English Mythology

From 20-year veteran storyteller Pleasant DeSpain, known for reducing folktales to their essence, 20 "retellable" folktales from around the world. Folktales captivate generation after generation because they remind us that our forebears overcame seemingly insurmountable odds and we can, too! Folktale characters show us the best in ourselves; our sense of humor, our perseverance, our resilience that overcomes giant hurdles, and our innate sense of fair play.

Explore the world of Hungarian Paganism with this book's impressive collection of history, lore, and traditions from the Carpathian basin. The Hungarian people, also known as the Magyars, fused pre-Christian and Christian beliefs into their identity, and that fusion remains today. Exploring mythology, daily life, magic, and life passages, this book reveals the old ways of Hungarian practitioners.

Eleven-year-old Vanya Vallen has always felt like she doesn’t fit in. She’s British-Indian in a mostly white town in England, her parents won’t talk about their pasts, and she has ADHD. Oh, and she talks to books. More importantly, the books talk back. When her family is attacked by a monster she believed only existed in fairytales, Vanya discovers that her parents have secrets, and that there are a lot more monsters out there. Overnight, she’s whisked off to the enchanted library and school of Auramere, where she joins the ranks of archwitches and archivists.

All of us are familiar with the fairy tales of youth where the young hero and heroine fall in love, defeat their enemies, marry, and live happily ever after. The fairy tales gathered here are about what happens next, when the Prince goes bald and the Princess has a midlife crisis. They portray middle-aged men and women facing the special issues dealing with crisis, aging and mortality, and the desire for renewal.

One day in 1872, self-taught Assyriologist George Smith was sifting through a pile of clay tablets when he realized he was reading about "a flood, storm, a ship caught on a mountain, and a bird sent out in search of dry land". This is the riveting story of the discovery of the world's first literary epic, the "Epic of Gilgamesh".

In Cherokee myth - as in other indigenous American traditions - the whole of creation is alive and able to communicate like humans and with the human beings who share their environment. Cherokee myths explain how the world came to be the way it is and imparts important lessons about Cherokee cultural values.

The award-winning poet Anne Carson reinvents a genre in Autobiography of Red, a stunning work that is both a novel and a poem, both an unconventional recreation of an ancient Greek myth and a wholly original coming-of-age story set in the present.

What did Japanese mythology say about the beginning of the universe? How did Oedipus become the classic tragic hero in Greek mythology? Who brought about the origin of death in Maori mythology? With vivid retellings of famous legends, Myths and Legends makes it easier than ever before to understand the stories that are central to every culture.

More preoccupied with drinking, sleeping, and writing, an unnamed student neglects his studies and invents three separate openings for a novel. The first introduces the Pooka MacPhellimey, "a member of the devil class", the second involves Mr. John Furriskey, a character belonging to another of the student's creations (writer Dermot Trellis), while the final opening features legendary Irish heroes Finn Mac Cool and Mad King Sweeny. Soon, Trellis' creations rebel against him, doing as they like while he sleeps, and the characters begin wandering in and out of each other's tales.

The impossible has happened. I became the thing that I've hated my entire life. Thanks to Bryce's gift, I'm now an Idol. But I no longer want to see them all destroyed. Thanks to Bryce, Rufio, Morpheus, and Phoenix, the four powerful Idols I've fallen in love with, I realize I can't blame an entire race for the evil doings of a minority. Being an Idol doesn't make my existence easier, though. On the contrary, thanks to the rare gift I've developed, I'm now wanted dead or alive. Some want to use me as a weapon; others want me gone forever.

Suspend your disbelief and embark on a journey through time and space, stepping into a world of Norse magic, paganism, runes, mythology, and mystery. Have you always been fascinated by Norse mythology and its myriad of powerful gods—including Odin, Thor, Loki, Freya, and Baldur? Have the Norse runes always mystified you, and would you love to know more about their history, symbolism, and usage? Would you like to harness the power of Norse magic, rites, and rituals, so you can connect with the extraordinary Norse gods and goddesses?

The mysterious and widely misunderstood Vikings have been explained clearly and completely in this audiobook. This audiobook brings valuable insights into Norse and Celtic mythology for the lovers of ancient mythology - what was told about the Vikings, their culture, their polytheistic religion, and much more.

An insidious curse is weakening the Norse kingdom of Saylok, where no daughters have been born in years. Washing up on these plagued shores is Ghisla, an orphaned stowaway nursed back to health by Hod, a blind cave dweller. Named for a mysterious god, Hod is surrounded by prophecy. To Ghisla, he’s a cherished new friend, but to Hod, the girl is much more. For when Ghisla sings, Hod can see.

Relive the magic of captivating legends and folktales in this rich collection on Celtic Mythology. In 58 BCE, when Julius Caesar – the famous Roman general – wrote a commentary on the Gallic wars, he described the “Celt” speaking people who lived in the area then known as the Gaul. These people had their own culture, gods, and beliefs – called Celtic Mythology – which were very different from the Romans. The influence of this mythology, however, was not limited to a small territory.

Using an infamous deception about a fake mountain range in British Columbia as her jumping-off point, Katie Ives explores the lure of blank spaces on the map and the value of the imagination. In Imaginary Peaks she details the cartographical mystery of the Riesenstein Hoax within the larger context of climbing history and the seemingly endless quest for newly discovered peaks and claims of first ascents. Imaginary Peaks is an evocative, thought-provoking tale, immersed in the literature of exploration, study of maps, and basic human desire.

Alexander of Macedon has one wild dream: to rule the world. And with his childhood friends and his beloved horse Bucephalas, he sets out from his home in ancient Greece to do just that. With historian Dominic Sandbrook as our guide, join Alexander on his incredible journey, travelling through the deserts of Egypt and over the snow-capped mountains of Persia all the way to India, defeating all who stand in his way. For anything is possible with the blessing of the gods.

Invoking Mnemosyne—Greek goddess of memory and eloquence, daughter of Heaven and Earth, mother of the Muses, and archetypal deity of the Asklepion dream temple tradition—this book initiates you into full dream consciousness, offering a lucid-dreaming ritual experience in the spirit of the Mystery Schools of antiquity. Sharing her more than a decade of research on Sleep Temples and Mystery Schools of the Esoteric Tradition, lucid-dreaming instructor Sarah Janes explores the evolution of imagination, memory, and consciousness throughout the ages.

After fighting in the Trojan War against her own people, Daphne is plagued by memories—of her family, of her shortcomings, of her lover, Apollo, and of the secrets he and the gods keep. As she reels from the horrendous sacrifice she had to make and her own failure in the battle for Troy, she knows the Titans are out there—just beyond the island of Aeaea where she has taken refuge—raging a war against the world. As Daphne struggles to regain her will to fight as well as rein in the new abilities that have been thrust upon her, the gods call for her help once more.

Set in the prewar Indochina of Marguerite Duras's childhood, this is the haunting tale of a tumultuous affair between an adolescent French girl and her Chinese lover. In spare yet luminous prose, Duras evokes life on the margins of Saigon in the waning days of France's colonial empire, and its representation in the passionate relationship between two unforgettable outcasts.

One thousand years ago, a wish was made to the Harbinger of Change, and a sword of rage and lightning was forged. Kamigoroshi. The Godslayer. It had one task: to seal away the powerful demon Hakaimono. Now, he has broken free.