I absolutely loved this book. I think it is quite unfortunate that this book is infamous while at the same time has gone unread by so many. Also I think it is unfortunate that the demographic that have the greatest chance of understanding and appreciating the book, are those who are more likely to be offended by this book.This book with its cultural and religious references and allegories alone, cannot be understood by anyone. The characters, the spelling, the sentence structures that don't meet standards of English grammar a lot of it doesn't make much sense when someone expects literature written in English should follow the English or American standards. And it seems like from a Western perspective, just knowing about Indians from a stereotypical standpoint like the Simpson's Apu, or Big Bang Theory's Raj, simply aren't enough to understand where this book is coming from. It is writing as an Indian perspective, not a perspective of Indians from the outside which is why I think this book is not enjoyable for so many.Also, coming into this book with only the knowledge that it offended some Muslims and Indians, I was pleasantly surprised that it was so much more. It was whimsical, witty, absurd, profound, thought provoking, and touched on subjects that sadly the controversy about the religious references overshadowed. The topics of cultural roots, self identification, racism, how some cultures treat and disregard immigrants, and the irony of seeking justices and acceptance for one's self while being stubborn to give it to others.It seemed to me that this book was in a related vein as the Monty Python movie, Life of Brian, but with darker humor, encompassing many more themes, and was more introspective.I can understand why some people are offended with this book, but at the same time, many times the tone of it doesn't seem to lend it self to being taken so seriously so the fatwa seems a little over the top. But I can also see why it was banned in India.I will definitely read this again and again. It seems like is just filled with buried treasure waiting for me to uncover and analyze. However, I don't think that I would recommend this book to many people, unless I think that they can understand the cultural and religious perspective that this book has.
