A review by balancinghistorybooks
Pearls on a Branch: Tales from the Arab World Told by Women by Najla Jraissaty Khoury

4.0

Pearls on a Branch brings together a collection of thirty stories, which Najla Khoury collected over several years of research into Lebanese folktales. The tales collected here have been transcribed exactly as they were told to her. There are overlaps of themes and tropes, and it is fascinating to see how many stories echo those written down by The Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Andersen. These stories are as dark as they are whimsical, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading them.