In the eyes of many of my evangelical neighbors, my family - Roman Catholics - might not have been in active league with the Devil, but were certainly headed to his abode. A typical Saturday would feature 10 or 12 of these transactions, all duly noted in our ledger: "Sold Blackmail 50¢, bought Moment of Madness 25¢." Otherwise, I tended the silence. Our only business was selling Harlequin romances for 50 cents and buying them back for 25. The bookstore appealed to my sense of the greater good - as well as my intellectual vanity.Īnd it wasn't hard work. I was informed I'd be working Saturdays, mostly by myself. So when my stepmother opened our town's first bookstore I was amazed by one book in particular: an infernal red and black volume called The Satanic Verses.Īs was common with my stepmother's many schemes, business and otherwise, I was quickly dragged in for cheap labor. His worshippers - it was honestly believed and confidently proclaimed - lived among us. He possessed otherwise good people's bodies and brought them to sin. He whispered backwards on our rock albums. In 1980s Arkansas, one concern trumped all others: Satan. Your purchase helps support NPR programming. Close overlay Buy Featured Book Title The Satanic Verses Author Salman Rushdie
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