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  • World Tales

  • By: Idries Shah
  • Narrated by: David Ault
  • Length: 13 hrs and 13 mins
  • 4.0 out of 5 stars (2 ratings)
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World Tales

By: Idries Shah
Narrated by: David Ault
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Summary

How can it be that the same story is found in Scotland and also in pre-Columbian America? What can account for the durability and persistence of tales? Was the tale of Aladdin and his wondrous lamp really taken from Wales (where it has been found) to the ancient East and, if so, when and by whom?  

These questions and more are answered in Idries Shah’s remarkable volume World Tales, which is subtitled “The extraordinary coincidence of stories told in all times, in all places.” In his introduction, Shah remarks, “Working for thirty-five years among the written and oral sources of our world heritage in tales, one feels a truly living element in them which is startlingly evident when one isolates the ‘basic’ stories; the ones which tend to have traveled farthest, to have featured in the largest number of classical collections, to have inspired great writers of the past and present.”

©1979, 2017 The Estate of Idries Shah (P)2018 ISF Publishing

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Awful narration

The source material is magical mysterious and enchanting. the narration is totally flat. the narrator sounds to me depressed and utterly disengaged with the text he's reading. it lacks energy, charisma, and engagement. he might as well be reading the news. such narration is hugely frustrating for such quality source material. why on earth the publishers choose people like this instead of theatrically trained actors more suited to expressive Fables I do not know. There must be enough such actors looking for work. compare for example to Naxos brilliant edition of the Arabian Nights (also on Audible) - like chalk and cheese.

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