Amid thunderous applause, Salman Rushdie took to the stage. There was a standing ovation for the author who narrowly survived an assassination attempt in 2022 and has been under heavy police protection ever since.

But as he gave a talk at the LIT:potsdam literary festival, just outside of Berlin, he played the entertainer, dazzling with witty anecdotes and admitting he hasn't lost his optimism. "It's a kind of stupidity," he said. "My friends make fun of me for the reason […] that there's very little in the world to be hopeful about right now. But I persist."

At the event on March 19, Rushdie discussed his latest book, a collection of stories.…