Forty Fortunes: A Tale of Iran

by Aaron Shepard, Alisher Dianov (Illustrator)

The royal treasure has been stolen, and not even Iran's finest diviners can locate the forty fortunes. When the King turns to Ahmed to find the treasure, Ahmed is certain that he will be thrown in prison. Yes, he was able to locate a missing ring, but that was pure luck, and he knows that he has no real fortunetelling skills. He has only forty days to find the forty fortunes. Will he find a way to locate the treasure-and save himself-before the time is up? This retelling of a traditional Iranian folktale, charged with humor and action, is paired with fabulous jewel-toned illustrations.

Genres: Picture Books, Iran, Middle East

32 pages, Hardcover

First published December 31, 1999

About the author

Aaron Shepard is the author of many books, stories, and scripts for young people, as well as professional books and resources for writers and educators. He has also worked professionally in both storytelling and reader's theater, as a performer, director, and teacher trainer. Aaron's lively and meticulous retellings of folktales and other traditional literature have found homes with more than a dozen children's book publishers, large and small, and with the world's top children's literary magazines, winning him honors from the American Library Association, the New York Public Library, the Bank Street College of Education, the National Council for the Social Studies, and the American Folklore Society. His extensive Web site, visited by thousands of teachers and librarians each week, is known internationally as a prime resource for folktales, storytelling, and reader's theater, while his stories and scripts have been featured in textbooks from publishers worldwide, including Scholastic, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, SRA, The College Board, Pearson Education, National Geographic, Oxford University Press, Barron's, Hodder Education, and McGraw-Hill.

Reviews

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

When his wife insists that he become a diviner in the marketplace, in order to bring more money home, Ahmed the laborer complies with her request in this folktale from Iran. His first attempt is met with good fortune, as he accidentally discovers the location of his customer's missing ring. Unfortunately, this leads to the king demanding that he find the thief or thieves responsible for taking forty sacks of treasure from the royal treasury. Knowing that he cannot perform this task, Ahmed nevertheless asks for forty days to comply with the king's demand, and finds that fortune once again favors him, in a most unexpected way...

Forty Fortunes: A Tale of Iran is the second folkloric retelling that I have read from author/illustrator team Aaron Shepard and Alisher Dianov, following upon their earlier The Enchanted Storks: A Tale of Bagdad . According to the author's afterword, which also provides more background information on some of the customs and locations shown in the story, this tale was adapted from The Story of the Fortune-Teller, found in D.L.R. and E.O. Lorimer's Persian Tales . It is an enjoyable story, full of humor and good fortune, and is well-matched with the colorful artwork. Recommended to all young folk and fairy-tale lovers, and to anyone looking for traditional stories with a Persian cultural background.

[Colin · Rating 5 out of 5]

An Iranian story to add some Persian flavor to our homeschooling unit on the medieval Middle East and the rise of Islam. This story was well-told and nicely illustrated - very enjoyable for my little guys (ages 6 and 8) . . .

[Nolan Brendel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hi friend. I liked it because the thieves stole the treasure and the lady lost her ring and the guy found them.

[Jenni Sauer · Rating 5 out of 5]

OH MY GOODNESS THIS BOOK IS ADORABLE!! The story reminded me a lot of something from Arabian Nights and I need to add a copy of this to my collection someday <3

[Rudy Regalado · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awards: none

Grade Level: Ages 5-8 Grades k-3

Summary: This story takes place in Iran and is about an average man named Ahmed trying to make ends meet for his family. When his wife urges him to become a diviner to make more money the story takes an interesting turn. We follow his adventures as he tries to get by with his new job.

Review: I really enjoyed this book. I found it to be quite clever and have a very nice story to go along with it. I really liked that Ahmed's wife never gave up on him and that good things kept happening to someone like him who really deserved it.

In class uses: We could use this book to get the point across that being a good person is important and that you will always be rewarded in the long run, This is a great book to have children take turns reading through to advance their vocabulary, lastly this book could be great for educating children about other cultures like this one.

[Elizabeth Heath · Rating 2 out of 5]

Picture Book- It was about a whinney wife who wanted her husband to be a fortune teller in Iran. She forced him into it and just in time for the king's fortune to get stolen. The king requires Ahmed to help him or else he will go to prison.

[Lil · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a pretty funny book.