Some nights you wish would never end . . .
This modern edition adapted from Sir Richard F. Burton's lavish unexpurgated (unpurified) translation—and the companion volume to the highly popular Signet Classic edition of Arabian Nights, also edited and adapted by Jack Zipes—once again illuminates the sensual mystery and lushness of the original Arabic tales. This volume includes a wide variety of tales representing distinctive genres—not just magic fairy tales, but also erotic tales, all revealing a great deal about the customs and societies in the Middle East during the Medieval era. Here are tales such as "The Porter and the Three Ladies," "The Caliph's Night Adventure," "The Sleeper and the Waker," "The Woman Who Made Her Husband Sift Dirt," "The Rake's Trick Against the Chaste Wife," and "The Man Who Never Laughed During the Rest of His Days." In Jack Zipes's hands, these stories-within-stories, told over the course of a thousand and one nights, come to vivid life in new and often surprising ways.
Contents:
Introduction: The Morning After
A Note on the Text
- The Caliph's Night Adventure
The Story of the Blind Man, Baba Abdullah
The Story of Sidi Nu'uman
The Story of Khwajah Hasan al-Habbal
- The Porter and the Three Ladies of Baghdad
The First Calendar's Tale
The Second Calendar's Tale
The Tale of the Envier and the Envied
The Third Calendar's Tale
The Eldest Sister's Tale
The Doorkeeper's Tale
- The Sleeper and the Walker
The Story of the Scoundrel and the Cook
- The Craft and Malice of Women, or the Tale of the King, His Son, His Concubine, and the Seven Viziers
The King and the Vizier's Wife
The Confectioner, His Wife, and the Parrot
The Fuller and His Son
The Rake's Trick Against the Chaste Wife
The Miser and the Loaves of Bread
The Lady and Her Two Lovers
The King's Son and the Ogress
The Drop of Honey
The Woman Who Made Her Husband Sift Dirt
The Enchanted Spring
The Vizier's Son and the Hammam-Keeper's Wife
The Wife's Plan to Cheat Her Husband
The Goldsmith and the Cashmere Singing Girl
The Man Who Never Laughed During the Rest of His Days
The King's Son and the Merchant's Wife
The Page Who Pretended to Know the Speech of Birds
The Lady and Her Five Suitors
The Three Wishes, or the Man Who Longed to See the Night of Power
The Stolen Necklace
The Two Pigeons
The House with the Belvedere
The Prince and the Ifrit's Mistress
The Sandalwood Merchant and the Thieves
The Womanizer and the Three-Year-Old Child
The Stolen Purse
The Fox and the Folk
- Abdulla the Fisherman and Abdullah the Merman
- The Tale of Zayn al-Asnam
- The Ten Viziers. or the Story of King Azadbakht and His Son
The Story of the Merchant Who Lost His Luck
The Tale of the Merchant and His Sons
The Story of Abu Sabir
The Story of PrinceBihzad
The Story of King Dadbin and His Vizers
The Story of King Bakhtzaman
The Story of King Bihzard
The Story of Aylan Shah and Abu Tammam
The Story of King Ibrahim and His Son
The Story of King Sulayman Shah and His Niece
The Story of the Prisoner and How Allah Granted Him Relief
- The Tale of Al-Malik al-Nasir and the Three Chiefs of Police
The Story of the Chief of Police of Cairo
The Tale of the Chief of the Bulak Police
The Story of the Chief of the Forstat Police
The Thief and the Money-Changer
The Chief of the Kus Police and the Highwayman
- Fables
The Mouse and the Cat
The Fish and the Crab
The Crow and the Serpent
The Wild Ass and the Jackal
The Crows and the Hawk
The Spider and the Wind
The Jackals and the Wolf
The Partridge and the Tortoises
Afterword
Glossary
Selected Bibliography
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