Little Girls are Wiser Than Men

by Leo Tolstoy, Hassan Zahreddine (Illustrator)

Malashka and Akulka, two little girls, are playing together happily when they get into a disagreement… and before you know it, the entire village is involved in an imbroglio!

Little Girls Are Wiser Than Men is a book for all ages and times adapted from a poetic short story by one of the world’s greatest storytellers, Leo Tolstoy. This astute tale about conflict and resolution is illustrated with linocut art by Lebanese printmaker Hassan Zahreddine and printed on handmade paper, using a vintage 1965 Heidelberg letterpress.

Digital files of the text and art were used to create plates that relief-printed on to the surface of paper. This technique captures the spirit of the times that the story was set in while connecting it to the context in which this edition was created. It also makes for a unique reading and viewing experience: the words are deeply etched on the page, the colours are solidly on the surface, and the texture of the paper invites exploration.

Genres: Short Stories, Classics, Russian Literature, Fiction, Russia, Literature

48 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1885

About the author

Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy (Russian: Лев Николаевич Толстой; most appropriately used Liev Tolstoy; commonly Leo Tolstoy in Anglophone countries) was a Russian writer who primarily wrote novels and short stories. Later in life, he also wrote plays and essays. His two most famous works, the novels War and Peace and Anna Karenina, are acknowledged as two of the greatest novels of all time and a pinnacle of realist fiction. Many consider Tolstoy to have been one of the world's greatest novelists. Tolstoy is equally known for his complicated and paradoxical persona and for his extreme moralistic and ascetic views, which he adopted after a moral crisis and spiritual awakening in the 1870s, after which he also became noted as a moral thinker and social reformer.

His literal interpretation of the ethical teachings of Jesus, centering on the Sermon on the Mount, caused him in later life to become a fervent Christian anarchist and anarcho-pacifist. His ideas on nonviolent resistance, expressed in such works as The Kingdom of God Is Within You, were to have a profound impact on such pivotal twentieth-century figures as Mohandas Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr.

See also:
French → Léon Tolstoï
Spanish → León Tolstói

Reviews

[Leo]

I read this as an ebook so unfortunately I did not have the beautiful illustrations some reviews talks about. However while the story was very short and simplistic it was very well written. I really enjoyed the simple story of two young girls and they where indeed wiser than the adults. Short and sweet

[Kennedy Ifeh]

Once again, Tolstoy tells a very short story with a strong message, taken from Christ statement - ‘Except ye turn, and become as little children, ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven.’

[Nessrina Hazem]

قصة قصيرة بتوضح طريقة تعامل الأطفال مع المشاكل و اللي في بعض الأحيان بتكون أكثر حكمة من الكبار. القصة بتحكي عن شجار نشب بين الكبار بسبب طفلتين و رغم إنهم سبب المشكلة، إلا انهم سعوا لحل المشكلة اللي بسببها اتخانقوا و بدون مساعدة من حد، بينما الكبار ماسكين في خناق بعض بسببهم.😅
القصة ضمن مجموعة قصصية بعنوان "قصص من تولستوي" من ترجمات دار أقلام عربية.

[Bhargavi.lawbookskettlebells]

While I appreciated what the story tried to convey, it was a little too simply told for my liking - I'm not the target audience for this version of the tale. The rating is for the stunning illustrations and the painstaking letterpress printing technique - both of which brought a wonderful vintage feel to the book. It left me feeling like I was holding a tiny bookish time capsule.

[Sanjana]

My rating is more for this beautiful edition than the tale itself.

[| Shakshi |]

A mindful story that shows:

1.) We don't know but tricky community problems can be solved if we all have a child's perspective.

2.) Riot over petty thing is not a virtue if you are a child.

[Tehreem Fayyaz]

This book is too short but yet knowledgeable, giving a moral like those read in childhood. Such a childish book !

[Anand Chauhan]

'Except ye turn, and become as little as children, ye shall in no ways enter into the kingdom of heaven.'

[James]

The story is barely a story. But the artwork in this edition is really beautifully presented and the use of colour is really well done. It's worth looking at for the art alone.

[Maria]

Adapted from a poetic short storybby the great Russian writer Leo Tolstoy, this astute tale about conflict and resolutions is illustrated with linocut art by Lebanese printmaker Hassan Zahreddine. The book is letter pressed on eco-friendly handmade paper.

Malashka and Akulka, two little girls, are playing together happily when they get into disagreement, Malashka and it mess up when the entire village is involved.

It was the 1st book of Tolstoy i've read and never thought it quite interesting where many ideas appears around everyday life as this book main story. It gives us spirit and gentle reminder through the stories, important ermerges which is neither a forced moral nor an arguments that is attached to the story.

Learning close about the children experience the world, how innocence and wisdom, what children are and do, and making the simplicity choice to make the world a better place for them without doubt cultures, traditions, histories and places also.

Such a beautiful story and stunning art look with letterpress craft, the etching process and the form of the book.

[Sanntint]

The story for children but recommend the adults who are negligent about simple rules of life by influence of ignorance !

[Asséil Bokharouba]

Truly deep message
"Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."
Matthew 18:3

[Vaishali]

"Except ye turn, and become as little children, ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven."

[Manan Sheel]

Such a delightful little story!!
As little and as delightful as the two little girls in the story!!

[James Dempsey]

To forgive and to forget, and then to laugh at the folly of it all! The wiser minds of this world jump immediately to the finality.

“When I was young, I forgot how to laugh in the cave of Trophonius; when I was older, I opened my eyes and beheld reality, at which I began to laugh, and since then, I have not stopped laughing.”

“Sweet is folly when you regain a friend.” - Horace Ode VII, Book II.

[Emily Van Duinen]

got this book in italy because of the beautiful illustrations and read it the kids (plus or minus a few “idiots” and “slaps”). they thought it was sweet and got a kick out of all the men fighting each other. we talked about how everyone, kids and adults, could have handled the situation better.

[Mohammad Alamin]

Excelent Story...

[Talib Khan]

It's a nice short story.

Moral?
“Except ye turn, and become as little children, ye shall in no ways enter into the kingdom of heaven."

[Bayan Abid]

12.12.2020

[Keiko the manga enthusiast ♒︎]

Except ye turn, and become as little children, ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven.
💞

[Ælshunīv]

ok.

[Varsha Seshan]

https://www.varshaseshan.com/november...

[luuuluu]

So what???..^//===//;’

[Olivia]

True king. We gotta let go of grudges and move on like kids

[Zenisha Shah]

A perfect illustration of simple yet profound, Story and design👌🏽🥰🤩

[M A]

A good story that shows that children are more forgiving than adults.. and how adults can let ignorance take control before understanding the situation.⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Rebecca Terry Nelson]

A little story about the Christlike examples of children

[Vinoth Srinivasan]

Children don't understand ego, Vengeance all they know is happiness.

[Dave]

Very short, but a good moral, that children can be far more forgiving than adults.

[Shaimaa أحمد]

الأطفال أكثر حكمه من الكبار فهم يميلون لقضاء أوقاتهم في المرح و الفرح أما الكبار فهم يبحثون عن العراك و المشاحنات و افتعال الأزمات