ALA Booklist (Sun Dec 01 00:00:00 CST 2013)

In this retelling of a traditional Muslim hadith account of the words or actions of the Prophet Muhammad merchant learns to feel compassion for the camel that has faithfully carried him and his heavy cargo across the desert for many years. The camel stoically struggles through long journeys with little respite and no appreciation from the merchant until the Prophet happens upon him and takes pity. The encounter with the Prophet causes the merchant to become aware of the camel's sorrow and results in his being more sensitive to the animal's needs. The beautifully understated illustrations are monoprints, with drawings bathed in subdued colors, mostly warm and spicy browns to reflect the hot desert and occasional cool blues and greens for the night scenes. The images are simple, yet the effect is sophisticated and stylish. This will appeal to many ages, both as a peek into another culture and as an engaging story about a creature that finally gets the empathy it deserves.

Horn Book (Fri Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2014)

A camel suffers under hard-driving master Halim. The Prophet Muhammad comforts the beast, and the camel weeps. Its tears "sifted into Halim's dream," and Halim too weeps and awakes filled with compassion. This tale "inspired by a hadith" (an "account of the Prophet's words or actions passed from generation to generation") resonates with universal meaning. The story is beautifully supported by desert-hued full-bleed monoprints.

Kirkus Reviews

The Prophet Muhammad bridges a gap between a weary old camel and its heedless master in this version of a passed-down Muslim hadith. The tale is so respectful that no image of Muhammad appears in its illustrations, and the author dubs it "inspired" by the original rather than translated or retold. It takes a sad, sighing camel through many years of carrying heavy burdens across Arabian deserts for the merchant Halim--until a stopover at Medina, during which Halim, as is his habit, leaves it standing in the sun while he naps in the shade. Seeing the camel in distress the Prophet compassionately lends it a shoulder to lean on, whereupon the tears it weeps enter Halim's dreams and spark like compassion in him from then on. Adding spare, scratchy lines to monoprints done in subdued earth tones, Wolfsgruber focuses more on capturing a sense of the camel's bone-deep exhaustion than on the details of each desert and courtyard scene. Ondaatje's efforts to establish a sense of place founder on his reference to sun's flames "as sharp as pineapple leaves," (pineapple is a New World plant), but he portrays Halim as oblivious rather than actively cruel, which will make it easier for young readers to see his thoughtlessness reflecting their own. A lesson in empathy--for animals but also in general--delivered at a pace as stately as a camel's. (afterword) (Picture book. 6-9)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Ondaatje (The Monkey King and Other Stories) tells a tale inspired by a hadith (a story about the Prophet Muhammad passed on orally) in which a long-suffering camel and its cruel owner find their hearts and lives changed by a meeting with the Prophet. Alternating between the two characters- viewpoints, Ondaatje narrates with graceful lyricism: one scene contrasts the labor of the camel with the behavior of its unsympathetic rider, who sits on the animal -as if he were floating over the desert on a bundle of valuable goods under which there was no camel.- Wolfsgruber-s (Brunhilda and the Ring) illustrations-monoprints with drawing-convey a parched desert environment using dusky hues of rust, olive, and brown; green and red palm trees beautify the rounded doorways of Medina. In one poignant scene, camel and rider appear in silhouette against shades of greenish-brown sand and beige sky, with startling white drops falling from the camel-s eyes. The Prophet-s presence nudges the man into a dream in which he experiences the camel-s distress. Compassion follows. A tender story, eloquently rendered. Ages 5-up. (Oct.)

School Library Journal (Wed Jan 01 00:00:00 CST 2014)

K-Gr 3 In stark descriptive language, Ondaatje eloquently retells a traditional Muslim hadith, chronicling the words and actions of Muhammad. For years, an uncomplaining camel carries loads of spices, dates, silver, and wool across the desert for the merchant Halim. The stoic beast endures unrelenting journeys, climbing steep dunes, wading through endless oceans of sand, and standing for hours under the hot sun. Oblivious to its plight and offering no sympathy, the merchant rides "on the camel's back as if he were floating over the desert on a bundle of valuable goods." The animal is weighed down by despair. It is certain that nothing will ever change until a fateful encounter in the city of Medina, the home of the Prophet. In one of the city's many gardens, Muhammad comes across the camel standing in the sun while its master naps comfortably in the shade. He immediately offers the sad creature a shoulder to cry on and reprimands the insensitive merchant, who at last sees their journey through the camel's eyes and tries to alleviate its suffering. Wolfsgruber's atmospheric monoprint illustrations deftly evoke the ancient desert society in which the camel and its master exist. The blazing heat is almost palpable in her arid desert landscapes executed in an appropriately dusty golden palette. For a cultural storyhour, pair this tale of compassion with Anita Ganeri's The Great Night Journey and Other Stories (QEB, 2007). Linda L. Walkins, Saint Joseph Preparatory High School, Boston, MA