Ali Baba Books

It's a shame not too many people have read this. It became a cult favorite in my school many years ago when I recommended it to my classmates and I still read it after many years. It's been lent out so many times it's divided into four pieces and I STILL read it, so I think that says something. It's very creative and stylistic, nothing else I've read has approached this style. Craig Shaw Gardner takes the wondrous yet speedy tone the original Arabian Nights takes, and perverts it horribly. I don't know why authors don't pervert classics. Maybe I should.

Craig Shaw Gardner once again bombards his readers with his wit and wacky humor. I love this book and Gardner's style. It may not be something everyone can appreciate, but I do, and find it incredibly amusing.

This is a must-have, not just for reference on your library shelf, but as a practical workbook - which simulates the first year's study at the famous Ali Akbar Khan college of music in California (as the title declares).
What most appeals is the clarity of the editing by George Ruckert - himself a formidable performer, teacher and academic on the subject. Peppered with enjoyable photos and quotes from Khan-sahib himself, this book makes the learning experience as close as it can to being with a master, and would be a valuable aid even if you do have the real "guru" experience.

i use this book pretty much every day
has history, theory, tons of exercises and plenty of compositions to help you begin to learn some of the basics of hindustani classical music
i've had other books before, but often they just list ascending and descending scales and sometimes a chalan which doesn't really help you grasp the real sound or core of a rag - of course, a book can't come close to actually studying with a master, but this can definitely help during the times where we must study without a teacher

The antiquated English accent of the narrator lends this classic story just the right ambiance. The book of a thousand nights and a night has been a standard bedtime accompanyment for me, and this recording makes going to sleep even easier. And, pondering the shrewd contrivances of times past prepares one even for tomorrow's adversaries.

I liked "Hurray for Ali Baba Bernstein because it was very funny.In chapter #3, some of the shops had names that had stuff to do with a king and he was acting silly.I also thought it was good in chapter #1 and #6 because they were mysterys and I think this was an approprite way to begin and end the story.

Are you a student who'd like to sharpen your editing skills so your essays and papers don't come back with your instructor's circles and underlines over your repeated grammar mistakes? Or maybe you're a writing instructor looking for resources to help your students edit their written work? Preferably readily-typed paragraphs or essays fraught with specific mistakes?

If you say "YES" in either case, then Allen Ascher's "Think about editing: a grammar guide" is THE book for you!

This book is really useful and practical because it's an English grammar guide-cum-practice book. Most grammar books provide "fill in the blanks" or cloze passage-type of exercises where you can find get the answers but somehow, you still make the same grammar mistakes in your writing. This book is different as it helps students look out for mistakes in paragraph or essay form. This way, it provides simulation-type exercises which hone you to apply grammar rules to your writing.

All the practise passages contain either one type of grammar mistake or several so you are gently eased into the editing mode.Soon, you'll get so used to looking for grammar mistakes in paragraph/ essay form, you'll find no trouble editing your own writing!

In a nutshell, it's a great book both as a grammar reference as well as a practice book. Trust me, you'll never agonize over editing your work again.

I purchased this to share with my granddaughters. Always loved the stories of the Arabian Nights as a child. Also, like English Actor Toby Stephens who I think did a great job on these audio tapes. Very animated and descriptive. Thank you for having these tapes available.

I recently purchased this CD set for my daughters to listen to in the car and at bed time. I was impressed with how much they enjoyed it. Several times we have had to sit in the car for a few minute after getting home so that they could hear the end of a chapter.

Now, as for the stories themselves, be warned. These are NOT polished up, dumbed-down, sanitized disney versions. The language used is age appropriate for young listeners. However, there is a body count, and there is a scene where somebody dumps boiling oil in the jars with the murdering thieves. It is not particularly graphic, but if you have concerns about that kind of thing, you really should listen to the stories yourself before letting your kids hear them. Also, these are stories from the middle east, so there are several mentions throughout the stories to Allah. They are handled in a religiously neutral fashion, and only serve to remind the listener that the stories are from another culture. It is not some back door attempt to convert kids to Islam. All that being said, these are relatively good versions of the traditional stories. They are fun to listen to. I probably enjoyed them as much as the kids did. The narrator is engaging, and his delivery is excellent. I would recommend these CDs to anybody who is interested in introducing kids to the stories of Arabian Nights.

-CR

I bought this for my two sons, ages 7 & 9. We put it in at the beginning of a 2.5 hour trip and it kept our entire family very entertained. The trip flew by.

I had the idea it would blissful to ride to work with Toby Stephens reading stories to me. I was right. These are charming and sometimes hair-raising tales told with all the variety he can bring to his voice to mesmerize and enthrall. I have heard other books on tape where the reader falters at the woman's lines or sounds too much the same to distinguish between characters. Toby can go from growl to light-as-air with the greatest of ease. These stories have far too much violence for the smallest of children but, otherwise, offer a delicious trip to fantasy land courtesy of a master storyteller.

This is not a bad compilation of the classic 'Arabian Nights' tales, but be aware that it has been greatly abridged for children's eyes. This has been accomplished several ways: Some of the most raunchy stories have been left out entirely, others have been heavily edited. Somewhat irritating and baffling, however, is that several of the stories haven't been edited so much as left with huge gaps and sometimes without any kind of ending. When I read these stories as I child, I was fascinated but deeply confused at the lack of resolution in several of the stories. Having read the "adult" Arabian Nights tales since then, that confusion has been cleared up.

This is not a bad adaptation for children, but I would have preferred a more carefully edited version, rather than one with somewhat sloppy cuts that left me, even as a child, aware that something was missing.

The reader's voice is pleasant to listen to. The stories are charming. Most of them are new to me, but familiar to my husband. Very good stories with a moral taught.

My son hasn't really taking a liking to this rendition of fairy tales. And I must say it has proven to not be as good we'd hoped. In fact he's listened to it only twice since Christmas.

The selection of stories could've been better; and those classics I treasured as a child didn't always flow with the time honored readings of past renditions. For example, the Three Little Pigs introduce a man who sells straw, wood, and bricks to the pigs and the ending (the wolf's demise) seemed to drag on a bit.

Advice if purchased, take an objective approach - don't get your hopes p too high. Enjoy!!

A wonderful telling of fabulous stories while remaining true to a rich linguistic tradition. These stories are not dumbed down in the least and the narrator is a pleasure to listen to.

My three and five year old have listened to these stories over and over again! I also read "Dick Whittington and His Cat" (retold by Marcia Brown) to my girls. This combination quickly became a favorite of my three year old. I can't recommend this cd highly enough if you are a fan of well written literature for children.

This is a great narration of some great classic tales. Lots of action and best of all, it keeps to the original stories. Kids love it. Hansel and Gretel is slightly scary but then it always was.

If you like films this is an invaluable book. The film credits alone are valuable and informative for cross-reference directors, writers, cinematographers and the like. The book covers sci-fi, fantasy, horror with an affinity for films of the like. Great text.

Do the math 1,017-pages, only 700 dedicated to film the rest is an index of artists. Now in the 700 pages we have to stuff small four" square photos (about one per page), a few larger photos (all black and white), and 9,000 films (1896-1999); that leaves approximately one inch and a half page column to describe the title main actors and writing source.

Some of the pictures ar fun, just knowing the film is made is useful. However that is all there is.

The story is of a woodcutter that discovers hidden treasures of a band of robbers and brings riches to his family. The book is wonderfully illustrated with color, a very enjoyable story line and a fun read. This is a more popular Arab story that children will enjoy. This book is also available in Spanish for any teachers that may be looking for literature to include into their multicultural classroom.

When David Bernstein decides to change his name to Ali Baba, weird and unusual things start to happen! He finds a robber's treasure in his apartment's basement, and much more! I say this book is wonderful, but sort of disappointing when Ali Baba finds out about the treasure. I think the point of this book is: Having a good imagination gives you adventures, not your name.

David changed his name to Ali Baba. When he did this he tried to turn ordinary things into big adventures. I thought it was a good book because it was silly. I think Johanna wrote this to teach the lesson that changing your name will not make you have adventures.

David changed his name to Ali Baba. He thought that an exciting name would give him exciting adventures. So he got into big trouble. I liked this story because Ali Baba has a big imagination. I learned that if you have an exciting name you still won't have an exciting life.