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ISF is incredibly proud to announce the publication of six new children’s books featuring teaching-stories selected from the works of Idries Shah. Edited by Safia Shah, these titles are illustrated in fresh, contemporary styles by award-winning illustrators from around the world, including Prashant Miranda and Zainab Faidhi.
You can own all six titles in hardback and paperback — they’re available through Amazon worldwide and all good book stores. Order copies for your children, grandchildren, nephews and nieces today! And please support ISF by donating copies to your local primary school or library. Book sales help fund our mission to keep Idries Shah’s works available to all.
The Story of Mushkil Gusha by Idries Shah
‘I sometimes wish that we would have some nicer food and different kinds of things to eat,’ a wood-cutter’s daughter tells her father one evening. Her simple request sparks a fantastical chain of events that sees the lives of the woodcutter and his daughter improved by the mysterious ‘Mushkil Gusha’, the Remover of Difficulties. On the following Thursday night, however, the wood-cutter and his daughter both forget to commemorate Mushkil Gusha – and their lives take another dramatic and unexpected turn, changing forever…
This timeless teaching-story has been recited on Thursday nights in the East for generations. Part of a rich body of literature from Central Asia and the Middle East, The Tale of Mushkil Gusha is one of many stories collected by the late Afghan author and thinker, Idries Shah.
Formats: Hardcover, Paperback
The Fisherman's Neighbour by Idries Shah
When a poor fisherman discovers a priceless gold ring inside a fish, he can’t believe his luck. He takes the ring to the king and is richly rewarded. His nosy neighbour – greedy to get rich himself – tries to find out how the fisherman came by his wealth and spies on him. But the neighbour is partially deaf. And when he tries to replicate the fisherman’s success based on what he thinks he’s overheard, things don’t quite turn out as he’d hoped.
Part of a rich body of literature from Central Asia and the Middle East, The Fisherman’s Neighbour is one of many hundreds of tales collected by the late Afghan author and thinker, Idries Shah.
Formats: Hardcover, Paperback
The Tale of Melon City by Idries Shah
How can a mere melon be crowned a king? All too easily, it seems, in a city where basic common sense is in short supply. Its people are willing to accept authority in any shape or form, and their silly former king has ordered his own execution – all because he bumped his head on an arch and couldn’t find someone else to blame! For centuries, this hilarious Central Asian teaching-story about a society where rationality turns in on itself has been a firm favourite with children. But is it really so far-fetched?
The Tale of Melon City is one of many stories collected by the late Afghan author and thinker, Idries Shah.
Formats: Hardcover, Paperback
The Boy With No Voice and the Men Who Couldn’t Hear by Idries Shah
When three deaf men get into an argument, they have to call on the first passer-by to ask for help in resolving their conflict. This happens to be a little boy. But it also happens that he cannot speak. How will he communicate with three deaf men – let alone stop them arguing amongst themselves and see sense?
For more than 1,000 years this story has entertained children, helped them examine their own assumptions and think creatively.
Part of a rich body of literature from Central Asia and the Middle East, The Boy With No Voice and the Men Who Couldn’t Hear is one of many tales collected by the late Afghan author and thinker, Idries Shah.
Formats: Hardcover, Paperback
The Rich Man and the Monkey by Idries Shah
When a monkey meets a rich man, he complains that he is poor. ‘I own nothing, not even clothes,’ the monkey says. The rich man, who has a big house and vast estates, starts to feel guilty about possessing so much while the monkey remains destitute. So he decides to sign over all his possessions to the animal. Is this a wise choice? Or has the rich man been too hasty in giving everything away to a monkey?
For more than 1,000 years this story has entertained children, helped foster the ability to examine their own assumptions and think for themselves. Part of a rich body of literature from Central Asia and the Middle East, The Rich Man and the Monkey is one of many tales collected by the late Afghan author and thinker, Idries Shah.
Formats: Hardcover, Paperback
The Man The Tree and The Wolf by Idries Shah
A young man, wanting to find out how to become rich and happy, sets off on a journey to find a wise man. Along the way, he encounters a fish, a tree and a wolf. All three ask him to help them find the answer to a question of their own. When the young man finally meets a wise man, he is told that he will find what he’s looking for during the journey home. The wise man also entrusts him with answers for the fish, the tree and the wolf. Can the young man benefit from their good fortune as well?
Part of a rich body of literature from Central Asia and the Middle East, this story is one of many collected by the late Afghan author and thinker, Idries Shah.
Formats: Hardcover, Paperback
‘These teaching-stories can be experienced on many levels. A child may simply enjoy hearing them, an adult may analyse them in a more sophisticated way. Both may eventually benefit from the lessons within.’
ALL THINGS CONSIDERED, NPR
‘Shah has collected hundreds of Sufi tales… In this tradition, the line between stories for children and those for adults is not as clear as it seems to be in Western cultures… the lessons are important for all generations.’
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL