Sonia Sulaiman

The teller of these tales is Jamal Sleem Nuweihed, but we are also given a lineage of tellers she received the stories from over the course of her life, with each given a short bio!

The Palestinian Lady: Sitt Nuzha
Aunt Jamal wrote:
This lady was the most entertaining of all the storytellers. Her memory was extremely sharp, and she could sing the popular muwwals (folk songs) and the eulogies of the Prophet. She could interpret dreams, too, and tell peoples’ fortunes with the aid of her rosary. Above all, she was a wonder in her knowledge of human nature and its secrets, very skillful in describing anything she wanted to… We all loved her.

Before I delve too deeply, I should address how not all of these stories are Palestinian. The book provides no information on which tales were told by whom. Although I think it would have been interesting to compare the tellers and their tales, the ambiguity here speaks to the messy nature of a living folktale tradition where stories were freely migrating, just as Mrs.Nuweihed did, from country to country.

1. Clever Hasan
2. Rummana
3. Qamar al-Zamaan and Shams al-Dunya
4. Nani, Daughter of Nani
5. Jubaybani
6. The Shrieking Nightingale
7. Sitt al-Boudour from beyond the Seven Seas
8. Amina
9. Women’s Wiles Beat Mens’ Wiles
10. Mine to Use, As I Choose
11. The Fawwal’s Daughter
12. Marzouq the Woodcutter
13. Hassan al-Waqqad
14. The Black Goat
15. Hajji Brumbock
16. The Poor Cousin
17. Sons of the Wealthy, Daughters of the Poor
18. The Most Eligible Bachelor
19. Abu Jmeel’s Daughter
20. The Cat of Cats
21. Never Betray the One Who Trusts You
22. The Patient Woman and the Peevish Prince
23. The Midwife’s Daughter and the Bandit
24. Prince Naas
25. Aunt Zaynab
26. The Tailor’s Daughter
27. The Golden Shoe