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avicos's review against another edition
4.0
There's a growing complexity in this collection. Divided into three parts with three stories in each part. The 'East' section serves the simple stories of Indian life tinged with some fantastical elements here and there. The 'West' section offers stories of westerly grandeur, plunging into history and conjuring up a stories from there. Here magical realism, his signature, comes into play. There's an adjustment period that is needed, coming off of the simplicity of Indian stories, but the reader gets acquainted soon enough. The prose has a flow to it that makes it easy to read; like the stories are tightly stitched. Then the final section: 'East, West' blends people from East and the people from West and so through this diversity, the stories have more grandeur than ever. The meaning being that the marriage of these worlds will make wonders. This is a very tight and precise story collection.
danikass's review against another edition
5.0
I skipped Yorick because my Shakespeare knowledge is pathetic and I didn't love Chekov and Zulu, but the rest is absolutely incredible — especially The Harmony of the Spheres.
thesearethebooks's review against another edition
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
pithingcontest's review against another edition
3.25
[6.5/10] Pretty hit or miss for me. They're all objectively well-done and interesting; purely in terms of my enjoyment, I think more of them were a solid shrug & a nod than were an enthusiastic two thumbs up. There are definitely some great lines in all of them, though! Favorites: "Christopher Columbus and Queen Isabella of Spain Consummate Their Relationship", "The Harmony of the Spheres", and "At The Auction of the Ruby Slippers"
nadinekc's review against another edition
5.0
Rushdie is one of my favorite authors, but I've never read any of his short stories. Happy to say he's at the top of his game here. He's my Wizard of Words - five words into anything he writes and I'm ensorcelled. The stories in the first two sections (East and West) were previously published elsewhere, but the three stories in the third section, 'East,West' are original and two of them were my favorites - Chekov and Zulu, which improbably and brilliantly weaves together Star Trek and the assassination of Indira Ghandi, and The Courter, which is funny/tender - a combo that can so easily turn into treacle, but doesn't.
pzp72's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
3.75
Some stories were great while others were quite forgettable.
tink_'s review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
gonza_basta's review against another edition
4.0
Very good short stories about the east, the west and all the people in the middle. Just to show that even if the context are different, people are all the same.
Brevi storie sull'est, sull'ovest e tutte le persone che si trovano in mezzo. Il modo giusto per mostrare che, anche se il contesto é differente, le persone sono sempre le stesse.
Brevi storie sull'est, sull'ovest e tutte le persone che si trovano in mezzo. Il modo giusto per mostrare che, anche se il contesto é differente, le persone sono sempre le stesse.
mudder91's review against another edition
3.0
I really enjoyed the selections I read for my World Literature class.
shonisauro's review against another edition
3.0
I don't normally enjoy short stories but most of these kept my interest. I didn't really get the one about Yorick but that may be because I've never read/seen Hamlet..