Helen Bannerman, who was born in Edinburgh in 1863, lived in India for thirty years. As a gift for her two little girls, she wrote and illustrated The Story of Little Black Sambo (1899), a story that clearly takes place in India (with its tigers and "ghi," or melted butter), even though the names she gave her characters belie that setting. For this new edition of Bannerman's much beloved tale, the little boy, his mother, and his father have all been give authentic Indian names: Babaji, Mamaji, and Papaji. And Fred Marcellino's high-spirited illustrations lovingly, memorably transform this old favorite. He gives a classic story new life.

A retelling of the well-known tale in which a little Indian boy finally outwits the succession of tigers that want to eat him.

A little boy in India whose name is Little Babaji, matches wits with several tigers that want to eat him.

The jolly and exciting tale of the little boy who lost his red coat and his blue trousers and his purple shoes but who was saved from the tigers to eat 169 pancakes for his supper, has been universally loved by generations of children. First written in 1899, the story has become a childhood classic and the authorized American edition with the original drawings by the author has sold hundreds of thousands of copies. Little Black Sambo is a book that speaks the common language of all nations, and has added more to the joy of little children than perhaps any other story. They love to hear it again and again; to read it to themselves; to act it out in their play.

T he material in this volume is culled from over two thousand stories about Maharajji gathered during five years from more than one hundred devotees. To these devotees who shared their treasured memo ries, I wish to express my deep love and appreciation. Some of them felt that no book could or should be written about a being with qualities as vast, formless, and subtle as Maharajji’s, and yet they contributed their stories nevertheless. I honor them for this kindness and I hope that in my zeal to share experiences of Maharajji with others who were not fortu nate enough to have met him, I have not misused their trust. Some devotees tell me that stories told by other devotees are not fac tually accurate. I have no way of ascertaining the authenticity of any single story. All I can report is that those o f us who gathered the stories were impressed by the credibility of those of us who told the stories. Though the responsibility for this manuscript lies solely with me, I am delighted to acknowledge a lot o f loving help from my friends:

In the Kumaon foothills of the Indian Himalayan mountains, where great saints and yogis of the past and present have made their ancestral homes since the beginning of creation, resides Shiva Mahavatar Babaji, known to millions in the West through Paramahansa Yogananda's book, Autobiography of a Yogi. In 1970, Shri Babaji, the deathless Master, appeared as a youth of 18 years old in a cave at the foot of Mount Kailash in the state of Samadhi. He displayed great wisdom and divine powers and was recognized by people as the great Mahavatar reincarnated. His coming was foretold both by saints and ancient scriptures. He came to reform the hearts and minds of men, uplift humanity during troubled times, and to teach and restore the Sanatan Dharma (eternal religion) of truth, simplicity, love, unity, and selfless service to God. (Karma Yoga). This book records His teachings and the extraordinary accounts of people's dreams, visions and encounters that bear witness to His omnipresence. This book is written with the intention for people to experience Babaji through these pages, so it will inspire you to investigate this fascinating Being for yourselves.

Gerald tells of the very unusual animals he would add to the zoo, if he were in charge.