A romantic tale that, as sheer gripping entertainment, bears comparison with the finest in any age or country. Described in the Qur'an as "the most beautiful of stories," the romance of Yusuf and Zulaikha is a theme to which Eastern poets have constantly returned. Undoubtedly in Jami's deeply moving and thought-provoking version it finds its finest expression.
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Editorial Reviews
Language Notes
Text: English, Persian (translation)
From the Publisher
Written by the great Sufi poet in 1483 A.D., this masterpiece explores the intimate and many-leveled relationship between love and beauty and portrays erotic and divine love, not as irreconcilably opposite to each other, but as an allegorical continuum.
Judaic, Christian and Islamic versions exist--derived perhaps from an ancient Egyptian source--but none could replace Jami’s rendering. David Pendlebury’s prose translation reaches for the kernel, not merely the husk, of this allegory. But while it does so, there is also humor, excitement, romance and an abundance of insight into human behavior.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Pleasing translation of a Sufi classic love story,
This review is from: Yusuf and Zulaikha (Hardcover)
Pendlebury has taken a classical Persian poem and turned it into a highly readable novel. The poem is based on a story from Islamic folklore, which is itself based on the chapter about Joseph in the Quran. It takes off from the part of the story where the master's wife tries to seduce Joseph and tells "the story behind the story." Zulaikha is the name Islamic folklore gives to the master's wife (known as Potiphar's wife in the Bible). This Sufi classic humanizes her and makes us more sympathetic to her desire. I have used this book semester after semester in my courses on the literature of the Middle East. My students mostly find it delightful, after they get used to the way the Persian poet revels in piling metaphor upon metaphor, hyperbole upon hyperbole. I tell them not to expect realism; we are in the realm of the mythical here, where every maiden is a "moon-faced beauty" and every pair of pursed lips is "tight as a rosebud."
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent,
By A Customer
This review is from: Yusuf and Zulaikha (Hardcover)
One of the best explorations into the mysteries of the divine. A truly excellent read, let down only in one place where the translator was obviously limited by the english language. A heart moving story for all generations.
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