after all, written in the style of magical realism. Rushdie’s writing is erudite and, in this case, filled with long flowing sentences and an almost frenetic pacing.

Protagonist Saleem tells one story after another. I did not count them but would not be surprised if they total 1001. He tells us these stories are true, with one notable exception. He covers a great deal of India’s history, along with his family’s history. While I was somewhat familiar with the general progression of India’s post-independence events, I had to look up a good number of names and places. It took me a long time to read, not solely due to its length, almost 700 pages.

I found it compelling enough to never be tempted to give up, but it was a chore. I have read other books by Rushdie, which I much prefer to this one, probably due to the fact that I enjoy more straight-forward storytelling. My personal favorite fiction that tells a story of India’s 20th century history remains A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry.
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Rich, layered, extremely well-written, Midnight's Children is an intricate and ambitious novel that intertwines a childhood with India's history. Rushdie's writing is lush and dense, often meandering, and sometimes a difficult read, but very worth the time. I felt as if every word was carefully chosen, his sentences finely crafted to perfectly contain the meanings and subtleties he intended. It's very challenging to read, as the narrator often makes references to people, places, things, that haven't come up in the story yet, and Rushdie's obsessive attention to detail meant it became difficult at times to keep track of all the things that had happened. It was a great read and definitely worth rereading (think of all the details you might have missed the first time!) and I only wish I knew more about India's history and politics so I can appreciate Rushdie's genius more.

One thing I found interesting: The copy I read had an introduction written by the author in 2005, 25 years after the novel was first published, and in it he notes that Westerners seem to approach the novel more as a fantasy whereas Indians say it's very realistic. ( )