Basically, this is a good story for all ages written by Salman Rushdie.

Rashid, the Shah of Blah, is a storyteller who has a 12-year old son called Haroun. The Shah of Blah loses his wife to a neighbour and his gift to tell stories. Haroun decides to restore his father’s gift of the gab and this book is the tale of what Rashid and Haroun do to bring this about. Someone is polluting the Sea of Stories and this has to be stopped.

Do you think this will happen, dear reader?

Along the way, Haroun and Rashid meet memorable characters, similar to those seen in a good pantomime, all of whom have amusing verbal tics. Step forward Butt the Hoopoe, Mali a floating gardener, and Iff the Water Genie. There are the bad guys too, the Chupwalas and their leader Khattam-Shud.

This is an amusing, clever, and smartly imaginative book, perhaps with a touch of smugness which means it doesn’t get 5 stars from me. This book is still recommended though.