Two illustrated tales adapted from Rumi's writings. Themes of overcoming big challenges even when you are small, and the value of thinking critically to devise creative solutions to hard problems.
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An illustrated retelling of The Bird's Wise Counsels. A bird is captured for a meal and offers to exchange wisdom for its release. The bird shares his pearls of wisdom but his captor is unable to appreciate the teachings. The key to wisdom is not just comprehending, but being able to apply it situationally.
A creative adaptation of The Lion and the Beasts, where the beasts of Rumi's valley become a village of rabbits and his lion becomes a fantastic beast. The beast invades the village and steals their harvest. A young rabbit devises a clever plan to save his village. The beast is scary, just as life can be scary at times, and to see a youngster overcome his fear and succeed makes us all feel stronger.
My goal is to bring old wisdom tales to life with colorful illustrations and simple narration. The stories are a way for me to connect with my heritage and an excuse to create illustrations.
This is not your typical picture book. It doesn't end well for the beast and the man. Each was tricked by the false promise of quick wealth or easy reward, but their failures — as ours — are an opportunity to learn, an opportunity to pursue wisdom and wit.
Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Rūmī (1207–1273) was a 13th-century poet, Islamic scholar, and mystic. His poems and stories use everyday life to describe the spiritual world and have universal appeal.
Available at the Sausalito Library, Tiburon Library, and Redwood City Library.