Ghalib Lakhnavi

I read Daastaan-e-Ameer Hamza in Urdu when I was a kid and the stories mesmerized me with the make believe world of Jinns, Devs, and Peris. So, I was naturally excited delving into the English translation after almost 20 years. But time seems to have taken the sheen off the once dazzling 'Tilism-e-Hoshruba'. After the second book, most of the stories seem unimaginative and written to a standard template. The book gets repetitive to a fault towards the end and I had a hard time making myself show more finish it. Musharraf Ali Farooqi, however, gets full marks for the excellent translation that kept the flair and flow of the original urdu cum persian narrative. show less

This is an extraordinary book for many western readers. It is a modern re-working of a 19th century Urdu version of an Islamic heroic epic. The English prose reminds one at times of Shakespeare, at other times of Homer, and yet at other times as something refreshingly new in its attempt to capture oral story-telling.
There are 900 closely-lined pages in four volumes between the covers (condensed from an original 40 volumes). The heroic epic narrates the life and deeds of Amir (Commander) show more Hamza, and his many enemies, companions, lovers, and relatives, both human and from the world of jinns. Hamza is an Arab, born in Mecca. The epic seems to revolve about the conversion of the Perso-Indian world to Islam through Hamza's exploits and character. However, the real delight of the book lies in its bombastic language, over-the-top descriptions, and rich imagination. The reader will "marvel to the limits of marveling," as the epic's scribe puts it. There are enough plot twists, humorous improbabilities, and weird characters to keep the reader absorbed, although toward the end the epic begins to run out of steam and coasts along on somewhat labored repetition. show less

This is a glorious tale, and if you want to go on a romp through a magical world, then this is the place to start.

Set in the early times of Islam. it does indeed also talk oh how Amir Hamza, the uncle of Muhammed, through his adventures, helped to spread Islam. If you ignore this aspect and focus on the utterly magical tale of adventure, magic, loyalty, devs, fairies, love, then you are set for a magical ride.

The translation of this edition is magnificent.