Context

For the second portion of my project I have selected the book Haroun and the Sea of Stories by Salman Rushdie. This book is about a young boy named Haroun Khalifa who is the son of a storyteller. His father can no longer tell stories the way he used to, which leads to Haroun trying to find out why this change has occurred. This leads Haroun on an adventure into a strange world that revolves around the telling of stories. The land is in danger of being destroyed by Khattam-Shud, who wants to destroy the Ocean of the Streams of Story. This is where all of the stories come from, and the world could not exist in the same way without them. Haroun and his new friends work together to defeat Khattam-Shud and save the ocean from destruction.

I chose this book because I felt like it would fit well into the world of electronic literature. This book is unlike anything I have ever read, and it entices and confuses the reader at the same time. This is what I think electronic literature is meant for, because using technology allows for greater understanding of a text that would normally be difficult to read. The text itself isn't difficult, but the underlying messages and the strange words make it harder to read than a standard novel. Rushdie packs the novel full of references to real life events, but this can go unnoticed by the reader if they are not watching for such references. I read this book while taking a class in world literature, and my professor did a good job of explaining all of the references embedded in the story. While the text was entertaining in and of itself, I enjoyed it much more when I understood what the real life places and events hinted at in the story were.

I think this book is a great example of how the different memos presented by Calvino can be incorporated into literature. Rushdie uses different techniques of delivery than other writers, and is able to hold the attention of the reader. This book is the only one I could think of that can relate to each one of Calvino's memos in some way. The book's close resemblance to Calvino's memos, the ease with which it could be incorporated into electronic literature, and the personal connections that I made with the book are all reasons why I chose this book for the second half of my project.