The Satanic Verses
The Satanic Verses is Salman Rushdie's fourth novel, first published September 26, 1988 and inspired in part by the life of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. As with his previous books, Rushdie used magical realism and relied on contemporary events and people to create his characters. The title refers to the satanic verses, a group of Quranic verses that refer to three pagan Meccan goddesses: Allāt, Uzza, and Manāt. The part of the story that deals with the "satanic verses" was based on accounts from the historians al-Waqidi and al-Tabari. In the United Kingdom, The Satanic Verses received positive reviews, was a 1988 Booker Prize finalist (losing to Peter Carey's Oscar and Lucinda) and won the 1988 Whitbread Award for novel of the year.
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When an Air India 747 explodes over the English Channel, Bombay film star Gibreel Farishta and voice actor Saladin Chamcha fall toward the coast and survive, one with a halo and one with growing horns. The novel braids their London with dream sequences set in Jahilia, modeled on early Mecca.
The Satanic Verses (1988) was condemned as blasphemous by some Muslims for its fictional treatment of episodes from early Islamic history. Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini issued a 1989 fatwa calling for Salman Rushdie's death; the book has been banned in many countries.
Yes. After living in hiding for years following the 1989 fatwa, Salman Rushdie was attacked on stage in Chautauqua, New York in 2022. He survived but lost an eye. His memoir Knife (2024) addresses the attack.
The Satanic Verses was written by Salman Rushdie, published in 1988 by btb.
The Satanic Verses is 560 pages in standard print editions, though page counts vary slightly between hardcover, paperback, and large-print formats.
At an average reading pace of about 250 words per minute, The Satanic Verses takes most readers 8 to 12 hours to finish.
The Satanic Verses is a standalone novel by Salman Rushdie, not part of a series.
The Satanic Verses is available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats from Amazon, Bookshop.org, ThriftBooks, and most major bookstores.
