The Arabian Nights: Arabian Nights - Their Best-known Tales

click here for more details, find new or used items	Our price £11.87 (£13.19) New from £9.25 Used from £9.25 Pages: 368 (Hardcover) Reading Level: Ages 9-12 ISBN: 0684195895 Pub: Simon & Schuster Pub date: 1993-10-31 Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 627672

Reader Reviews:

charming but dated version of timeless tales (0/0 people found this helpful)

First published in 1909, this version of these magical tales suffers a bit from the moralism and prudery of the times. For example, in place of the original theme that Fate that can topple the mighty and favor the lowly -- the so-called Arabic fatalism in which all things are the will of Allah -- the Wiggins' have put stern lessons about the perils of dissipation and lack of constant virtue. Of course the sex is totally missing, which may be quite appropriate for an edition intended for children.

Otherwise, I would have to say that almost all the magic, wonder, and adventure that are associated with the 1,001 Nights are to be found herein. The Maxfield Parish paintings are wonderful.

One of the most dissapointing elements is the decision to not include the "frame story" about Sheherizade telling these tales over the fabled 1,001 nights. Also much reduced is the constant use of tales-within-tales, a hallmark of the Arabian Nights collection. Both these changes tend to simplify the book, perhaps in a way that will make it more accessible and less confusing to young readers. But, then, this is hardly the book for young readers who do not like a challenge, especially since the tales are complex and the turn of the century diction relies upon a lot of outdated words and word usage.

Personaly, this edition is most fascinating as a glimpse into our own culture's past -- to see how we viewed the exoticism of the East during an era of our own relative innocence.

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