Customer Reviews

The Arabian Nights: Their Best-Known Tales

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This version of "The Arabian Nights" is a compilation of ten of the most popular of the stories contained in the original"Tales of a Thousand and One Nights". The original contains two hundred and sixty-four stories. A lovely touch to the Barnes and Noble edition is that they include eight illustrations by Maxfield Parrish. While these stories have been the subject of movies for children, the vocabulary is not exactly for children in the language in the book. The original stories were translated from Arabic into French by M. Galland, a Professor of Arabic in Paris, and then from French into English in several editions. The first manuscript is from 1450 or earlier and the French translation in 1704 became instantly popular. The flights of fantasy are absolutely spectacular and cannot be reproduced in movies as well as the words can do in the readers own brain. Castles, jewels, strange beasts, cannibals, powerful kings and queens and lovely men and women fill the stories that take place in China, India, Persia, Arabia, and on various islands nearby. The Barnes and Noble edition from 1993 contains the following tales: The Talking Bird, The Fisherman and the Genie, The Young King of the Black Isles, Gulnare of the Sea, Aladdin, Prince Agib, The City of Brass, Ali Baba, Codadad, and Sinbad. They are wild exotic stories, that are fun for adults to read also.

I purchased this book wanting an inexpensive edition of the Arabian Nights. When I saw this edition was illustrated by Maxfield Parrish, I knew this would be a good one. Unfortunately, I can't shake the feeling that I am missing something in this edition.

I know that this is not the full collection of tales. I was disappointed that the editors didn't give us much of the framework that the original was set. There are only ten stories here, and they are not really linked together at all. It is more like reading an anthology than reading a coherent piece of literary work.

I also felt that something was missing in the translations. Although Allah is mentioned, they typically refer to God. Whether this is what the originals stated or if this is how it was translated by western scholars, I don't know.

When I saw this was illustrated by Parrish, I had images of his work throughout the book. Unfortunately, they are grouped together in a couple places with a small quote from the story they represent. Some of the pictures seem like they were created for something else, but looked close enough to work. Although the art is good, it doesn't fit into the book very well.

The flights of fancy are fun and this would be appropriate for children. I don't think adult readers would want this one.

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.

While looking through the list of books on mythology, I couldn't help but notice a number of books containing "Arabian Nights" in the title. I hate to burst the bubble of anyone who plans to read this book, but I can tell you immediately that these are not the tales of the Arabian Nights. Aladdin was a character added completely from the mind of a French "translator," and Ali Baba and Sinbad are not included in the orignal Arabian Nights. If you want a decent copy of the stories, look for Haddaway's translation. If you want a version of the story appropriate for children, tone down the sex and violence, but please stay true to the story!

I enjoyed this book, it was actually given to me when I was a child but I didn't get around to reading it until now (I'm 20). I am in college so I make it a point to read classics and it can be kind of stressful because I am trying to get as much as I can out the books. So to me The Arabian Nights was a break from all the pressure.

The only thing that bothered me was that the endings were pretty much the same in all the stories and that is that the main characters all lived happily ever after to ripe old ages.