Description
“A beautifully written tale of tales, and a work of remembrance and recovery, of stories and lies, theft and justice. Superb stuff—completely beguiling.”—William Dalrymple
Finding Aladdin is a captivating work of literary deduction that unearths the true story of the young man who created Aladdin, a tale almost as strange as the fantastical stories themselves.
When The Arabian Nights were first translated into European languages, they were a sensation. Many were ancient tales drawn from Arabic folklore, but the most famous of all, Aladdin, was completely new.
Centuries later, a researcher working in the Vatican Library finds an anonymous Arabic manuscript that tells of a young Arab man, Hanna Diab, brought on as an interpreter by a French adventurer travelling the Middle East. One day, they hire a small child to go into a narrow, cavelike grave, and the child comes out with some coins and a beat-up oil lamp. After many more adventures, Hanna Diab ends up at the French court where he meets the now famous translator of the Arabian Nights. He sits down to tell him a story, and the tale of Aladdin and the magic lamp is born.
In Finding Aladdin, Matthew Teller unearths the hidden history of a young man desperate to escape his fate, who found early salvation in stories, shining a spotlight on a skilled storyteller hiding in plain sight.
Praise for Finding Aladdin
“A beautifully written tale of tales, and a work of remembrance and recovery, of stories and lies, theft and justice. Superb stuff—completely beguiling.”
—William Dalrymple, author of The Golden Road
“Eloquent and informative, Finding Aladdin challenges self-aggrandising narratives of orientalist learning. It is a pleasure to read.”
—Abdulrazak Gurnah, author of Paradise
“I love this book. I was utterly dazzled by it. Matthew Teller takes us on a breathtaking journey that is full of surprises, one that unearths a lost piece of history, and a person once buried in the shadows of fiction and stereotype. This book is truly a jewel. I could not put it down.”
—Moudhy Al-Rashid, author of Between Two Rivers
“A fascinating and entertaining book—Hanna Diab would have loved it! Author Matthew Teller draws upon admirably comprehensive knowledge of the historical context and existing scholarship, combined with a flair for intuitive interpretation. He is a storyteller as gifted as his subject.”
—Ulrich Marzolph, professor of Arabic and Islamic Studies, University of Göttingen
“A history of the Aladdin story that will enthrall readers.”
—Ruth Bottigheimer, author of Fairy Tales: A New History
“Matthew Teller offers us a new account of the captivating history of the 1001 Nights. He writes with the talent of a storyteller and the skill of a historian.”
—Bernard Heyberger, Director of Studies at the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales
Praise for Nine Quarters of Jerusalem
“Engaging . . . Teller is an informed, enthusiastic guide to one of the most contested sites in the world.”
—Financial Times
“As labyrinthine as the city it describes . . . a curious, offbeat biography that comes alive through the many gathered voices.”
—Critic
“Highly perceptive and readable . . . Presents a subtle portrait of the current reality at the heart of the world’s most intractable and divisive conflict . . . Fascinating.”
—Ian Black, Observer
