Paladins and Almanac Experts
Nights 483-507
Wow, this was a great week and quite a shift in style! This week we get the start of three nested stories: first Karim, then Buluqiya, then Janshah. Karim’s story starts off fine; the best part is how he gets trapped in a pit of honey and meets the snake queen. She’s not a queen who likes snakes but an actual snake who is queen of the snakes. She tells Karim the story of Buluqiya.
This is where it picks up a bit more. Buluqiya and a friend try to get the ring of Solomon by tricking the snake queen. They acquire some magical talking herbs that help them walk over the ocean (Night 488, p. 373). They find Solomon, but a huge snake threatens them if they try to take Solomon’s ring. Buluqiya’s companion tries to take the ring but the snake incinerates him. Buluqiya is disappointed that he will not be able to drink “the water of life, which could only be done by someone who held the ring of Solomon.” (Night 491, p. 376). It reminded me of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and worthiness to drink the Holy Grail.
From here, Buluqiya’s story turns into something like Dante’s Divine Comedy. He sees the seven layers of Hell (night 493, p. 381). He travels through the heavens and meets the angels Michael, Gabriel, and others. Finally, he meets a man who tells us the story of Janshah.
Janshah’s story has all kinds of fantasy elements to it. It starts with a great wealthy king who has many great helpers, including “paladins” and “almanac experts” (Night 499, p. 391). The king’s son is Janshah, destined to complete a great quest or die trying. His quest takes him to an island where people split in two and chase down Janshah’s mamluk friends and eat some of them. (Night 501, p. 395). Another island has apes, who make Janshah their king, and later involve him in their battles against giant ants in the Valley of the Ants (Night 504, p. 399). We’ve gone from Dante to Homer’s Odyssey as Janshah must face many perils before he reaches his home.
The week ends with Janshah having escaped a city of Jews and a rukh, and meeting with the king of the birds. It’s all very fast-paced and fantastic compared to what we’ve seen so far. It’s a great change of pace!