"The Eleventh Hour" | Reviewed by William Winkler

Indian-born British/American author Salman Rushdie’s extensive literary output is best known for his 1988 Novel “The Satanic Verses,” whose depiction of the prophet Mohammed was deemed blasphemous by some Islamic authorities and led to a call for his assassination by the supreme ruler of Iran. For years Rushdie lived in seclusion under an assumed name.

In 2022, after his return to the public, Rushdie was attacked during a presentation, costing him the use of his right eye and one of his hands. The literary result of this attack, published in 2024, dealt with his ruminations on end-of-life issues, issues that are the basis of his latest collection of stories, “The Eleventh Hour.”

This collection of five stories examines death as a natural consequence of life.

In The South describes the relationship between two aging neighbors, days apart in age, and the consequences of the death of one of the pair. The Musician of Kahani tells of the life of a preternaturally gifted musician, its impact on her life, and the in utero death of her only child.

Late, the book’s most imaginative tale, introduces us to a British academic who, after the immensely successful publication of his only novel, retreats to a life of obscurity behind the walls of an obscure British college. Oklahoma introduces us to a character who confronts himself as an aged version of his younger self. The Old Man in the Piazza offers Rushdie’s view on how a language’s evolution reflects the changes and decay in the society around it.

This collection of stories exhibits, to varying degrees, Rushdie’s dependence on the genre of magical realism. Each is set in a real, identifiable world, and each leads the reader into acceptance of circumstances beyond what might be expected in those worlds.

“The Eleventh Hour” is a worthy addition to Salman Rushdie’s literary output, It will provide the reader with a satisfying look into the author’s perspective on his life and the life of others.

Buy the Book.