Global Tales – When Music Tells the Story
- Abdulla Alsharhan
- Oct 7
- 3 min read
Because some stories are meant to be sung, not just read.
In an age where screens fiercely compete for a child’s attention, and stories are reduced to fast, shallow snippets, many of us—parents and educators—are left wondering:Will our children ever love books the way we did?Will the Arabic language, with all its beauty and depth, ever reach their hearts in a world that moves fast… and often too lightly?
We are not alone in asking this.We belong to a generation raised on poetry—not in dusty anthologies, but in the books of our childhood.
We grew up reciting the verses of Ahmed Shawqi, not knowing that through rhyme and rhythm, we were internalizing the richness of Arabic poetry—by playing, not memorizing.
“The little ant once walked,under the mighty Mokattam rock.Her knees trembled in awe,of the towering mountain she saw…”
Just one stanza from his beloved animal fables—light in tone, but rich in language—was enough to plant seeds of linguistic wonder and poetic appreciation in us. A simple tale of an ant became a lesson in meter, wit, and imagination.
And across the world, children grew up listening to the playful rhymes of Dr. Seuss:
“I do not like green eggs and ham,I do not like them, Sam-I-Am!”
The result was the same: Children love language when it dances.Books become friends when they sing, when they surprise, when they feel more like a song than a lecture.
The Challenge We All Feel
Today's child is not drawn to the printed word.Books are silent, static, still…While games talk, move, reward, and dazzle.We ask children to “love books” without giving them a reason to fall in love.
So the question is:Is it the child’s fault? Or is it the way we speak to them?
A Spark of an Idea
I asked myself:What if the story sang?What if it moved in the child's hands?What if the words came with melodies—ones the child could chant before they could even read?What if the book played with the child, hiding a character in every page just waiting to be found?What if the story became a multi-sensory adventure—not just words on paper?
Stories You Can Read, Sing, and Touch
In this spirit, we created the series:“Global Tales – When Music Tells the Story.”
We reimagined timeless classics—Little Red Riding Hood, Aladdin, Snow White, The Little Mermaid—and brought them back with love, poetry, and play.Each story is rewritten in simple, rhythmic Arabic verse—easy to sing, fun to memorize.
We paired rhyme with motion, and language with discovery. Each book includes interactive elements—pull-tabs, hidden characters, and tactile surprises—designed to invite children to explore, engage, and linger.
And the design? Durable board pages that withstand curiosity, repeat reading, and sticky fingers—perfect for homes, classrooms, and library corners.
What We Want from These Tales
We want to return books to children’s hands—not as a “healthier alternative to screens,” but as a delightful, irresistible experience.We want children to fall in love with Arabic—not because they are taught to, but because they live it through rhythm, rhyme, and story.We want to build bridges—between a generation that knows only songs, and another that grew up on stories. Let’s offer them both.
For Whom?
For the child who doesn’t love books… unless the books play back.
For the teacher who wants to teach without silencing imagination.
For the parent who wants to sing with their children, not just read to them.
For every believer that rhyme, rhythm, and story are pathways to love and identity.
The Old Tales... Told Anew
This is why we launched “Global Tales – When Music Tells the Story.”Not to compete with screens, but to restore the magic of the written word.
We curated beloved global stories.We didn’t just tell them—we sang them.We wrote them in metered verse, designed every page with intention, and added movement, sound, and wonder.Each story is not something to read—but to touch, sing, laugh with, and return to.
🎵 A Tribute to Shawqi, to Seuss… and to Every Child Who Listens
Global Tales – When Music Tells the Story is more than a series.It is a tribute to Shawqi, to Dr. Seuss, and to every writer who believed in wonder as the gateway to language.
These are friendly poems, playful stories, and books that come alive.And perhaps their greatest gift is this:They are not read in silence…They are sung.
Gift it to your child…Or to the child within you who still longs for stories that sing.
🛒 Available now on Ajyaal’s Online Store