The Book of A Thousand Nights and a Night (Arabian Nights), Volume 01


Read by LibriVox Volunteers

(4.6 stars; 101 reviews)

This is a collection of stories collected over thousands of years by various authors, translators and scholars. The are an amalgam of mythology and folk tales from the Indian sub-continent, Persia, and Arabia. No original manuscript has ever been found for the collection, but several versions date the collection's genesis to somewhere between AD 800-900. The stories are wound together under the device of a long series of cliff-hangers told by Shahrazad to her husband Shahryar, to prevent him from executing her. Many tales that have become independently famous come from the Book, among them Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, and the voyages of Sinbad the Sailor. This collection comes from the first of sixteen volumes translated by Burton.
(Based on Wikipedia article) (13 hr 39 min)

Chapters

Section One 33:54 Read by Peter Yearsley
Section Two 40:42 Read by Gesine
Section Three 38:00 Read by hefyd
Section Four 32:25 Read by hefyd
Section Five 39:35 Read by hefyd
Section Six 35:03 Read by hefyd
Section Seven 35:58 Read by Fr. Richard Zeile of Detroit
Section Eight 34:59 Read by Ransom
Section Nine 37:37 Read by Anna Simon
Section Ten 31:19 Read by Kalynda
Section Eleven 34:28 Read by Kalynda
Section Twelve 34:10 Read by hefyd
Section Thirteen 37:47 Read by hefyd
Section Fourteen 34:29 Read by Priya, India
Section Fifteen 37:09 Read by R. S. Steinberg
Section Sixteen 34:36 Read by hefyd
Section Seventeen 30:18 Read by hefyd
Section Eighteen 34:12 Read by hefyd
Section Nineteen 34:39 Read by hefyd
Section Twenty 36:12 Read by hefyd
Section Twenty-One 33:34 Read by Melissa
Section Twenty-Two 40:40 Read by CalmDragon
Section Twenty-Three 37:54 Read by Peter Yearsley

Reviews

A Thousand + nights


(5 stars)

These stories are a treasure. Some are a little goarey but humor is well used to help. All the readers get a big thankyou from me. The whole family will enjoy this audio book. Oops! No, no, no, I mean those over ... say ... 18. I just listened again and its still a wonderfull book.

Very good presentation.


(5 stars)

Complete as far as I hear. My mother loved these.

Excellent.


(5 stars)

I greatly enjoyed the stories. Can't wait for the second volume


(5 stars)

one of the best book created. thanks a lot for sir Richard

Good book and readers


(3.5 stars)

Overall I found this to be a good book with good readers, however a few readers were somewhat distracting in regards to their even tone. But the main reason I did not fully enjoy tbis book is my lack of understanding of Islamic culture and its traxitions. This was my first exposure to both and am grateful to this book and recording for that rare pleasure in my life. Thank-you all in this endeavor.

Magnificent


(5 stars)

I love the Book of a Thousand Nights and a Night and this is my second time listening. I listened to all 14 volumes a few years ago and now I'm at it again. And after reading many of the stories many times over the last 50 years. To quote Robert Louis Stevenson the book "Captivates in childhood and delights in age".


(4.5 stars)

Burton's translation is accurate and easy to understand despite some archaisms. I notice the absence of preface and footnotes, though Im sure people like me who want footnotes are in the minority. I could nitpick the readers, but they are volunteers


(5 stars)

A wonderful translation read well. I do miss Burton's introduction and commentary, but not enough to lower my rating. If you think the tales are adult, you should see some of the notes.