The Rushdie Affair: The Novel, the Ayatollah, and the West
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Author | Daniel Pipes |
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Language | English |
Subject | Islam |
Publication date | 1990 |
Publication place | United States |
Media type | Print (Hardcover and Paperback) |
ISBN | 1412838819 |
The Rushdie Affair: The Novel, the Ayatollah, and the West is a book written by historian Daniel Pipes, published in 1990 by Birch Lane. It focuses on events surrounding The Satanic Verses. The afterword was written by Koenraad Elst. The paperback edition was released by Voice of India in 1998.
The first part of the book describes The Satanic Verses and Ayatollah Khomeini's edict, explaining why Rushdie's book became a controversy. The second part describes responses to the text and criticizes censorship of the book in some countries.[1] The book's publication was delayed after the original publisher, Basic Books, dropped it due to seeming "commercially unviable".[2][3]
Reception
[edit]![]() | This article may be unbalanced toward certain viewpoints. (April 2025) |
Edward Mortimer of The New York Times called the book "an extremely well-written and clear analysis of the issues raised".[4] The book was also described as "lucid, balanced, often startling and ultimately convincing analysis"[5] and of "primary importance" in the broader conversation of the topic.[6] Amir Taheri of the LA Times praised Pipes for clearly communicating his own views rather than attempting to seem unbiased.[1] The book was roundly considered to be a balanced understanding of the topic from multiple angles.[7][8] François Dupuis-Déri of Columbia University wrote that Pipes' book can be understood in the neoconservative idea of clash of civilizations.[9]
Emilie Réné argued that Pipes' essay "suffers from oversimplification".[10]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Taheri, Amir (1990-05-13). "The man who sent signals to Satan". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California, US. p. 4. Retrieved 2025-04-12 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Rushdie affair subject". The Anniston Star. Anniston, Alabama, US. 1989-08-27. p. 48. Retrieved 2025-04-12 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Altbach, Philip G. (1990-07-22). "Many actors played in a drama writ large". The Buffalo News. Buffalo, New York, US. p. 106. Retrieved 2025-04-12 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Mortimer, Edward (22 July 1990). "Satanic Verses: The Aftermath". The New York Times. Retrieved 20 May 2014.
- ^ Caldwell, Mark (1990-05-13). "Understanding the Rushdie uproar". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US. p. 85-86. Retrieved 2025-04-12 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Stein, Gordon (1990-04-01). "There has been a sudden deluge of books...". Library Journal. Vol. 115, no. 6. pp. 115–116 – via EBSCO.
- ^ Hunt, Marvin (1990-07-01). "A novel and a world crisis". The News and Observer. Raleigh, North Carolina, US. p. 138. Retrieved 2025-04-12 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Kleiner, Dick (1990-07-14). "Scholar gives 'Satanic' furor its due". The Desert Sun. Palm Springs, California, US. p. 85. Retrieved 2025-04-12 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ Dupuis-Déri, François (1997). "L'affaire Salman Rushdie symptôme d'un " Clash of Civilizations " ?" [Is the Salman Rushdie Affair a Symptom of a "Clash of Civilizations"?]. Études internationales (in French). 28 (1): 28. doi:10.7202/703706ar.
- ^ René, Emilie (1997). "L'"affaire Rushdie". Protestation mondiale et communauté d'interprétation" [The Rushdie Affair: Global Protest and Community of Interpretation] (PDF). Les Cahiers du CERI (in French). 18.