The Arabian Nights Entertainments

Andrew Lang

Dec 2005 · Cosimo, Inc.

About this ebook

'Do you see that mountain?' asked the king, pointing to a huge mass that towered into the sky about three leagues from Schiraz; 'go and bring me the leaf of a palm that grows at the foot.' The words were hardly out of the king's mouth when the Indian turned a screw placed in the horse's neck, close to the saddle, and the animal bounded like lightning up into the air, and was soon beyond sight even of the sharpest eyes. -from "The Enchanted Horse" A startlingly prolific collector of fairy tales from around the world, Andrew Lang, in this 1898 work, brought together in one volume the "fairy tales of the East," the delightful and resoundingly entertaining adventures of The Arabian Nights. Translated from a French version that omits all the "very dull and stupid" additions of early European retellings, this wonderful book regales us with the stories of Sindbad and his seven voyages, the "Vizir who was Punished," Aladdin and his magic lamp, and many, many more. Complete with beautiful pen-and-ink illustrations, this is a collection to treasure, whether you're studying comparative mythology or just seeking a rollicking good read. Scottish journalist and author ANDREW LANG (1844-1912), a friend of Robert Louis Stevenson, produced a stunning variety and number of volumes, including books of poetry, novels, children's books, histories, and biographies, as well as criticism, essays, scholarly works of anthropology, and translations of classical literature. * * *

About the author

Andrew Lang was born at Selkirk in Scotland on March 31, 1844. He was a historian, poet, novelist, journalist, translator, and anthropologist, in connection with his work on literary texts. He was educated at Edinburgh Academy, St. Andrews University, and Balliol College, Oxford University, becoming a fellow at Merton College. His poetry includes Ballads and Lyrics of Old France (1872), Ballades in Blue China (1880--81), and Grass of Parnassus (1888--92). His anthropology and his defense of the value of folklore as the basis of religion is expressed in his works Custom and Myth (1884), Myth, Ritual and Religion (1887), and The Making of Religion (1898). He also translated Homer and critiqued James G. Frazer's views of mythology as expressed in The Golden Bough. He was considered a good historian, with a readable narrative style and knowledge of the original sources including his works A History of Scotland (1900-7), James VI and the Gowrie Mystery (1902), and Sir George Mackenzie (1909). He was one of the most important collectors of folk and fairy tales. His collections of Fairy books, including The Blue Fairy Book, preserved and handed down many of the better-known folk tales from the time. He died of angina pectoris on July 20, 1912.