Salman Rushdie’s novel “The Satanic Verses” was propelled to the top of multiple Amazon bestseller lists, just days after the world-renowned author was stabbed in western New York.
Rushdie has faced death threats for more than three decades over his 1988 novel, whose depiction of the Prophet Muhammad was viewed as blasphemous by some conservative Muslims.
Since Friday’s attack at the Chautauqua Institute in Chautauqua, NY, Rushdie’s most famous tome topped Amazon’s Contemporary Literature & Fiction list, was the second bestseller in both the Politics & Social Science and the Self-Help & Psychology Humor categories, and came in at No 3 on the Fiction Satire list.
As of Tuesday morning, “The Satanic Verses” was the 26th best-selling book on Amazon’s US website overall.
The depiction of the Prophet Muhammad in 1988’s “The Satanic Verses” was viewed as blasphemous by some Muslims. Getty ImagesAnd the audiobook version of “The Satanic Verses” was the seventh best-seller in Amazon’s Audible store.
Prior to Rushdie’s stabbing, his books did not even make the top 100 list on the online platform, reported CNBC, citing the famed novelist’s archived Amazon page that was obtained by Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine.
Some of Rushdie’s other notable works also have been selling well, including the 2012 book “Joseph Anton: A Memoir,” which topped Amazon’s Religious Intolerance list.
His 1981 novel “Midnight’s Children,” which predated “The Satanic Verses,” was the second bestseller in the Asian Myth & Legend category.
In 1989, Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa, or Islamic edict, ordering Muslims to kill Rushdie over “The Satanic Verses.”
Rushdie’s 2012 book “Joseph Anton: A Memoir” topped Amazon’s Religious Intolerance list. Getty ImagesRushdie had a $3 million bounty on his head and spent a decade living in hiding.
While Iran has not focused on Rushdie in recent years, the fatwa still stands — even though reformist President Mohammad Khatami’s foreign minister in 1998 said that the “government disassociates itself from any reward which has been offered in this regard and does not support it.”
Rushdie was hospitalized in critical condition on Friday after being stabbed 10 times, including in the face, neck and chest, while preparing to deliver a lecture. A prosecutor said in court the author could lose his right eye.
Rushdie, 75, was stabbed on Friday while preparing to deliver a lecture at the Chautauqua Institute in western New York. AP
Hadi Matar, 24, from New Jersey, has been charged with attempted murder and assault. APHe underwent emergency surgery on Saturday and was taken off a ventilator the following day.
A law enforcement official told CNN on Monday Rushdie was conscious and “articulate” while talking to investigators from his hospital bed.
A New Jersey man, 24-year-old Hadi Matar, has been arrested and charged with counts of attempted murder and assault, to which he pleaded not guilty.






