Beautiful edition. Great reflection of how myths come about, why certain myths are retold in different societies through human history, and a breakdown of myths themselves from all around the ancient world. ( )

This a visually stunning masterpiece with so many vibrant paintings (sometimes covering two pages), photos of artefacts, pretty illustrations and a wonderful gold and black colour scheme.

Myths and Legends is no encyclopaedia but it does cover the general myths of Europe, West and Central Asia, South and East Asia, Africa, the Americas including the Caribbean and Oceania with at least 20 pages on each.

Though a third of the book is about Europe there is enough on other parts of the world to give you a starting point to work from if you are interested in finding out more.

The myths range from Beowulf to Oedipus to Shiva to the myths of the Navajo (a tribe of Native Americans), the Maori, the Maya, the Taino (the first settlers of the Caribbean) and so many more.

My only grievance is that the titles and artists of the stunning artwork showcased here are not always named.

Very well constructed and easy to read. Suitable for all ages.
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(Myth) Thor Loses His Hammer

Thor always used his hammer, Mjollnir, his weapon that would never miss its mark, and would always return to him, to protect the gods from their great enemies, the giants. Thor discovered one day that his beloved hammer was missing, so he went to his brother Loki to help him find it. Loki discovered that the Lord of the Giants, Thrym, had it but would not return it until he got permission to marry the goddess Freyja. When Thor and Loki told Freyja about her upcoming marriage, she flew into a rage and refused. Finally, they decided to trick Thrym by having Thor dress up as a bride, and Loki followed along as "her" handmaiden. There was a great feast before the wedding and Thor, dressed as the bride consumed eight salmon and a whole ox, but when Thrym questioned Loki about the oddity of it, he just insisted that she has been so looking forward to the wedding day. The gullible giant believed this, and asked his servants for the hammer to be brought to him. He set it on his bride's lap, and as soon as he did, Thor jumped up and grabbed it, and crushed all of the giants in the room, choosing Thrym as his first victim.

I thought this would be a great hook for students considering that the Thor mentioned in this tale is the same one who has become ever so popular today thanks to the movies his character has been in. I think it's a great way to get kids to begin investigating where Hollywood originally got its ideas for its hero movies.

(Hero) A Hero from the Holy Mountains

"The epic hero, or bogatyr, Svyatogor, a warrior of apparently peerless strength and courage, met his match when he least expected it. His tale comes from one of the earliest extant cycles of byliny, or songs, celebrating the mythical "Elder Heroes".

One day Svyatogor set out to prepare for a journey across the mountains. While he was riding on his great horse, he felt full of life, and was recalling the power of his strength. He felt so strong that he shouted out against the air and boasted of his strength. He felt that he was strong enough to lift the entire Earth with his bare hands. He then saw a saddle bag on the ground and stopped his horse at it to pick it up. He first tried to pick it up with the handle of his whip, but it wouldn't budge. Then he attempted to retrieve it by raising it up with his finger, but that didn't work either. Finally, he used both hands and used all of his might to lift the bag off the ground, and thought that he had. But then when he looked down, he realized the the bag hadn't moved, but that he had begun to sunk deep into the soil. He saw red tears of blood splash onto his arms, and knew then he should not have boasted earlier about being so strong. His horse had abandoned him, and he met his demise in the ground.

I'm assuming that the hero-like qualities of Svyatogor were described in great detail in many other tales, as this one just explained his death. It's clear to me that the purpose of this story line is to teach others not to be too prideful, because if you do, bad consequences will come your way. ( )