Rimonah of the Flashing Sword: A North African Tale

Based upon a Jewish folktale from Egypt, author Eric A. Kimmel spins the story of Rimonah of the Flashing Sword in this gorgeous picture-book. A North African heroine whose story greatly resembles that of the Brothers Grimm fairytale Snow White, Rimonah is born to a mother who wished for a child with skin as dark as a pomegranate, eyes as bright as pomegranate seeds, and a voice as sweet as pomegranate juice. Growing up in the palace of her father, the king, she has a happy childhood until the death of her mother, at which point her father in enspelled by an evil witch, and she herself is taken to the desert, there to be murdered at the new queen's order. Spared instead, Rimonah is taken in by a Bedouin tribe, and grows up into a fine show more horsewoman and sword fighter. When the queen discovers she is still alive, she sets out to kill her by giving her an enchanted scorpion necklace. Now aware that she is still in danger, Rimonah flees, eventually falling in with a band of forty thieves, outlaws who (much as in Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves) live in a cave. When the queen strikes again, Rimonah falls into a deathlike sleep, and is kept by the thieves in a glass coffin, until the arrival of a prince...

As someone with an interest in comparative folklore, I greatly enjoyed Rimonah of the Flashing Sword: A North African Tale, although I did come away wondering how many of the details were from the original North African source, and how many were taken from other sources. According to Kimmel's brief note at the beginning of the book, this was inspired by a story in Howard Schwartz's Miriam's Tambourine: Jewish Folktales from Around the World, although elements of other variants of the tale were also used. I have to laugh at some of the reviews which take Kimmel to task for not revising the Grimm version to their liking, when his note makes it plain that he explicitly did not use the Grimm, finding older variants more 'dynamic.' Perhaps these reviewers didn't read the note? In any case, although this shouldn't be read as an Africanized version of Snow White, it certainly does bear comparison to that tale, and I would be very interested to know which other variants Kimmel used in his retelling. At some point, I'll have to track down the Schwartz and read his telling as well. It's clear that one other source was Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves. In any case, I found the story engaging, appreciating its blend of familiar and unfamiliar elements, and I found the artwork beautiful. Omar Rayyan always delivers something gorgeous, and this was no exception! I did expect Rimonah to be a slightly darker shade of red, given the reference to pomegranates, although here again I am bemused by the reviewers angry that she was not depicted as black. Apparently such people have never seen a pomegranate? Rayyan mentioned in his artist's note that he was inspired by many different artistic styles and settings, so his illustrations are not 'authentic.' Then again, the story itself seems to be an amalgam, so why not the artwork? All in all, a lovely picture-book, one I would recommend to all folk and fairy-tale lovers, particularly those who appreciate strong heroines. show less

This North African version of Snow White proves that the main female character does not need to wait for a prince to come and save her. Rimonah shows that female characters can survive and prove to be strong-willed and skilled on their own. Based on instincts, she learns to protect herself and see past the persona of the thieves who in turn are loyal to Rimonah. In true fairy tale fashion, the prince does save her, yet Rimonah does not forget her band of loyal thieves, showing her faithfulness and honesty. The illustrations are intricate and detailed, showing the emotional and adventurous journey of Rimonah.

This story is very similar to the story of Snow White that I'm familiar with in terms of plot and to some extent characters. Both stories have an evil witch as Snow White's stepmother who is extremely jealous of her step daughter's beauty. Instead of seven dearness, however, there are seven thieves that the queen had wronged in some way. I'm not sure if this is where the phrase originates, but the story uses, "Open sesame!", a phrase well known in our culture. I really like that Snow White is shown to be a strong and fearless leader, but the fact that she still needed to be"saved" by a prince shows that there's still that overlying message that women need to be saved by a man. In this version, too, her father is alive unlike the Disney show more version. show less

I loved this fairy tale! It is a retelling of the Snow White fairy tale with a North African/Middle Eastern twist. Ramonah is a strong female character who is both beautiful and a brave warrior. This would be great to do a compare/contrast piece with students to compare the "traditional" Snow White tale with another. I adore strong female characters where men don't do the rescuing!

Good, but then, Kimmel is always good. This one just wasn't as heartfelt as his others. And Rimonah's skin, according to this artist, is more like pomegranate pulp than the dark skin... too bad. It would be a good 'multicultural' book otherwise.

Rimonah is a North African Tale that has the same key components of Snow White. It is great spin on the the classic tale and can be a great tool to teach about different fantasies.

Lovely, imaginative drawings.