Fortune

by Diane Stanley

Book Overview

Longing to get married but too poor to support a wife, a young farmer named Omar spends all his money on a dancing tiger he names Fortune. To his amazement, the tiger really does make his fortune and... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0688072100
• ISBN13: 9780688072100
• Release Date: January 1990
• Publisher: Morrow Junior Books
• Length: 30 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 8.8" x 11.3"
• Age Range: 6 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 1 and higher

Customer Reviews

4 ½* Of Tigers and Men

This is a pretty story within a story that paradoxically (for Westerners, anyway) demonstrates both the transcendent power of love, and the wisdom of staying true to your arranged marriage. The book does not say whether or not it is based on a traditional Persian/Iranian story. Partly due to this, the phrasing sometimes seems labored, as if the author is straining to make this sound authentic and indigenous.At the suggestion of the kind, poor but kind farmer's daughter to whom he is betrothed, he young male protagonist rejects to seek his fortune. He buys a dancing tiger from a mysterious woman in the market and within a year he returns home a rich man. However, his betrothed now seems beneath a man of his wealth and potential. There are some surprises along the way to the happy ending, but not enough humor. More importantly, the denouement happens abruptly and too quickly, like a bedtime story rushed to a conclusion before the child falls asleep.There's a bit of Matisse seen in the eastern motifs, the splashes of color, and the shallow perspective. The parchment look of the paper, yellow and somewhat speckled lends a folk-tale atmosphere, but the colors are sometimes a little washed out and muddy. At times, I yearned for bigger splashes of color as in the excellent illustration on pages 12-13, an exotic collection of gold, purples, turquoise and mauve, that evoke Constantinople and the Middle East. This is a very good book, but one that could perhaps have been even better.

A beautiful book for anyone!

There are few stories that can move me to tears, but this one comes close. Beautifully illustrated, this is a story full of lessons for anyone who has been unable to recognize their luck until they lose it. I would reccomend this for kids ages 7 and up, since there are a lot of words to read, and a wonderful story to follow. It would also make a wonderful wedding gift. Enjoy!