Aug 17, 2011

#TheList, No. 662: Haroun and the Sea of Stories

I was obligated to read this for two reasons: 1) my boss bought it for me for Christmas; and 2) it's on the List.  After almost 8 months of my boss asking me if I'd read the book yet, I decided it was time to cross it off my "to read" list that never seems to decrease.

Salman Rushdie apparently wrote this story for his son, which is sweet. My boss told me this every time he asked if I read it, so I'm obligated to mention it.  I wonder if he's reading this.  I shall ask him.  

I'm also currently suffering from the Plague right now and don't have the ability to continue writing complete sentences.  Consequently, I'm going to make a list of  what could be fragments that may or may not mean anything. Ready, set, go!

What's up with Haroun?
-It's about a boy who has a dad who makes up stories that make people happy, but then he loses the ability and people aren't happy anymore.  That mirrored my experience reading it...I started out happy and then it went away.
-Sarcastic, reminds me of a strange mix between The Princess Bride and Hitchhiker's Guide
-I liked it a lot initially, but it gets muddled about 3/4 of the way through and way too much is added to tie things together.
-As such, it starts out as a book to read aloud, but then becomes too crazy.  If I were reading it aloud, I'd do the thing where you make up your own ending.
-The tone is pretty funny, but the story is kind of blah
-Nothing about it was memorable after the first few chapters
-I'd use an excerpt from the beginning to tie it into a storytelling lesson, if need be. Otherwise, it could be useful for someone doing a cultural project on India.

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