This true story from ninth-century Baghdad concerns Ishaq, a young explorer and the son of a scholar of the House of Wisdom, the great library of the city and a center of culture and ideas at that time. Ishaq travels from Spain to India to China, gathering books for scholars in the library. He finally understands that we are like leaves of the same tree and hopes that he will light the way for future searchers of truth. Though the text and concept are not for younger readers, the story is an inspirational one, as well as a reminder of the highly developed civilization of the Middle East during Europe s Dark Ages. GrandPr s illustrations detail some costume and architecture and include frames and borders inspired by richly patterned Islamic art.
Historical notes provide contextual information.
From Iranian folklore comes the story of poor Ahmed, whose nagging wife persuades him to declare himself a fortuneteller. Ahmed, by dumb luck, solves the mystery of the missing royal treasure within his allotted 40 days, avoiding prison and gaining rewards. Dianov includes details of costume and architecture in his active, brightly colored watercolors, and places text on simulated scrolls, but he has not included the details and borders that would make his work more closely resemble classic Persian miniatures. His distinctive style has an appealing humor. Notes and a pronunciation guide are included.