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The Arabian Nights: Their Best-Known Tales Audiobook
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(3.08) - 177 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
This collection of some of the best-known and best-loved tales from The Arabian Nights’ Entertainments, or The Thousand and One Nights, includes the stories of Sinbad and his voyages, Ali Baba and the cave of the forty thieves, Aladdin and his wonderful lamp, and seven more fantastic tales.
In this treasure house of the imagination, you will find golden palaces, gem-studded caves, and mythical beasts; you will unearth magic lamps, take long voyages to exotic shores, and encounter acts of deceit and revenge as well as kindness and generosity. These highly entertaining stories that have enchanted readers for centuries are narrated here in a clear and direct style that renders them fresh and exciting.
The stories included in this collection are:
“The Talking Bird, the Singing Tree, and the Golden Water”
“The Story of the Fisherman and the Genie”
“The History of the Young King of the Black Isles”
“The Story of Gulnare of the Sea”
“The Story of Aladdin; or, The Wonderful Lamp”
“The Story of Prince Agib”
“The Story of the City of Brass”
“The Story of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves”
“The History of Codadad and His Brothers”
“The Story of Sinbad the Voyager”
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"I actually listened to the audio version of this book. At first I thought the voiceover artist was Claire Bloom, but I think in fact it was Johanna Ward. The ISBNs of the audio book are ISBN-10: 0786117982 and ISBN-13: 978-0786117987. It is available through Audible.com. "
— Vicki (5 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“One feels like getting lost in...[The Arabian Nights], one knows that entering that book one can forget one’s own poor human fate; one can enter a world, a world made up of of archetypal figures but also of individuals.”
— Jorge Luis Borges -
“The Arabian Nights is more generally loved than Shakespeare…No human face or voice greets us among [this] crowd of kings and genies, sorcerers and beggarmen. Adventure, on the most naked terms, furnishes forth the entertainment and is found enough.”
— Robert Louis Stevenson -
“The essential quality of these tales lies in their success in interweaving the unusual, the extraordinary, the marvelous, and the supernatural into the fabric of everyday life.”
— Husain Haddawy -
“The tales themselves are masterpieces of the art of storytelling. In inventiveness and sheer entertainment value they stand supreme amoung the short stories of all time...despite the fabulous and fantastic world they portray, with its emphasis on the marvellous and the supernatural, they are a faithful mirror of the life and manners of the age which engendered them.”
— N. J. Dawood
The Arabian Nights Listener Reviews
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" Was quaint to read an old translation of the tales. Had the most of any other book I've read claiming to be a collection of Arabian Nights themed stories. "
— Erika, 11/3/2013 -
" Lots of fun stories. Most of them more interesting than the "Disney-fied" versions. "
— Aaron, 10/27/2013 -
" I have read the first story in this book. This is such a classic book I do want to finish it someday, but I have other books I would rather read right now. "
— Lindsay, 10/22/2013 -
" Got it for the Parrish illustrations. "
— Monica, 8/29/2013 -
" This felt more like a dose of cultural medicine than entertainment. The Arabian Nights tales that everyone has heard of are famous for good reason and it was fun to read the full, original stories. But most of the others never managed to break above mildly interesting. "
— Keyton, 3/14/2013 -
" I was around 13 years old when I read this book. "
— Abigail, 3/4/2013 -
" These tales are so hypnotic it is no wonder they have survived for so long. The beauty is also not just the stories themselves but how they are told with a rhythm to the language. I think listening to them in audio format was especially great. "
— Stephanie, 2/19/2013 -
" I actually listened to the audio version of this book. At first I thought the voiceover artist was Claire Bloom, but I think in fact it was Johanna Ward. The ISBNs of the audio book are ISBN-10: 0786117982 and ISBN-13: 978-0786117987. It is available through Audible.com. "
— Vicki, 10/10/2012 -
" A perenial favorite. I specialized in Middle East history due to this book and its exotic influence on me. "
— Holly, 9/9/2012 -
" We've listened to these on CD in the car. I was spellbound; however, the kids got NOTHING out of them at all. "
— Jen, 5/22/2012 -
" I have always heard of these tales in other stories, but had never actually read them. They are short, very easy to read, and very entertaining. "
— Jennifer, 8/11/2011 -
" We've listened to these on CD in the car. I was spellbound; however, the kids got NOTHING out of them at all. "
— Jen, 11/18/2010 -
" I have always heard of these tales in other stories, but had never actually read them. They are short, very easy to read, and very entertaining. "
— Jennifer, 11/20/2008 -
" A perenial favorite. I specialized in Middle East history due to this book and its exotic influence on me. "
— Holly, 9/5/2008 -
" Got it for the Parrish illustrations. "
— Monica, 11/30/2007
About the Authors
Kate Douglas Wiggin (1856–1923), an innovator in early childhood education, was the author of several well-known novels, including The Birds’ Christmas Carol and Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm.
Nora A. Smith (1859–1934) was an American children’s author. She and her sister, author Kate Douglas Wiggin, co-authored and co-edited a series of children’s books. She also published many serial stories and academic journal articles on early childhood education.
About Johanna Ward
Johanna Ward (a.k.a. Kate Reading) is an Audie Award–winning narrator and has received numerous Earphones Awards from AudioFile magazine. She is also a theater actor in the Washington, DC, area and has been a member of Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company since 1987. Her work onstage has been recognized by the Helen Hayes Awards Society, among others. She and her husband live in Hyattsville, Maryland, with their two children.