Review of "Arabian Nights: Wonder Tales for the Boys and Girls," The Saalfield Publishing Company

Review of

Arabian Nights: Wonder Tales for the Boys and Girls, The Saalfield Publishing Company

Four out of five stars

 The complete set of “1001 Nights,” often called “The Arabian Nights,” is quite lengthy, it is a set of Middle Eastern folk tales compiled in Arabic during the era known as “the Islamic Golden Age.” Generally considered from the eighth to the fourteenth centuries. This book contains two of the best known of the stories in that collection and is written at the level of the child in the second or the third grade. The two stories are “Ali Baba, or the Forty Thieves” and “Aladdin.”

 The stories are told in a manner well in keeping with their original form. It is refreshing to read these familiar stories in a form that has not been heavily adapted to the western mind. I strongly recommend this book to parents that are interested in their children being exposed to the folk stories of other cultures. Teachers can also use the book to make important points regarding how stories can unfortunately be altered in moving from one culture to another.