Shahrukh Husain

‘’When have I last looked on
The round green eyes and the long wavering bodies
Of the dark leopards of the moon?
All the wild witches, those most noble ladies,
For all their broom-sticks and their tears,
Their angry tears, are gone.
The holy centaurs of the hills are vanished;
I have nothing but the embittered sun;
Banished heroic mother moon and vanished,
And now that I have come to fifty years
I must endure the timid sun.’’
W.B.Yeats, Lines Written In Dejection Minutes

Temptress. Lover. Wise show more Woman. Healer. Seductive. Frightening. Fearless. Fearsome. Satan’s Bride. Daughter of Nature. Brave. Elusive. Menacing. Threatening. Lethal. Determined. Persecuted. Murdered. Immortal.

The Witch, the personification of fears and desires, the voice that stands against any attempt to silence the Woman’s Mind, the one who heals and kills. All through the ages, through the changes of our societies, the Witch has remained there for us to admire, to hate, to fear, to understand, to exorcise. The archetypal figure of the women who refuse to yield and obey to the ignorant mob. The ‘’monster’’ who takes and gives according to her will, the one who ignores the consequences and leads her own way.

From Greece to Ireland, from Haiti to Kongo, from Iceland to Italy, from Russia to Portugal, from Australia to America, these are myths of cunning tricks and dark spells. Of divine children, wronged princesses, nightmarish hags, misled men, cruel stepmothers, beautiful seductresses. Stories about the Providence lighting the world, stories about the evil awaiting in its lair. From Lilith to Hecate, Biddy Early and Baba Yaga, the Witch is always here…

‘’I love you with all my heart, but at the same time I always freeze if you are near me, and you nearly die of heat if I approach you! How shall we travel about together without being odious the one to the other?’’
The Snow-Daughter and the Fire-Son (Iceland)

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Finally, a beautiful brightly illustrated collection of thoughtful stories from the Islamic world for children. This book tells stories about Mulla Nasruddin, a spiritual teacher who travels and faces difficulties head on, using his clever mind.

“’What’s the matter, Mulla?’ he asked. ‘All is well, I hope?’
‘Why shouldn’t all be well?’ snapped the Mulla, hurrying down the road. He knew very well that his nosy neighbor was not interested in his welfare, but wanted a bit of show more gossip.” show less

I thought I knew the story of The Wise Fool, but I did not know this one - This is about an Islamic legendary character named Mulla Nasruddin and teaches children in a tricky way about life and the morals and lessons learned. Mulla, travels all around and has many different moods and personalities, the stories he tells could be fables we already know, but told in another cultures viewpoint. I think this is a great book to help children understand different cultures and how much they are show more alike. Great for all classrooms from K-12 as the art in the book with the use of colors ,shapes, and patterns would be inspiration to anyone. show less

The Wise Fool: Fables from the Islamic World is a collection of Mulla Nasruddin tales, which are famous folktales that have been shared for centuries throughout Pakistan and the Arab Middle East to Turkey, Afghanistan, Iran, Bulgaria and parts of Russia. The tales are based on Nasruddin, a simple wise man, sometimes rich, sometimes poor, who offers moments of wisdom and humor in everyday moral scenarios. People want his guidance on what is right, or how they should behave, but he offers show more solutions in parables that leave people chuckling knowing that he does not take life or himself too seriously. He’s a lovable character, humble and preoccupied with the present, he changes over time and can always teach life’s lessons and the way to follow, to those willing to listen. show less