Towering novel, charting the story of the main narrator, Saleem Sinai and the formation and early history of India and Pakistan following partition in 1948. This is a book which needs a level of immersion, although despite the narrative tricks and freewheeling scenes and relationships between characters, it’s not overly smart or tricksy. So, a great balance in a tome which punches a huge emotional and political weight, while taking the reader on a life journey, both of the main character, the other ‘children’ of the title and the sub-continent. Richly rewarding.