Tiger Slayer: The Extraordinary Story of Nur Jahan, Empress of India

Gr 5 Up–Lal’s book is a detailed story about a woman ruler whose contribution to history has been recently rediscovered. Lal explains how she first heard of Nur Jahan from her mother’s stories about India. The story of Jahan’s life begins before she is born, with a detailed accounting of her parents’ journey from their native Persia to India. Her family settles in India and Nur’s second marriage, to a member of the royal family, gives her a position of influence in the reigning court. There is a huge cast of characters in the story and many customs that may be unfamiliar to American middle grade readers. Lal includes notes and explanations of Indian terms and traditions. There are charming, lively illustrations included in the book. The author speculates quite a bit in her narrative; phrases like “we could assume” or “we could expect” are preambles to things that occurred in Jahan’s life. The characters are mainly adults and are not fleshed out or made distinctive. Some of the social customs, such as women living in harems and the brutal punishments of war, might be disturbing to young readers.