What is Salman Rushdie's most famous novel?
Midnight's Children (1981) is Rushdie's most celebrated novel. It won the Booker Prize in 1981 and was later chosen as the best of all Booker winners in both 1993 and 2008.
Questions about Salman Rushdie
Short answers, pulled from the story.
Why was a fatwa issued against Salman Rushdie?
On the 14th of February 1989, Ayatollah Khomeini issued a fatwa calling for Rushdie's execution after the publication of The Satanic Verses (1988), which was seen by some as an irreverent depiction of the Prophet Muhammad. The book was banned in 20 countries.
What happened to Salman Rushdie at Chautauqua in 2022?
On the 12th of August 2022, Rushdie was stabbed repeatedly on stage at the Chautauqua Institution in New York by Hadi Matar, who was 24 years old and from Fairview, New Jersey. Rushdie lost sight in one eye and the use of one hand. Matar was sentenced to 25 years in prison in May 2025.
What did Salman Rushdie write about the 2022 stabbing?
Rushdie published Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder in April 2024. The memoir reached number one on the Sunday Times Bestsellers List and was a finalist for the 2024 National Book Award for Nonfiction. In it, Rushdie holds fictional conversations with the attacker, referred to only as "A."
How many times has Salman Rushdie been shortlisted for the Booker Prize?
Rushdie has been shortlisted for the Booker Prize five times: in 1981 for Midnight's Children, 1983 for Shame, 1988 for The Satanic Verses, 1995 for The Moor's Last Sigh, and 2019 for Quichotte. He won the prize in 1981.
When was Salman Rushdie knighted?
Rushdie was knighted on the 16th of June 2007 in the Queen's Birthday Honours for services to literature. The honour prompted formal protests from several countries with Muslim majorities, including Iran and Pakistan.