The Tale of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves
by Eric Kimmel.
Holiday House, 1995

As Eric Kimmel opens his retelling of this favorite story from the Arabian Nights, Ali Baba is setting out from Baghdad to cut wood in the nearby forest. Will’s artwork immediately defines this character with his young clean-shaven face and easygoing demeanor.

He is very unlike the bearded thieves who bare their teeth and brandish sabers in hostile gestures. The story is told from portal to portal as the characters move from cave to doorway to window trying to learn the secrets to the cave¹s treasure.

The labyrinth of the city becomes part of the puzzle to be solved, emphasized through Will¹s use of continuous narration in showing the blindfolded cobbler wending his way through its streets. Small framed openings illustrate the smaller story movements and enhance the position of the reader as a privileged strategic observer.

In keeping true to the story’s culture, Will drapes his characters in rich colors, etches patterns and textures on the treasure goods, and records architectural details of the ancient city. The story is also rich with light as lamps hang from cave and ceiling and Baghdad is infused with luminous Middle Eastern sunshine.

The slave girl Marghana takes center stage as the story climaxes and she becomes Ali Baba’s partner in outwitting the thieves and reclaiming the treasure. The final scene brings together the opulence of the fortune and the culture, rich in color and light, with the favored Ali Baba ensconced in comfort.

Reviews

From Booklist , December 1, 1996
Ages 6--8. Kimmel captures the flavor and excitement of The story of Ali Baba, who found a treasure that led to his greedy brother's death and, with the help of a quick-witted slave girl, gave his brother a decent burial and avenged his death.

Hillenbrand's illustrations, watercolor paintings with oil pastels, minimize the gore and maximize the drama in a series of varied and well-composed scenes. His visions of the settings and characters underscore the story's Middle Eastern roots. An entertaining picture-book version of the classic story. Carolyn Phelan Copyright© 1996, American Library Association. All rights reserved.

From Horn Book
In retelling the familiar tale of wit triumphant and greed punished, Kimmel gives the text a tone more like he version by Kate Douglas Wiggin and Nora Smith than the recent lengthier rendering by Brian Alderson. The essential elements are all here: the contrast between the impoverished

Ali Baba and his financially successful brother, Quasim; the discovery of the treasure cave and the magic phrase, "open sesame"; the consequences of Quasim's greed; the outwitting of the robbers by the slave Marghana; and the joyous finale as the principals, including Marghana, are rewarded, Quasim's death is avenged, and the villains are exterminated.

Colorful illustrations, characterized by strong line-an adaptation of traditional Iranian art techniques-match the overall ebullience of the whole. Hillenbrand is particularly adept at capturing characters with a minimum of detail, as in the double-page spread featuring all forty brigands, and at using repetitive shapes to make a statement, as in an overhead view of the donkeys tethered in Ali Baba's courtyard before the final confrontation.

More of Will's Books