Once upon a time there was a good king who had three very lazy sons. As he grew older, their father began to despair. He wondered how he would ever succeed in educating his sons so that, when the time came, one of them could take over the rule of the kingdom. Experts came from far and wide to give advice, but the spoilt young princes would not listen to any of them. At last a famous wise man arrived at the court and offered to teach the princes by means of instructive fables. So charming were these stories, so full of wit and wisdom, that the King's sons were captivated by them and in time began to learn the lessons they taught. In the tales, animals could talk and had human feelings, and the same failings as humans too. They displayed arrogance, greed and cowardice, but also intelligence, bravery, and above all, loyalty to their friends. Courage, honesty and quick thinking were rewarded, but animals that were greedy or dishonest always came to a bad end. First written down more than 2,500 years ago in an ancient Indian language called Sanskrit, these and other stories were included in a book called the Panchatantram fables. From India, travellers carried the stories to Iran, and then on to the Arabic-speaking world, where they formed part of a book called Kalila and Dimna. Other stories in this collection come from places as far apart as Morocco, Iraq and the Punjab. They are tales that children would hear from their parents and grandparents, passed down through families, each storyteller relating his or her own version. In The Blue Jackal these fables are re-told, in simple language that children can understand and enjoy, and are beautifully illustrated by Canadian artist Charlene Kasdorf. The author was inspired to make this collection of tales by the animals depicted on the glorious works of art on display in the Museum of Islamic Art, Qatar. With the support of Occidental Petroleum of Qatar Ltd, these delightful fables which have been handed down from generation to generation around the world are now brought to a new, young audience.

 

There are 80 pages in this book. This book was published 2014 by Medina Publishing Ltd .

Frances Gillespie is a British writer and journalist, resident in Qatar for over 25 years. Her bestselling book, Discovering Qatar, was published in 2006, reprinted in 2008, and has sold over 8, 000 copies. She also co-authored Common Birds of Qatar (2010). Julia Johnson is a drama teacher turned children's author, storyteller and performer who first came to Dubai in 1975. She has appeared on stage, TV and radio in the UK and in Dubai, has toured Theatre-in-Education productions to schools and has recorded over 100 audio books. Julia's stories frequently focus on the history and culture of the Arabian Peninsula. She has written over a dozen stories for children including 'The Camel That Got Away' and 'Humpy Grumpy's Mission Improbable'. 'The Turtle Secret' won the Best International Children's Book Award at Sharjah International Book Fair 2014. She has toured schools and colleges across the Emirates, Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia with talks and workshops, and is a regular speaker at the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature. Charlene Kasdorf grew up in the prairies of Canada and spent afternoons rummaging through the boxes of paper in her parents' printing shop. Logically, she began her studies in Graphic Design, and while working internationally, earned her BFA and MEd. She now lives in Qatar and balances her work in illustration, art, and education . all the while spending afternoons watching her two little sand pirates construct inventions and stories out of paper.

This book has the following chapters: Introduction; The blue jackal, the camel and the jackal; the clever donkey, the donkey who liked to sing; the elephant and his friend the dog; the farmer's wife and the tiger; the four friends; the hare and the lion; the hawks and their friends; the heron and the crab; the jackal and the hedgehog; the lion and the wolf; the mice and the cats; the monkey and the crocodile; the ringdoves and the rat; the talkative turtle; the three fish