Showing posts with label fairy tales. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fairy tales. Show all posts

Muti's Necklace: The Oldest Story in the World Review

Muti's Necklace: The Oldest Story in the World
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What a great gift for a young child. The writing doesn't talk down to kids but keeps their attention. The story is tightly constructed with a strong woman character (so hard to find in books sometimes!) - combined with a sorccercer and a snake what more could you ask for. Set in ancient Egypt timeless ideas about power and family are raised. The pictures are gorgeous!!!

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Chinese Mythology: An Introduction Review

Chinese Mythology: An Introduction
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Anyone without a knowledge of Chinese who has tried to find out much about the myths and legends of early China -- as opposed to the abundant material from medieval and later times -- has certainly encountered many obstacles. Mythical and heroic narratives from before the Han Dynasty are rare, often incomplete, and usually frustratingly allusive; and often are not narratives, but applications of parts of presumably well-known stories to illustrate a point. And they usually have survived in a form considered "rational" by generations of Confucian editors.
There have been a few useful, but all-too-brief, presentations by qualified Sinologists, notably Derk Bodde. Other serious discussions by qualified Western scholars, however, often bog down in discussions of textual problems, the age and authority of sources, and other important issues, without ever explaining what a story is about.
For this reason alone, Anne M. Birrell's "Chinese Mythology: An Introduction" is welcome. Actual translations of texts are provided, with useful discussions and annotations intelligible to non-Sinologists like this reader. In addition, the author/translator/editor writes with grace and clarity. One comes away feeling that the confusing nature of the source has not been amplified by the presentation, and that the cultural issues they seem to address have been identified with reasonable certainty.
It is also an extremely interesting book, usually offering several versions of each of the stories, illustrating the various ways they have been told, and their persistence in Chinese culture. They are grouped thematically, and a myth which contains a variety of themes usually gets one major treatment, and relatively abbreviated consideration under other headings. A few get treated from different perspectives at somewhat greater length. Some readers will probably object to flipping back and forth, but the alternative was considerable repetition, which Birrell has gracefully avoided.
As a result of reading this book with the attention it inspires, I have actually been able to appreciate the depth of learning and insight concealed in some of the earlier scholarship (such as that of Bernhard Karlgren and Wolfram Eberhard). Anne Birrell has also been responsible for some attractive translations of interesting, but so far obscure, Chinese literature, and this reader hopes to see more of them.
This book should not be confused with Anne Birrell's short illustrated volume on "Chinese Myths," for the British Museum's "Legendary Past" series.
(Reposted from my "anonymous" review of September 12, 2003.)

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Atlantis Encyclopedia Review

Atlantis Encyclopedia
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"Of the estimated 2,500 books and magazine articles published about the lost civilization, The Atlantis Encyclopedia is the only one of its kind. It is an attempt to bring together all the known details of this immense, continually fascinating subject, as well as provide succinct definitions and clear explanations." - From the Atlantis Encyclopedia
Most books about the lost continent of Atlantis are largely theoretical. However, The Atlantis Encyclopedia is more fact oriented, focusing on areas such as geology, oceanography, and astronomy, as well as the numerous folk traditions around the world which preserve memories of a great flood. The exhaustive information presented in this book is the result of more than two decades of continuous study and international travel by the author. From Morocco's underground shrine to Britain's Stonehenge, seldom seen solar monuments in Japan's remote forests to a cannibal temple in Polynesia, Frank Joseph takes novice readers, specialists, and skeptics alike on an intensive journey through Atlantean civilization.
The Atlantis Encyclopedia-written in an alphabetic, encyclopedic format-also offers comprehensive information about the Pacific counterpart to Atlantis: the lost kingdom of Mu, also known as Lemuria. A few of the topics covered in this book:
*Viracocha, the early Inca culture-hero who "rose" from the depths of Lake Titicaca
*Balor, the king of the giant Sea People in Irish folklore
*Island of Jewels, the paradisiacal realm in Hindu myth. At the center of this island hidden by misty akasha, was a magnificent palace where all wishes were granted.
*Enki, the sea-god of Sumerian myth who was a pre-flood culture-bearer from Atlantis
*Numinor, J.R.R. Tolkien's version of Atlantis in Lord of the Rings. Tolkien claimed to have been plagued since childhood by nightmares he believed were past-life memories of the Atlantean catastrophe-nightmares also shared by his son. (Numinor was also known as Ele'na and Westernesse).
*Ragnarok, the Norse "Twilight of the Gods"
*Pleiades, also known as Atlantides, means "Daughter of Atlas". Greek scholar Diodoras Siculus wrote that the Pleiades were not originally mythic figures, but real women who married Atlantean culture bearers. Long after their deaths, they were regarded as divine, and commemorated as a star cluster.
*Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who wrote about Atlantis in a 1928 serialization by The Saturday Evening Post called The Maracot Deep.
At 312-pages, this reference book also features 16 full-color photographs and images, as well as black-and-white photos interspersed throughout the text. Questions addressed in this book include:
*What was Atlantis?
*Where was it located?
*How long ago did it flourish?
*How was it destroyed?
*What became of its survivors?
*Have any remains of Atlantis ever been found?
*Will Atlantis ever be found?
*Did Atlantis have any impact on America?
The Atlantis Encyclopedia is a unique and valuable resource that doesn't aim to prove that the sunken capital actually existed. Yet, with all the evidence mustered on its behalf, even skeptics may conclude that there is SOMETHING factual behind this enduring, global legend.

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A handbook of Atlantean information for general readers and specialists alike! This is an invaluable, one-of-a-kind reference. Unlike most other books on the subject, The Atlantis Encyclopedia offers fewer theories and more facts. Although it does not set out to prove the sunken capital actually existed, The Atlantis Encyclopedia musters so much evidence on its behalf, even skeptics may conclude that there must be at least something factual behind such an enduring, indeed global legend. You'll learn:* What was Atlantis?* Where was it located?* How long ago did it flourish?* How was it destroyed?* What became of its survivors?* Have any remains of Atlantis ever been found?* Will Atlantis ever be found?* Did Atlantis have any impact on America?

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Fairytale in the Ancient World Review

Fairytale in the Ancient World
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Having had this book in my personal collection for a few years now, I cannot praise it highly enough. As any folklorist knows, similar story threads exist across cultures and time. Why does this happen? One influence may have been the classic mythology from the Greeks and Romans. Graham Anderson makes reasonable connections between classical literature and our more modern folklore in previously unexplored ways. His writing is concise with easy-to-follow descriptions and analysis. If you are interested in the history of story, folklore, or the classics, this book is an excellent and relatively quick read. I only wish I had owned this book in the days when I was studying the classics as an undergraduate. It would have made reading the classics even more interesting than it was then.

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In this, the first modern study of the ancient fairytale, Graham Anderson asks whether the familiar children's fairytale of today existed in the ancient world. He examines texts from the classical period and finds many stories which resemble those we know today, including:* a Jewish Egyptian Cinderella* a Snow White whose enemy is the goddess Artemis* a Pied Piper at Troy.He puts forward many previously unsuspected candidates as classical variants of the modern fairytale and argues that the degree of violence and cruelty in the ancient tales means they must have been meant for adults.

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The Egyptian Cinderella Review

The Egyptian Cinderella
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This retelling of Cinderella is rather different from the classic version, but still retains much of the same plot. Rhodopis, a Greek slave, is picked on by the Egyptian servants in her master's household. She befriends the animals, and dances for them often. One time, her master saw her dancing and was so impressed that he gave her a pair of slippers gilded in rose-red gold.
When the servant girls go to visit the pharaoh, Rhodopis is left behind to do the washing. A falcon steals one of her slippers, and brings it to the pharaoh, who decides to search for and marry the girl whose foot fits the slipper.
The suddenness of the pharaoh deciding to search for and marry Rhodopis annoys me, but other than that the story is told very well, and the words flow nicely. The illustrations in this book are very beautiful, but slightly different from those I am used to. The manner in which animals and plants appear on every page, especially when Rhodopis is around, is a nice touch.
This book is a good variant on a popular story, and the pictures make it very memorable. A very good book.
Loggie-log-log-log

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