"Huge, magical, realist epic about Indian Independence through the eyes of a child born on the stroke of midnight. Funny, dense, flowery, the story goes on huge tangents, but I love this crazy novel, which somehow manages to depict and sum up the essence of the incredible vast country of India. A real education for me as someone who grew up in London, who had never been to India while growing up. This book helped me better understand what my parents had been through, where they came from before they chose to travel across the world to settle in the the U.K., where I was born."

"Rushdie combines historical reality and mythical fiction to deliver a magnificent and magical account of India’s transition to independence and partition. It tells the story of a young man born along with hundreds of others at the very moment India becomes independent and through these new lives come hopes, dreams, curses and complication."

"Before that, I read a book called The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. I go to bookstores when I’m in London or America. I get a coffee and keep browsing for hours—something I can’t do in India. I come back home with a bagful of books. I’m always stopped at customs as they think I’m carrying some heavy electronic items!"