Gr 7 Up-The series features beautiful photography of exotic locales with a haunting soundtrack in the background. What it doesn't have are maps showing the locations of places like Timbuktu, Dhofar, and Petra. In many instances, viewers are not told in which modern-day country the city under discussion is located. Each video, narrated by a single male or female narrator with a British accent, is divided into three segments which can be shown separately or together. There is fascinating footage of sites such as the souk (bazaar) in Aleppo, clay bricks being made in Djenne, and statues marking the site of what once was East Africa's largest slave market in Zanzibar. Viewers also visit the capital of Islamic Spain, the Alhambra Palace, Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa to look at tombs, mosques, and monuments and learn about Arab civilization and culture. However, much of the information begs for clarification. For example, much is made of the fact that the old city section of the African oasis of Ghadames is dying, but we are never told why all of the inhabitants moved out to the nearby modern town. In the segment on Aleppo, the narrator says, "In the city of traders, Muslims, Jews, and Christians have always lived peacefully side by side," ignoring the fact that most of the city's Jewish community was destroyed in riots in 1947 and there are currently no Jews known to be living there. The unifying theme of the series is the heavy influence of Islam throughout the Arab world, both ancient and modern. The series would be most useful for high school students who have previous knowlege about the Arab world and related vocabulary.
Copyright 2005 School Library Journal. Used with permission.
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