Salman Rushdie wrote one of my favorite novels of all time: Haroun and the Sea of Stories. So when I found out that he had written a sequel, Luka and the Fire of Life, I just had to check it out. And what I mean by “check it out” is that I bought it as soon as I saw it.
I found that this novel was very similar to its prequel. So similar, in fact, that I was a little disappointed. For all intents and purposes, it’s the same story. Like it’s predecessor, Luka and the Fire of Life introduces Rashid Kahalifa, an eccentric storyteller, and centers around one of his sons and his journey into the World of Magic. This novel’s protagonist is Rashid’s youngest son, Luka. Rushdie often reminds his readers that the importance of storytelling is the main idea behind this novel, such as when he writes “…Man is the Storytelling Animal,” and “Man alone burns with books” (34). This theme is one of the reasons I like Rushdie’s stories.