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The Adventures of Amir Hamza: Special abridged edition
Here is a special abridged English translation of a major Indo-Persian epic: a panoramic tale of magic and passion, a classic hero’s odyssey that has captivated much of the world. It is the spellbinding story of Amir Hamza, the adventurer who in the service of the Persian emperor defeats many enemies, loves many women, and converts hundreds of infidels to the True Faith before finding his way back to his first love. In Musharraf Ali Farooqi’s remarkable abridged rendition, this masterwork is captured with all its colorful action and fantastic elements intact. Appreciated as the seminal Islamic epic or enjoyed as a sweeping tale as rich and inventive as Homer’s epic sagas, The Adventures of Amir Hamza is a true literary treasure.
560 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1855
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
February 17, 2014
A rollicking tale of magical adventures that got way too formulaic towards the end.
It started off well and even had some funny moments. By halfway through you start to realise that the stories are repeating themselves. The best bits were about the various Jinn (or Devs), the magical enchantments they construct and their varied relationships they have with mankind. Even though the translator has done a commendable job this abridged version suffers from some inconsistencies and some characters who seem to come out of nowhere.
This book shares much of the cultural background of the Shahnama (the national epic of Persia) and the Arabian Nights. For me, it was better than the Arabian Nights but not so good as the Shahnama.
It started off well and even had some funny moments. By halfway through you start to realise that the stories are repeating themselves. The best bits were about the various Jinn (or Devs), the magical enchantments they construct and their varied relationships they have with mankind. Even though the translator has done a commendable job this abridged version suffers from some inconsistencies and some characters who seem to come out of nowhere.
This book shares much of the cultural background of the Shahnama (the national epic of Persia) and the Arabian Nights. For me, it was better than the Arabian Nights but not so good as the Shahnama.
September 2, 2013
I read Daastaan-e-Ameer Hamza in Urdu when I was a kid and the stories mesmerized me with the make believe world of Jinns, Devs, and Peris. So, I was naturally excited delving into the English translation after almost 20 years. But time seems to have taken the sheen off the once dazzling 'Tilism-e-Hoshruba'. After the second book, most of the stories seem unimaginative and written to a standard template. The book gets repetitive to a fault towards the end and I had a hard time making myself finish it. Musharraf Ali Farooqi, however, gets full marks for the excellent translation that kept the flair and flow of the original urdu cum persian narrative.
June 15, 2026
Although Dastan-e-Amir Hamza originated a millennium ago, it was not written down until Akbar's reign. In 1871, Ghalib Lakhnavi's 1855 edition was revised by Abdullah Bilgrami, and remains the most popular version of the dastan to this day. The story employs historical figures and spins them into fictional fantasy worlds and events. The main character of the dastan is Amir Hamza, son of Abdul Muttalib, uncle to the Last Islamic Prophet.
Originally in Persian, the dastan was translated into various languages as it declined in the subcontinent. The verbosity of the 1871 edition is an epitome of Urdu magniloquence. Musharraf Sahab's laudable translation is like a smoothly flowing river, cascading you into the upcoming parts of the dastan with ease, though the story may be bland at times (more later).
The popularity of this dastan is irrefutable; it captivated everyone from the commoners to the Mughal Emperors themselves. An album containing 1400 miniatures was curated under Akbar’s reign. Furthermore, it is even said that he used to narrate the dastan professionally to his harem (Lang and Meredith-Owens, p. 473). Later, in the 18th and 19th centuries, every man, if given the means, employed dastan-go(s) in his entourage. In the 18th century, Muhammad Mir Taqi wrote his own dastan called "Bostan-e-Khayal" in Persian, to rival the contemporary and widely accepted Dastan-e-Ameer Hamza.
Back then, dastan-goi was a respected and famous occupation. A fair analogy for dastan-goi would be to imagine a few friends happen to go through a thrilling experience, but each narrates it differently. One embellishes it, one exaggerates it, one focuses on a particular aspect, one on the other, etc. The main theme, however, remains the same; only the description changes; this is how I view dastans. Each dastan-go had his own understanding and interpretation of the story, explaining why different versions of the tale exist.
The last great dastan-go, Mir Baqir Ali (d. 1928), used to stretch his dastan-goi mehfils for hours and hours, and the interminable story would stretch out for decades and remain uncompleted. This gives an idea of how dense and elaborate the stories could be. The dastan-gos were well-versed in astronomy, poetry, literature, cuisine, music, and so forth, and thus florally embellished the passages to take up more time. Sadly, as cinema emerged, dastan-goi began to decline in the twentieth century, and Mir Baqir was forced to sell betel nuts (paan) to scrape by.
Apart from a few names, such as Mahmood Farooqi, Darain Shahidi, and Fawad Khan, this form of art has not had any promoters, so the average reader is unaware of this genre and, as a result, their heritage. Besides, the modus operandi to describe the events differs between a novel and an oral narration, so I’ve tried to keep my review fair and unbiased.
When I read Maqbool Jahangir's abridged version as a prepubescent, I had surmised that Hazrat Hamza, the lion-slayer uncle of the Prophet, traversed into the realm of fairies and jinns and killed them. One needs to be aware that even though the characters referenced in the dastan are familiar figures, their historicity is incongruous. If you want to know more about the dastan and don’t have the energy to read the full text, then read this version.
Amir Hamza usually sets off on expeditions to fight mighty rivals (mostly kings and jinns), and he almost always emerges victorious. More often than not, the opponents convert to the "True Faith" and subsequently ditch their own kingdoms and become ardent adjutants of his. If they don’t convert, they are put to the sword. The dastan also contains many plot holes, such as Hamza proselytising thousands of people to the "True Faith" and offering the 5 daily prayers, even though Islam has not even been introduced yet.
The exaggerations are also unbelievable, as if holding the audience's intellect in derision. For instance, Amir Hamza defeating 300-yard-tall devs, or Amir killing contingents of battle-hardened warriors at the age of 7. Pray tell, can an ant, even with superpowers, ever defeat an elephant? Truth be said, he was an incredibly prophesied man and received the benedictions of the Prophets to aid him and his 'gang', despite their debaucherous behaviour. Without wine, “silver-calfed” dancers, and music, no festival was complete, to the point that even Prophets insisted on wine: “banti nahi hai saghar-o-mina kahe baghair”.
He had many dalliances, and a plethora of wives. He even drowned one of his dev-wives while infatuated with his crush from teenagehood (Mehr-Nigar); most probably inserted as a jest, but it mars the protagonist’s character. By part 4 of the book, he was marrying a new woman every next chapter. The lasciviousness present here gives us insight into what was accepted in that milieu and into the people's open-mindedness, which is interesting and worth investigating. It shows us that intimate matters (although described very poetically) weren’t so taboo 200 years ago as they are now.
There is absolutely no world-building and no mention of time progressing in the dastan: the mechanics of time are screwed up. Amir would marry a woman, impregnate her with his “blessed seed”, and two chapters later, his (grand)sons appear on the battlefield fighting gallantly. In fact, Amir does not even recognise his own sons sometimes and inquires from which of his wives he has been begotten; an ideal father and husband, what more can I say. Amir is probably in his old age now, but he can still defeat every champion, and young girls keep losing themselves in his beauty. It goes as far as to say that married women kidnapped Amir Hamza for carnal pleasure.
The story is more like a modern movie. It is thrilling to watch and listen to it, but there are many inconsistencies, and important information is skipped. Killing anyone without investigating, injuries magically healed in the next chapter, the protagonist/antagonist always ends up at the other’s private chambers because the security arrangements are a joke, and so many more infuriating irregularities. Although this is just a fictional tale, it is still hard to accept.
Unquestionably, the story remains the same in both languages, but there is an archaic vibe while perusing the Urdu text. The scattered poetry, ever and anon, mixed with the rich metaphors and idioms, offers a very royal and majestic reading experience. Sometimes, actually many times, you are transported into their realms and feel present there. Characters’ descriptions are entirely different from today’s literature. For instance, instead of calling a girl beautiful, they'd describe her as "a moon-faced damsel, rose-lipped, bright as Venus, etc." and in this manner the creativity of the reader/listener is also working in the background. I won’t shy away from saying that I too was swayed by these enchanting descriptions.
Nonetheless, one will soon be exhausted as the tropes and themes keep repeating themselves. The only calamities which befall the protagonists are war, love or imprisonment, and often Prophet Khizr arrives to save the day. Else, it's Amar Ayyar's trickery: changing disguises to fool the opponents, or sedating them. If there’s a formidable villain introduced, then the author copy-pastes the text he wrote for a previous opponent. The stratagems get redundant very quickly. I had to read, essentially, the same chapters numerous times with just slight variations.
Note: this world is somehow endless; there are infinite kingdoms. Each king is the champion warrior of his time, stronger than the previous one. He also happens to have a beautiful fairy-like daughter who always marries Amir. Naushervan, who is the main antagonist of the story, keeps on running like a mouse from one place to the other, seeking aid from other kings, and Amir is the cat chasing him and always defeating him.
As Amir’s progeny and influence grew, a billion other characters were added. Just like Tolkien’s books, the names of characters, places, mounts, etc. were being thrown around ever so often. This is what happens when the story should have ended ages ago. The authors wanted new content, so after racking their brains, they came up with the creative idea to present the same old events in different words. Similar scenarios are reiterated verbatim for Amir Hamza’s sons and grandsons’ tales. If you thought the original 46000-page dastan would be unique, then you were mistaken.
Dastan-goi was an art form in which different artists performed to different audiences each time. It was a game of words and idioms, to showcase the rich vocabulary, nothing more. Musharraf Sahab translates the book in a straightforward way, considerably easy to follow, but often the expressions and idioms are translated literally (thankfully, there are notes at the back). To a non-native Urdu speaker, these English phrases would showcase the richness and innovation of our language, but perhaps it wouldn’t make enough sense either. That said, I do not recommend this translated book except to scholars interested in archaic Urdu literature. The Urdu book is more pleasurable to read.
Lastly, respected Musharraf Ali Farooqi Sahab and Osama Siddique Sahab claim that Dastan-e-Ameer Hamza makes other globally acclaimed books pale. I agree with them, but half-heartedly. The fantasy element is vast; there are magical items, tablets, villains, dragons, simurghs (mythical birds), etc., but I feel Dastan-e-Ameer Hamza has an identity crisis; neither is it completely in our world, nor is it set in a fantastical world. It is somewhere in the middle. Some parts of the story are captivating and thrilling, but they could be further polished and refined. The thing is, the text is essentially the script a dastan-go performer would read in a live performance. This book was NOT written to be read, but to be heard. We are comparing an oral tradition with written traditions. I suggest that one take inspiration from this dastan and adapt it into a novel to modern standards; only then can we compare them reasonably.
Additionally, the dastan could be adapted into a video game. There are many elements which would be perfect, such as traversing between realms, jinns, fairies, swordfighting, warfare, a historical setting, tilisms, which are basically magical worlds, etc. And game hints could replace Hazrat Khizr’s constant appearance in dreams for guidance.
To sum it up, I think this dastan is a fairy tale for adults, as the 'simurgh of imagination takes flight onto the heavens of creativity', and the 'destriers of grandiloquence fiercely gallop onto the fray of composition'. For further references, you can dive into Shamsur Rehman Farooqi's books on the Dastan, “Urdu ki Nasri Dastanein” by Gyan Chand Jain, Mahmood Farooqi’s “Dastan-Goi” and finally Frances Pritchett's "The Romance Tradition in Urdu". As always, our dedicated scholar, Miss Pritchett, has more resources on her website for curious researchers.
Originally in Persian, the dastan was translated into various languages as it declined in the subcontinent. The verbosity of the 1871 edition is an epitome of Urdu magniloquence. Musharraf Sahab's laudable translation is like a smoothly flowing river, cascading you into the upcoming parts of the dastan with ease, though the story may be bland at times (more later).
The popularity of this dastan is irrefutable; it captivated everyone from the commoners to the Mughal Emperors themselves. An album containing 1400 miniatures was curated under Akbar’s reign. Furthermore, it is even said that he used to narrate the dastan professionally to his harem (Lang and Meredith-Owens, p. 473). Later, in the 18th and 19th centuries, every man, if given the means, employed dastan-go(s) in his entourage. In the 18th century, Muhammad Mir Taqi wrote his own dastan called "Bostan-e-Khayal" in Persian, to rival the contemporary and widely accepted Dastan-e-Ameer Hamza.
Back then, dastan-goi was a respected and famous occupation. A fair analogy for dastan-goi would be to imagine a few friends happen to go through a thrilling experience, but each narrates it differently. One embellishes it, one exaggerates it, one focuses on a particular aspect, one on the other, etc. The main theme, however, remains the same; only the description changes; this is how I view dastans. Each dastan-go had his own understanding and interpretation of the story, explaining why different versions of the tale exist.
The last great dastan-go, Mir Baqir Ali (d. 1928), used to stretch his dastan-goi mehfils for hours and hours, and the interminable story would stretch out for decades and remain uncompleted. This gives an idea of how dense and elaborate the stories could be. The dastan-gos were well-versed in astronomy, poetry, literature, cuisine, music, and so forth, and thus florally embellished the passages to take up more time. Sadly, as cinema emerged, dastan-goi began to decline in the twentieth century, and Mir Baqir was forced to sell betel nuts (paan) to scrape by.
Apart from a few names, such as Mahmood Farooqi, Darain Shahidi, and Fawad Khan, this form of art has not had any promoters, so the average reader is unaware of this genre and, as a result, their heritage. Besides, the modus operandi to describe the events differs between a novel and an oral narration, so I’ve tried to keep my review fair and unbiased.
When I read Maqbool Jahangir's abridged version as a prepubescent, I had surmised that Hazrat Hamza, the lion-slayer uncle of the Prophet, traversed into the realm of fairies and jinns and killed them. One needs to be aware that even though the characters referenced in the dastan are familiar figures, their historicity is incongruous. If you want to know more about the dastan and don’t have the energy to read the full text, then read this version.
Amir Hamza usually sets off on expeditions to fight mighty rivals (mostly kings and jinns), and he almost always emerges victorious. More often than not, the opponents convert to the "True Faith" and subsequently ditch their own kingdoms and become ardent adjutants of his. If they don’t convert, they are put to the sword. The dastan also contains many plot holes, such as Hamza proselytising thousands of people to the "True Faith" and offering the 5 daily prayers, even though Islam has not even been introduced yet.
The exaggerations are also unbelievable, as if holding the audience's intellect in derision. For instance, Amir Hamza defeating 300-yard-tall devs, or Amir killing contingents of battle-hardened warriors at the age of 7. Pray tell, can an ant, even with superpowers, ever defeat an elephant? Truth be said, he was an incredibly prophesied man and received the benedictions of the Prophets to aid him and his 'gang', despite their debaucherous behaviour. Without wine, “silver-calfed” dancers, and music, no festival was complete, to the point that even Prophets insisted on wine: “banti nahi hai saghar-o-mina kahe baghair”.
He had many dalliances, and a plethora of wives. He even drowned one of his dev-wives while infatuated with his crush from teenagehood (Mehr-Nigar); most probably inserted as a jest, but it mars the protagonist’s character. By part 4 of the book, he was marrying a new woman every next chapter. The lasciviousness present here gives us insight into what was accepted in that milieu and into the people's open-mindedness, which is interesting and worth investigating. It shows us that intimate matters (although described very poetically) weren’t so taboo 200 years ago as they are now.
There is absolutely no world-building and no mention of time progressing in the dastan: the mechanics of time are screwed up. Amir would marry a woman, impregnate her with his “blessed seed”, and two chapters later, his (grand)sons appear on the battlefield fighting gallantly. In fact, Amir does not even recognise his own sons sometimes and inquires from which of his wives he has been begotten; an ideal father and husband, what more can I say. Amir is probably in his old age now, but he can still defeat every champion, and young girls keep losing themselves in his beauty. It goes as far as to say that married women kidnapped Amir Hamza for carnal pleasure.
The story is more like a modern movie. It is thrilling to watch and listen to it, but there are many inconsistencies, and important information is skipped. Killing anyone without investigating, injuries magically healed in the next chapter, the protagonist/antagonist always ends up at the other’s private chambers because the security arrangements are a joke, and so many more infuriating irregularities. Although this is just a fictional tale, it is still hard to accept.
Unquestionably, the story remains the same in both languages, but there is an archaic vibe while perusing the Urdu text. The scattered poetry, ever and anon, mixed with the rich metaphors and idioms, offers a very royal and majestic reading experience. Sometimes, actually many times, you are transported into their realms and feel present there. Characters’ descriptions are entirely different from today’s literature. For instance, instead of calling a girl beautiful, they'd describe her as "a moon-faced damsel, rose-lipped, bright as Venus, etc." and in this manner the creativity of the reader/listener is also working in the background. I won’t shy away from saying that I too was swayed by these enchanting descriptions.
Nonetheless, one will soon be exhausted as the tropes and themes keep repeating themselves. The only calamities which befall the protagonists are war, love or imprisonment, and often Prophet Khizr arrives to save the day. Else, it's Amar Ayyar's trickery: changing disguises to fool the opponents, or sedating them. If there’s a formidable villain introduced, then the author copy-pastes the text he wrote for a previous opponent. The stratagems get redundant very quickly. I had to read, essentially, the same chapters numerous times with just slight variations.
Note: this world is somehow endless; there are infinite kingdoms. Each king is the champion warrior of his time, stronger than the previous one. He also happens to have a beautiful fairy-like daughter who always marries Amir. Naushervan, who is the main antagonist of the story, keeps on running like a mouse from one place to the other, seeking aid from other kings, and Amir is the cat chasing him and always defeating him.
As Amir’s progeny and influence grew, a billion other characters were added. Just like Tolkien’s books, the names of characters, places, mounts, etc. were being thrown around ever so often. This is what happens when the story should have ended ages ago. The authors wanted new content, so after racking their brains, they came up with the creative idea to present the same old events in different words. Similar scenarios are reiterated verbatim for Amir Hamza’s sons and grandsons’ tales. If you thought the original 46000-page dastan would be unique, then you were mistaken.
Dastan-goi was an art form in which different artists performed to different audiences each time. It was a game of words and idioms, to showcase the rich vocabulary, nothing more. Musharraf Sahab translates the book in a straightforward way, considerably easy to follow, but often the expressions and idioms are translated literally (thankfully, there are notes at the back). To a non-native Urdu speaker, these English phrases would showcase the richness and innovation of our language, but perhaps it wouldn’t make enough sense either. That said, I do not recommend this translated book except to scholars interested in archaic Urdu literature. The Urdu book is more pleasurable to read.
Lastly, respected Musharraf Ali Farooqi Sahab and Osama Siddique Sahab claim that Dastan-e-Ameer Hamza makes other globally acclaimed books pale. I agree with them, but half-heartedly. The fantasy element is vast; there are magical items, tablets, villains, dragons, simurghs (mythical birds), etc., but I feel Dastan-e-Ameer Hamza has an identity crisis; neither is it completely in our world, nor is it set in a fantastical world. It is somewhere in the middle. Some parts of the story are captivating and thrilling, but they could be further polished and refined. The thing is, the text is essentially the script a dastan-go performer would read in a live performance. This book was NOT written to be read, but to be heard. We are comparing an oral tradition with written traditions. I suggest that one take inspiration from this dastan and adapt it into a novel to modern standards; only then can we compare them reasonably.
Additionally, the dastan could be adapted into a video game. There are many elements which would be perfect, such as traversing between realms, jinns, fairies, swordfighting, warfare, a historical setting, tilisms, which are basically magical worlds, etc. And game hints could replace Hazrat Khizr’s constant appearance in dreams for guidance.
To sum it up, I think this dastan is a fairy tale for adults, as the 'simurgh of imagination takes flight onto the heavens of creativity', and the 'destriers of grandiloquence fiercely gallop onto the fray of composition'. For further references, you can dive into Shamsur Rehman Farooqi's books on the Dastan, “Urdu ki Nasri Dastanein” by Gyan Chand Jain, Mahmood Farooqi’s “Dastan-Goi” and finally Frances Pritchett's "The Romance Tradition in Urdu". As always, our dedicated scholar, Miss Pritchett, has more resources on her website for curious researchers.
September 29, 2015
Although described as a Persian epic, this abridged version is actually from the Urdu version. Apparently this is a popular story throughout the Muslim world. It may be abridged, but it is still quite a read at almost 500 pages. Trust me, I liked it, but I'm really not interested in reading the full account. Amir Hamza is a hero who is in the service of the Persian emperor. (Or the emperor of some really big place). He himself is from Mecca, and a Muslim; a follower of the "true faith." (the quotes are mine). For whatever reason, the empire he serves is one of infidels, or fire worshippers. As many of these epics go, there is a big falling out between Amir and the emperor because the emperor is an idiot and listens to bad advice. This leads to a very long (I mean looooong), standoff between Amir and the infidels throughout much of the book.
With his enormous strength and his great shout of "God is Great" Amir annihilates his enemies easily. He gives them the "choice" often to convert to Islam or die. If they convert, they become his friend and servant. Therefore, enemies quickly become friends; after many people have tragically died of course. Amir is therefore a witness to his faith; a savior of souls who moves from camp to camp and adversary to adversary. I did not get the feeling that he literally ruled anything, other than nominally.
As Amir goes about destroying enemies and making friends, he meets and marries many women. And since this is a medieval epic, expect a good deal of pining and swooning.
There is a break with his battles with the evil empire when Amir leaves the mundane behind and enters the world of the jinn to do battle with all kinds of nasty devs (demons). While doing so he marries a powerful fairy woman, and like Calypso and Odysseus, she keeps him from returning to humankind even after he begs and begs. This is a fun departure, but it too goes on and on and on.
Basically this is not a bad story, but a tad repetitive. The blurb on the cover states that this epic is to medieval Persia what the Iliad and Odyssey is to Greece.
HA!
That honor goes to The Shahnameh, or King Book, by Firdausi. This is THE epic of Persia, comparable to Homer, and makes Amir Hamza look like a pile of pooh.
The translation reads nicely, but some areas feel a bit rushed. This is abridged btw.
With his enormous strength and his great shout of "God is Great" Amir annihilates his enemies easily. He gives them the "choice" often to convert to Islam or die. If they convert, they become his friend and servant. Therefore, enemies quickly become friends; after many people have tragically died of course. Amir is therefore a witness to his faith; a savior of souls who moves from camp to camp and adversary to adversary. I did not get the feeling that he literally ruled anything, other than nominally.
As Amir goes about destroying enemies and making friends, he meets and marries many women. And since this is a medieval epic, expect a good deal of pining and swooning.
There is a break with his battles with the evil empire when Amir leaves the mundane behind and enters the world of the jinn to do battle with all kinds of nasty devs (demons). While doing so he marries a powerful fairy woman, and like Calypso and Odysseus, she keeps him from returning to humankind even after he begs and begs. This is a fun departure, but it too goes on and on and on.
Basically this is not a bad story, but a tad repetitive. The blurb on the cover states that this epic is to medieval Persia what the Iliad and Odyssey is to Greece.
HA!
That honor goes to The Shahnameh, or King Book, by Firdausi. This is THE epic of Persia, comparable to Homer, and makes Amir Hamza look like a pile of pooh.
The translation reads nicely, but some areas feel a bit rushed. This is abridged btw.
May 26, 2017
This panoramic saga dates back perhaps as early as the seventh century, when oral narratives of the deeds of the prophet Muhammad's uncle Amir Hamza spread through Arabia, Persia, and the Indian subcontinent, expanding into a chronicle of warriors, kings, tricksters, fairies, courtesans, and magical creatures.
Here is a special abridged English translation of a major Indo-Persian epic: a panoramic tale of magic and passion, a classic hero's odyssey that has captivated much of the world. It is the spellbinding story of Amir Hamza, the adventurer who in the service of the Persian emperor defeats many enemies, loves many women, and converts hundreds of infidels to the True Faith before finding his way back to his first love.
In Musharraf Ali Farooqi's remarkable abridged rendition, this masterwork is captured with all its colorful action and fantastic elements intact. Appreciated as the seminal Islamic epic or enjoyed as a sweeping tale as rich and inventive as Homer's epic sagas, "The Adventures of Amir Hamza" is a true literary treasure.
See other books in our Folktales from Islamic Traditions booklist here:
https://kitaabworld.com/blogs/news/fo...
Here is a special abridged English translation of a major Indo-Persian epic: a panoramic tale of magic and passion, a classic hero's odyssey that has captivated much of the world. It is the spellbinding story of Amir Hamza, the adventurer who in the service of the Persian emperor defeats many enemies, loves many women, and converts hundreds of infidels to the True Faith before finding his way back to his first love.
In Musharraf Ali Farooqi's remarkable abridged rendition, this masterwork is captured with all its colorful action and fantastic elements intact. Appreciated as the seminal Islamic epic or enjoyed as a sweeping tale as rich and inventive as Homer's epic sagas, "The Adventures of Amir Hamza" is a true literary treasure.
See other books in our Folktales from Islamic Traditions booklist here:
https://kitaabworld.com/blogs/news/fo...
February 22, 2018
One feels like slicing the book into two like a cucumber and dispatching it to hell – a line which seems to be on every second page of the book. A long and not interesting read. While the translation is great, there is something about the stories which doesn’t add up to anything much. The book is like a collection of fairy tales involving the same people, descriptions of events after events - all much the same. The writing is not gripping, it is difficult to read the archaic. And worst, the stories do not capture the imagination, do not delight or shock. There are parts which are honestly repulsive and tedious – mostly involving the attitude towards women. With our short attention spans and limited time, it takes a heroic effort to get through the book. I always assumed that books or stories become classics because they have depth, a connection to some inherent issues which survive the centuries, but that isn’t the case here. Unless you have some historical or academic interest in examining this, it isn’t worth a read.
August 2, 2021
The book started off very interesting and was quite unique in the way the story was told, however as the book goes on it becomes very repetitive and isn't as engaging as it was at the start. The storyline itself can become quite confusing as sometimes it seems like certain characters appear or disappear out of nowhere and certain events happen with no context as to why it’s happening. Despite this, the majority of the storyline does flow and most of it is understandable. It's just a few loopholes in the storyline that let it down. The book itself is actually quite educational about early events in Islam and the roles and influence of the Persian empire in the early years of modern civilisation. This book is one where all different types of people with all different types of interests can read it and find at least one thing they love about it. All in all, the book is good, but nowhere near perfect. It can go from very interesting to very boring and confusing in less than a page. New characters are either introduced to the book in a very unique and creative way, or they seem to appear very randomly and leave loopholes in the storyline.
January 11, 2019
This is a glorious tale, and if you want to go on a romp through a magical world, then this is the place to start.
Set in the early times of Islam. it does indeed also talk oh how Amir Hamza, the uncle of Muhammed, through his adventures, helped to spread Islam. If you ignore this aspect and focus on the utterly magical tale of adventure, magic, loyalty, devs, fairies, love, then you are set for a magical ride.
The translation of this edition is magnificent.
I did read the unabridged version!
Set in the early times of Islam. it does indeed also talk oh how Amir Hamza, the uncle of Muhammed, through his adventures, helped to spread Islam. If you ignore this aspect and focus on the utterly magical tale of adventure, magic, loyalty, devs, fairies, love, then you are set for a magical ride.
The translation of this edition is magnificent.
I did read the unabridged version!
June 19, 2020
childhood memories revived
August 22, 2023
An excellent read for those who love tales about jinns, magic and exotic places.
February 20, 2026
does not lend itself well to the written format at all. removed from its “original” teahouse storytelling form, the tale gets incredibly boring and repetitive in its last 100-or-so pages.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews