This thoughtful selection by Arthur Scholey provides an inviting taster to Rumi's great work. Here are stories of magic birds, of ants, mice, hares and lions, of camels, donkeys and parrots — some of the earliest parrot jokes on record — tales of beggars, saints, lovers, thieves, fools, slaves and kings, and the Angel of Death. They are down-to-earth observations plucked from friends and folktales and real life, from travels and travellers; they also embody Sufi wisdom, kindness, courtesy and candour. As with parables, they reverse and upset expectations, directing sudden shafts of insight and understanding. His work intrigues and delights as much now, with its perception and down-to-earth experience and truth as it did when it was first collected seven centuries ago.
