HarperCollins is proud to present its new range of best-loved, essential classics. ‘So he rose and lighted one lamp after another, till he had lighted the whole eighty and the palace seemed to dance with brilliancy.’ Beginning with the legend of King Shahryr, whose anger at his queen’s infidelity leads him to murder a new wife each day, Arabian Nights weaves together ancient folklore and magic in an anthology of fantastical and evocative stories dating from the ninth century. Rich with suspense, passion and tragedy, Sir Richard Burton’s celebrated translation continues to transport readers across oceans, to mystical lands and ancient palaces in tales such as ‘The Lovers of Bessorah’, The Fellah and His Wicked Wife’ and ‘The Hunchback’s Tale’.

HarperCollins is proud to present its new range of best-loved, essential classics. ‘“For,” said he, “there never was nor is there one chaste woman upon the face of earth.”’ A collection of Persian, Arabian and Indian tales dating from the 9th century, Sir Richard Burton’s most well-known translation of Arabian Nights brings together ancient folklore and stories passed down from generation to generation. Featuring tales about love, history, tragedy and comedy as well as fables and fairy tales, this edition remains a well-loved collection of exotic and evocative stories. Fantastical and curious customs are bought to life by Burton’s translation in stories such as ‘The Lovers of Bassorah’, ‘The Concubine of Al-Maamun’ and ‘The Hunchback’s Tale’.

No library's complete without the classics! This new, enhanced leather-bound edition collects the beloved tales of Arabian Nights, translated by Sir Richard Burton. They are ancient stories, but they still enchant our imaginations today. Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves. Sinbad the Sailor. Aladdin. These and the other Middle Eastern stories collected in Arabian Nights are delightful, fascinating, and fun for fans and first-time readers alike. This beautiful, leather-bound edition collects the classic tales of Arabian Nights in a new, redesigned format. Specially designed end papers, gilded edges, a ribbon bookmark, and other decorative elements enhance the reading experience, while an expert introduction provides new information and context for these well-known stories. Arabian Nights is a compelling look at a long-gone culture--and the perfect addition to any home library.

'To begin at the beginning: it is spring, moonless night in the small town, starless and bible-black...' When Richard Burton breathed the opening words of Under Milk Wood into a microphone, broadcasting history was made. For this 'play for voices' conjures up the intimate dreams and waking lives of the inhabitants of a Welsh seaside village in a remarkable way. It is bawdy and beautiful; its colourful characters lust and love, gossip and fantasise. Through the magic of language, Under Milk Wood creates a rich modern pastoral which, once heard, touches the listener with its poetry and haunts the imagination for ever. This radio drama is the completed version broadcast in 1963 which includes several passages that were omitted from the first recording in 1954. 2 CDs. 1 hr 41 mins.

After discovering his new bride has been unfaithful, the vengeful King Shahriyar has her executed and begins sleeping with a different virgin every night, executing her the next morning. Eventually, no more virgins can be found, so the vizier's daughter volunteers herself. To spare her own life, she captures his attention with wild stories of adventure and chivalry--tales of mystical lands, the many voyages of Sindbad, of Ali Baba's forty thieves and of Aladdin's magical lamp. As one story leads into the next, the king is too enthralled to end her life.

Full of mischief, valor, ribaldry, and romance, The Arabian Nights has enthralled readers for centuries. These are the tales that saved the life of Shahrazad, whose husband, the king, executed each of his wives after a single night of marriage. Beginning an enchanting story each evening, Shahrazad always withheld the ending: A thousand and one nights later, her life was spared forever.

This volume reproduces the 1932 Modern Library edition, for which Bennett A. Cerf chose the most famous and representative stories from Sir Richard F. Burton's multivolume translation, and includes Burton's extensive and acclaimed explanatory notes. These tales, including Alaeddin; or, the Wonderful Lamp, Sinbad the Seaman and Sinbad the Landsman, and Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, have entered into the popular imagination, demonstrating that Shahrazad's spell remains unbroken.