This book won the "Best of the Bookers" prize in 2007. In other words it was judged the best book to have ever won the Booker Prize in history. To be honest I found it really hard to get into. It's the kind of book I would definitely want to reread because I know there are things I have missed that I will get the next time around; like an intricate painting it's the kind of thing that needs looking at more than once for true appreciation.
The story documents the life of Saleem and more widely his family. It is told from his viewpoint and begins with his ancestry before passing onto his birth and finally his life. Saleem is born at midnight on the day Pakistan was formed and India became independent from Britain. His picture is put in the paper and he receives a letter from the Prime Minister as the first child born on this auspicious date. Later in his life he discovers several children born between 12 and 1 on this date who he seems to have a mysterious connection to.
The imagery in this book is absolutely amazing. Woven through a time of extraordinary upheaval in India and Pakistan; Saleem sets himself impossible goals throughout the book and blames his and other misfortunes solely on himself. While his character is sad in this way, other facets of him add humour to the book.
I don't really feel I'm doing this book justice. At the moment I'm going to say I don't quite understand it and it will have to wait for another read.
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