Title: حكايات من قادسية صدام (Tales from Saddam’s Qadisiyah)
Language: Arabic
Format: Paperback, Illustrated Comic Story Book
Author: رياض السالم (Riyad Al Salem)
Illustrator: محمد شوقي (Mohamed Shawky)
Publisher: دار ثقافة الأطفال، وزارة الثقافة والإعلام (Children’s Culture House, Ministry of Culture & Media)
Year: 1986
Place of Publication: Baghdad, Iraq
Pages: 25
Dimensions: 21 x 15 cm
Condition: Excellent
Digitization Status: Not Digitized
Shipping from: New York City

Published in 1986 during the Iran-Iraq War, Tales from Saddam’s Qadisiyah is a rare and powerful example of state-sponsored war comics created for Iraqi children under Saddam Hussein’s regime. Produced by the Ministry of Culture and Media’s Children’s Culture House in Baghdad, this 25-page publication is part of an aggressive Ba'athist effort to embed nationalist, militarist, and ideological messaging into everyday childhood reading.

Written by Riyad Al Salem and illustrated by Mohamed Shawky in stark black-and-white line art, the comic recounts fictionalized tales of valor set in the highlands of the Iran-Iraq front. Each chapter exalts traits like honor, sacrifice, and discipline—showing heroic Iraqi soldiers vanquishing faceless enemies, defending their homeland, and protecting their comrades under fire. Titles such as The Honor of the Fighter, The Morals of the Victors, and The Third Summit reflect the mythologizing of Saddam’s war campaign as a righteous continuation of Islamic Qadisiyyah.

Unlike most children’s books of the period, Tales from Saddam’s Qadisiyah is militarized in both tone and form, merging comics and moral narrative into a compact propaganda device. The artwork balances dramatic explosions and combat with facial portraits of brave, resolute Iraqi soldiers—crafted to be both inspirational and intimidating.

This edition remains in excellent condition, with tight staples and clean interiors. It is an exceptionally scarce example of Ba’ath-era children’s war literature, making it a critical item for collections on wartime pedagogy, Arab nationalism, or the visual culture of 1980s Iraq.