RUSHDIE SALMAN: (1947- ) British Indian Novelist & Essayist.

RUSHDIE SALMAN: (1947- ) British Indian Novelist & Essayist.
An interesting A.L.S., Salman Rushdie, three pages, 8vo, Fernshaw Road, London (the premises of his literacy agency, Wylie, Aitken & Stone), 2nd November 1992, to Ernst Reinhard Piper. Rushdie thanks his correspondent for their help 'in Artikel 19 Verlag' and at the Frankfurt Bookfair and 'also for your expressions of solidarity and hope for the future', continuing 'As it turned out, it was probably a mistake to have moved to Kiepenheuer [& Witsch, the German publishing house] with The Satanic Verses; but that is what I was advised at the time, and there is no point in trying to rewrite the past'. Rushdie also apologises to Piper for his decision, realising that he was hurt by it, and remarks 'But, as of course you know, writers (and publishers) make such choices - good ones, bad ones - all the time'. The novelist concludes his letter writing 'At any rate, I am truly grateful for your selfless support, and hope we may meet again soon. In the meanwhile, the storm continues - now, as you may have seen, in Germany also. It is a long, tough fight, but it must be won'. With the publisher's ink received stamp dated 9th November 1992 to a clear area at the head of the first page. A letter of significant content. VGErnst Reinhard Piper (1952- ) German Historian who joined his father's publishing house in 1982.The German edition of The Satanic Verses was published by Artikel 19 Verlag in 1989; the publishers created specifically to protect them from the fatwa issued against Rushdie, Article 19 relating to the freedom of expression included in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.The 1981 Booker Prize winning Rushdie's work combines magical realism with historical fiction and much of his work is set on the Indian subcontinent. His fourth novel, The Satanic Verses, was the subject of a major controversy which resulted in the British government placing the author under police protection. In 2008 The Times ranked Rushdie thirteenth on its list of the 50 greatest British writers since 1945.