Sindbad : from the tales of The thousand and one nights

Title:

Author:

Summary:

"For centuries, readers have been fascinated by the stories of the Arabian Nights. Perhaps the best-known is Sindbad the Sailor. He discovers an island paradise, but it is actually a giant whale. He sees a huge mountain. It is, in fact, the egg of the famous Roc, a bird so huge that she can carry an elephant in her talons. Sindbad manages to escape from Roc’s nest by tying his turban to the bird’s leg and is transported to the final adventure in this volume: the Valley of Diamonds. It is a story of high adventure and wit overcoming any obstacle." -- Amazon.com.

Physical Description:

[36] p. : col. ill. ; 30 cm.

Genre:

Picture books.

Subject Term:

Sindbad the Sailor (Legendary character) -- Juvenile literature.

Arabs -- Folklore.

Voyages and travel -- Juvenile fiction.

Kings and rulers -- Juvenile fiction.

Deception -- Juvenile fiction.

Folklore -- Arab countries.

Publisher:

Tundra Books,

Publication Date:

1999

ISBN:

9780887764608

Publication Information:

Toronto : Tundra Books, c1999.

Call Number:

P ZEMAN

Holds: Copies:

Available:*

Item Barcode	Collection	Call Number	Status	Item Holds
33607001353351	Picture Books	ZEMAN	Searching... Unknown	Searching... Unavailable

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Summary

For centuries, readers have been fascinated by the stories of the Arabian Nights. Perhaps the best-known is Sindbad the Sailor. He discovers an island paradise, but it is actually a giant whale. He sees a huge mountain. It is, in fact, the egg of the famous Roc, a bird so huge that she can carry an elephant in her talons. Sindbad manages to escape from Roc's nest by tying his turban to the bird's leg and is transported to the final adventure in this volume: the Valley of Diamonds. It is a story of high adventure and wit overcoming any obstacle.

Author Notes

Ludmila Zeman was born in the former Czechoslovakia and immigrated to Canada in 1984. She has taught art in Vancouver, created animated sequences for Sesame Street and, with her husband, made the film Lord of the Sky , an award-winning animated short. Her epic Gilgamesh trilogy won numerous awards. Her book, The First Red Maple Leaf , was a finalist for the Governor General's Award for Illustration.

Reviews (2)

School Library Journal Review

K-Gr 4-A retelling from The Thousand and One Nights that links together two of the seven voyages of Sindbad the Sailor. Here readers follow the intrepid Arab as he mistakes a giant whale for an island paradise, is carried off by the eagle Roc, and escapes from a valley filled with snakes and diamonds. While not quite the rival of Shahrazad, Zeman does an admirable job of conveying the earthy spirit and atmosphere of the tale, which endures as one of the most compelling adventure yarns ever penned. The richly detailed, gold-toned illustrations are done in the style of Persian carpets, each one surrounded by an elegant border. An author's note supplies not only background on the tales themselves but also information on Zeman's research for both text and illustrations. This is an excellent way to expose children who frequently know these stories only through cartoons to the genuine article.-Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith School, Hillsdale, NJ (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Publisher's Weekly Review

Zeman (The Last Quest of Gilgamesh) focuses primarily on the second voyage of Sindbad the Sailor for her retelling, which strikes the informal tone that Shahrazad might have adopted when she first relayed the adventures to King Shahriyar. But it's the illustrations that will carry the stories in readers' minds. Zeman sets the scene, explaining that Shahrazad told the 1,001 tales in order to save her life, but she pairs the information with a portrait of the king asleep on his bride's lap. In succeeding spreads, the artwork incorporates many motifs from Persian rugs: a border of exotic birds frames the meeting between Sindbad the Porter and Sindbad the Sailor; a background of hunters on horseback, foxes and prancing deer decorates the volume's most elegant painting, a portrait of the young Sindbad. A strong use of perspective emphasizes the sailor's precarious position when a vulture unwittingly saves Sindbad from the viper-filled Valley of Diamonds and drops him onto the branch of a tree atop a cliff. At times the integrity of the compositions founders due to bug-eyed caricatures of Sindbad and other characters. However, the volume ends on a note of strength with an ornate depiction of Sindbad the Porter's intimate audience with Sindbad the Sailor, and thus brings readers full circle to the importance and magic of storytelling. Ages 6-up. (Nov.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved