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Idries Shah spent much of his life collecting and publishing Sufi classical narratives and teaching stories from oral and written sources in the Middle East and Central Asia. The tales he retold especially for children are published by Hoopoe Books in beautifully illustrated editions and have been widely commended - by Western educators and psychologists, the U.S. Library of Congress, National Public Radio and other media - for their unique ability to foster social-emotional development, thinking skills and perception in children and adults alike. Told for centuries, these stories express universal themes from the cultures that produced them, showing how much we have in common and can learn from each other. As noted by reviewers, such stories are more than just entertaining; familiarity with them provokes flexibility of thought, since each one contains levels of meaning that unfold in accordance with an individual's experience and understanding. Idries Shah spent much of his life collecting Sufi classical narratives and teaching stories from oral and written sources in the Middle East and Central Asia and publishing them in book form. The eleven tales he wrote especially for children are published by Hoopoe as beautifully illustrated books, all of which have been commended by Western educators and psychologists, the Library of Congress, National Public Radio and other media for their unique ability to foster social-emotional development, thinking skills and perception in children and adults alike. Told for centuries, these stories express universal themes and a positive representation of important but often misunderstood cultures, showing how much we have in common and what we can learn from each other. They acknowledge a child's individuality and uniqueness and encourage a sense of confidence, responsibility and purpose. Idries Shah machte es sich zur Lebensaufgabe, klassische Sufi-Erzählungen und -Lehrgeschichten aus mündlich und schriftlich überlieferten Quellen im Nahen und Mittleren Osten und Zentralasien zu sammeln und diese in Buchform zu veröffentlichen. Shahs elf Geschichten für Kinder - in sehr schön illustrierten Büchern von Hoopoe herausgegeben - werden von westlichen Pädagogen und Psychologen sowie von der US-Bibliothek des Kongresses, dem Radiosender ""National Public Radio"" und anderen Medien empfohlen, weil sie die sozial-emotionale Entwicklung sowie Denk- und Wahrnehmungsfähigkeiten bei Kindern wie auch Erwachsenen auf besondere Weise fördern. Diese Geschichten, die schon seit Jahrhunderten erzählt werden, handeln von universellen Themen und stellen wichtige - jedoch oft missverstandene - Kulturen positiv dar. Sie zeigen, wie viel Gemeinsames wir haben und wie wir voneinander lernen können. Bei dieser Art von Erzählen wird jedes Kind als einzigartiges Individuum anerkannt und gerade dadurch können Selbstvertrauen, Verantwortlichkeit und Zielstrebigkeit ermutigt werden.
""The tale of the two brothers and their journeys is illustrated with jewel-toned, delicate paintings featuring the costumes, tools, buildings, and animals of the Moslem East. ... The two brothers do not represent good and evil as happens so often in Western tales, but instead merely the choice of two different paths."" - School Library Journal (U.S.) ""... beautifully illustrated by Julie Freeman, who perfectly captures the magic of this ancient Sufi folk tale."" - Midwest Book Review (U.S.) ""These teaching stories can be experienced on many levels. A child may simply enjoy hearing them; an adult may analyze them in a more sophisticated way. Both may eventually benefit from the lessons within."" - ""All Things Considered,"" National Public Radio (U.S.) ""They [teaching stories] suggest ways of looking at difficulties that can help children solve problems calmly while, at the same time, giving them fresh perspectives on these difficulties that help them develop their cognitive abilities"" - psychologist Robert Ornstein, Ph.D., in his lecture ""Teaching Stories and the Brain"" given at the U.S. Library of Congress ""Through repeated readings, these stories provoke fresh insight and more flexible thought in children. Beautifully illustrated."" - NEA Today: The Magazine of the National Education Association (U.S.) ""Shah's versatile and multilayered tales provoke fresh insight and more flexible thought in children."" - Bookbird: A Journal of International Children's Literature ""These stories ... are not moralistic fables or parables, which aim to indoctrinate, nor are they written only to amuse. Rather, they are carefully designed to show effective ways of defining and responding to common life experiences."" - Denise Nessel, Ph.D., Senior Consultant with the National Urban Alliance for Effective Education (U.S.), writing in Library Media Connection: The Professional Magazine for School Library Media Specialists (U.S.) ""These enchanting stories Shah has collected have a richness and depth not often encountered in children's literature, and their effect on minds young and old can be almost magical."" - Multicultural Perspectives: An Official Journal of the National Association for Multicultural Education (U.S.) ""Shah has collected hundreds of Sufi tales, many of which are teaching tales or instructional stories. In this tradition, the line between stories for children and those for adults is not as clear as it seems to be in Western cultures, and the lessons are important for all generations."" - School Library Journal (U.S.) ""... these are vibrant, engaging, universal stories...."" - Multicultural Perspectives: An Official Journal of the National Association for Multicultural Education (U.S.) ""... a series of children's books that have captivated the hearts and minds of people from all walks of life. The books are tales from a rich tradition of story telling from Central Asia and the Middle East. Stories told and retold to children, by campfire and candlelight, for more than a thousand years."" - NEA Today: The Magazine of the National Education Association (U.S.)
