Customer Reviews

The Hundredth Name

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I'm ordering this book to use at a summer school for Baha'i children. Baha'is believe that we know the Hundreth Name which is also the Greatest Name of God and we often call ourselves the Community of the Greatest Name. To find this book in our local library was a gift. It is such a generous view of an Islamic family and shows much love between a father and son. It will be very popular story with my children.

I wish the author had done his research - his description of Muslim prayer is wrong; he is geographically inaccurate - Egyptian farmers do not use camels - they use donkeys and water buffalos. The story itself is lovely, showing warm relationships between father and son, and an admirable desire to be good to animals.

A touching story about a good father, his gentle son and a camel that is granted a reason to smile (It prompted me and the kids to look at pictures of camels afterwards to see if they really do look like they are smiling. It's like one of those "How the zebra got its stripes" book). I'm not a Muslim (this was required school reading), but I rate the book due to the good example shown for children that a father is praying to God and that his young son follows suit out of love for his beloved camel. Being a city dwelling nature lover, I also like the pictures of simple and happy village life.

My daughter and I loved this tale about a boy and his camel. This could be a good book for both an English-speaking Muslim-American child or a non-Muslim looking for ethnic and international flavor to add to a book shelf. For the younger set, the book is just long enough and interesting enough to hold them to the very end and not too long that the adult tires of reading. For an early reader it might be a challenge, but certainly appropriate for a 3rd-4th grade independent reader. What fun!

I found this book in a public school library. What a travesty that our children can be presented with stories that praise the name of Allah in prayer, yet cannot find one book about praising the name of Jesus Christ. If separation between church and state exists at all, then it should exist for all faiths, not just the Christian faith. Either all or none my friends! Sadly, this book was paid for by federal tax dollars as a part of a Title I public school library. Where's the uproar we hear anytime the name of Jesus is mentioned? Our federal tax dollars at work!