Victory City

I will probably defend Salman Rushdie's position as the greatest living novelist as long as he (or I) lives. As usual, I am not as enthused by his current novel as I was by "The Satanic Verses", but this is still an amazing piece of art. I am not sure whether I have come across one of his novels with as central a protagonist as Pampa Kampana is here. She is not only the protagonist but also the de-facto claimed author of the story. Most other character are defined by their relationships with her - she is the mother of her daughters, lover to several men, and creator of a while society, and it is this mix of almost omnipotence and vulnerability that makes her such a rich character. That is not a new recipe of course - every good superhero story has the same characteristics - but Rushdie is so layered that this does not feel like a retread of a formulaic plot. Of course, Rushdie uses elements of myth here, which also makes it likely for characters to be predominantly good or evil - and yet the villains get a decent amount of humanity as well - they are not evil for the same of it but do have their motivations, which usually extend beyond hunger for power. This is certainly one of favorite reads of 2023.