Finding Aladdin: The Hidden History of a Syrian Storyteller

Eloquent, wide-ranging and informative ... a pleasure to read' Abdulrazak Gurnah 'Finding Aladdin is truly a jewel. I could not put it down' Moudhy Al-Rashid, author of Between Two Rivers This is a book about stories and storytelling, and about celebrating a young storyteller whose name was almost lost to history. When The Arabian Nights were first translated into European languages in the 1700s, they caused a sensation. Most were ancient tales, drawn from Arabic folklore. But perhaps the most famous of all, Aladdin, was completely new. Centuries later, a discovery in the Vatican archives revealed that Hanna Diab, a young Syrian adventurer, had spun stories from his own extraordinary life to create Aladdin, his alter ego in fiction. In this captivating case of literary deduction, Matthew Teller unearths the hidden history of the boy, the genie and his lamp, recovering a skilled storyteller hiding in plain sight.

About the Author :
Matthew Teller is an author, journalist and documentary-maker. He writes for the BBC, CNN, The Times, Financial Times, Independent and Guardian and presents and produces documentaries for Radio 4 and BBC World Service. He is the author of Nine Quarters of Jerusalem (2022) and the editor of Daybreak in Gaza (2024).

Review :
A beautifully written tale of tales, and a work of remembrance and recovery, of stories and lies, theft and justice. Superb stuff - completely beguiling Finding Aladdin is eloquent, wide-ranging, and informative, and in addition it effectively challenges some self-aggrandising narratives of orientalist learning. It is a pleasure to read I love this book, stories upon stories, unspooling, seemingly forever I love this book. I was utterly dazzled by it. Matthew Teller takes us on a breath-taking journey that is full of surprises, one that unearths a lost piece of history, and a person once buried in the shadows of fiction and stereotype. Finding Aladdin is truly a jewel. I could not put it down Through archival sleuthing and remarkable personal knowledge of the Eastern Mediterranean, Matthew Teller creates a history of the Aladdin story that will enthral readers 'Hanna Diab would have loved this book. Matthew Teller is as much a skilled raconteur as his subject, the young Christian narrator from Aleppo to whom the world owes the tales of Aladdin, Ali Baba, and many more Praise for Nine Quarters of Jerusalem: Engaging ... Teller is an informed, enthusiastic guide to one of the most contested sites in the world As labyrinthine as the city it describes ... a curious, offbeat biography that comes alive through the many gathered voices Highly perceptive and readable ... Presents a subtle portrait of the current reality at the heart of the world's most intractable and divisive conflict ... Fascinating