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Tales -- Arab countries Books
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The Thousand and One Nights, Vol. I. Commonly Called the Arabian Nights' Entertainments
"The Thousand and One Nights, Vol. I" by Lane, Lane-Poole, Poole, and Harvey is a collection of Middle Eastern folktales compiled during the Islamic Golden Age. A desperate king executes virgin brides each morning until clever Scheherazade saves herself through storytelling, weaving tales each night that end in cliffhangers. Her stories span historical tales, love stories, and adventures featuring jinn, sorcerers, and legendary places—each one buying her another day of life across one thousand and one nights.
Andrew Lang
The Arabian Nights Entertainments
"The Arabian Nights Entertainments" by Andrew Lang is a collection of fairy tales and folk stories compiled during the late 19th century. This work serves as an English translation of the classic tales of "The Arabian Nights," showcasing a variety of enchanting narratives that often involve themes of adventure, love, and moral lessons. The opening chapters introduce significant characters such as Sultan Schahriar and his clever wife, Scheherazade, who narrates the stories to survive the Sultan's deadly decree against women. The opening of the book sets the stage for the intriguing framework of Scheherazade's storytelling as a means of saving her own life and the lives of other women. As she volunteers to marry Sultan Schahriar, who has been executing his brides each day, she devises a clever plan to postpone her fate. Each night, she captivates the Sultan’s attention with an incomplete tale, leaving him curious for more. The first story she tells involves a merchant and a vengeful genius, unfolding into a sequence of stories that eventually weave into a larger narrative tapestry, each revealing the complexity of human nature and the whimsicality of fate.
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The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 04 (of 10)
"The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 04 (of 10)" by Richard Francis Burton is a translation published in 1888. This fourth volume continues Burton's complete, unexpurgated rendering of the Arabian Nights tales from the Islamic Golden Age. Burton's controversial work preserves the sexual content of the original stories through plain, literal translation, accompanied by his extensive scholarly notes on Eastern customs and sexuality. Published privately to circumvent Victorian obscenity laws, this translation remains both celebrated for its completeness and criticized for its archaic style and obsessive focus on erotic material.
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The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 01 (of 10)
"The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 01 (of 10)" by Richard Francis Burton is a translation published in 1888. Burton's complete and unexpurgated English rendering of the Arabian Nights preserves the sexual content that Victorian-era publishers removed. Printed privately to avoid obscenity laws, this controversial work features extensive footnotes on Oriental customs and sexuality. Burton's archaic language and personal scholarly obsessions have drawn both admiration and criticism, making this translation as notorious for its translator's eccentric approach as for the timeless tales it contains.
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The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 10 (of 10)
"The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 10 (of 10)" by Richard Francis Burton is a translation published in 1888. This final volume completes Burton's unexpurgated English translation of the Arabian Nights, featuring stories from the Islamic Golden Age. Burton's work includes extensive footnotes on Oriental customs and sexuality, which led to private publication to avoid Victorian obscenity laws. The volume contains his controversial "Terminal Essay," including a lengthy section on sexuality that sparked both admiration and criticism for its scholarly yet provocative approach.
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Supplemental Nights to the Book of the Thousand and One Nights — Volume 6 (of 6)
"The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 16" by Richard F. Burton is a collection of classic Arab tales, part of a larger body of works that were translated and adapted during the 19th century. This volume continues the enchanting stories that have captivated audiences for centuries, sharing tales of adventure, wisdom, and moral lessons. Central to these stories are figures like Haykar the Sage and the Caliph Harun Al-Rashid, who navigate intricate plots filled with intrigue and fantastical elements. The opening of this volume sets the stage with a translator's foreword that details the historical context of the tales, as well as the contributors and their intentions for the text. What follows is the "Say of Haykar the Sage," where we meet Haykar, a wise minister who faces trials due to the treachery of his nephew, Nadan. As the mentor to many, Haykar's wisdom is put to the test when Nadan plots against him for personal gain. The narrative promises a mix of lessons, moral dilemmas, and the consequences of one's actions, making it engaging for readers who appreciate tales of justice, retribution, and the ancient wisdom of the East.
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Supplemental Nights to the Book of the Thousand and One Nights — Volume 5 (of 6)
"Supplemental Nights to the Book of the Thousand and One Nights — Volume 5" by Richard Francis Burton is part of a translation series published between 1886-1888. This volume belongs to Burton's seven supplemental volumes that followed his original ten-volume translation of the Arabian Nights. Burton's work stands as the only complete English translation of the Calcutta II edition, featuring unexpurgated tales from the Islamic Golden Age. Known for archaic language and extensive notes on Oriental customs, this controversial translation was printed privately due to Victorian obscenity laws.
Anonymous
El libro de las mil noches y una noche; t. 1
"El libro de las mil noches y una noche; t. 1" by Anonymous is a collection of Middle Eastern folktales compiled during the Islamic Golden Age. A vengeful king executes each new bride at dawn—until Scheherazade volunteers herself and begins telling stories that end on cliffhangers, postponing her death night after night. The tales span historical accounts, love stories, tragedies, and adventures featuring jinn, sorcerers, and legendary places. For one thousand and one nights, she weaves narratives within narratives, blending fantasy with reality to save her life.
Unknown
The Arabian Nights: Their Best-known Tales
"The Arabian Nights: Their Best-known Tales" edited by Kate Douglas Wiggin and Nora A. Smith is a collection of enchanting folk tales originating from the Middle East, likely compiled in the early 20th century. This edition aims to capture the wonder and magic of the original "Tales of a Thousand and One Nights" while filtering the content to be more accessible to youthful readers. The anthology features a wide array of stories filled with adventure, love, and moral lessons, presenting beloved characters such as Sinbad, Aladdin, and Scheherazade. The opening of the book establishes a preface that frames the tales within a context of imagination and cultural exploration. It reflects on the importance of these stories in enchanting a new generation and calls attention to the richness of Middle Eastern folklore. The first story introduced is about an emperor of Persia named Kosrouschah, who, while in disguise, learns of the whimsical wishes of three sisters. This narrative blends whimsical desires with the themes of envy and destiny, suggesting that this collection will explore not only the fantastical elements of the tales but also their deeper moral implications.
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The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 05 (of 10)
"The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 05 (of 10)" by Richard Francis Burton is a translation published in 1888. Burton's landmark work presents the complete, unexpurgated Arabian Nights in English for the first time, preserving the sexual content and cultural details that earlier Victorian translators had censored. This fifth volume continues Burton's controversial approach, combining vivid storytelling with extensive scholarly footnotes exploring Oriental customs and sexuality. His archaic, extravagant style and obsessive annotations made this both celebrated and criticized as a highly personal interpretation of these ancient Middle Eastern tales.
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Supplemental Nights to the Book of the Thousand and One Nights — Volume 3 (of 6)
"Supplemental Nights to the Book of the Thousand and One Nights — Volume 3" by Richard Francis Burton is part of a translation series published between 1886-1888. This volume belongs to Burton's seven-book supplement following his controversial ten-volume translation of the Arabian Nights. Burton's work stands as the only complete English translation of the Calcutta edition, distinguished by its unexpurgated content, extensive footnotes on Oriental customs, and archaic language. Published privately to avoid Victorian obscenity laws, these volumes sparked both admiration and criticism for their scholarly depth and sexual frankness.
Unknown
Supplemental Nights to the Book of the Thousand and One Nights — Volume 6 (of 6)
"Supplemental Nights to the Book of the Thousand and One Nights — Volume 6" by Richard Francis Burton is part of a translation series published between 1886-1888. This volume continues Burton's ambitious project of rendering the complete Arabian Nights into English without censorship. Burton's work includes extensive notes exploring Middle Eastern culture and customs, particularly sexual themes that scandalized Victorian society. Published privately to avoid obscenity laws, these supplemental volumes expanded his original ten-volume translation with additional tales from the Islamic Golden Age's legendary story collection.
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