Mythology and Folklore Books

I own the 1960 edition, and after reading lots of books on the occult, I always turn to this one at the end if something is unclear. This is the best there is, even if it's old.

This was the first comprehensive coverage of its kind covering the topic of occultism, and was originally titled with a long, daunting title peculiar to its 1920 origins. Dover's reduced the title to a managable read and provided a fine reprint of a dictionary-style set of entries which embrace occult terms and explore the roots of mythology, folk literature, and the occult. A thrilling, oft-cited resource packed with important keys to understanding, this will still prove applicable and important to modern audiences.

Charles Coulter had a passion for the Gods. For 10 years, he collectedbooks, magazines, reference material and devoured all the informationabout the dieties of the ancient worlds.

Coulter painstakinglycataloged and cross-referenced every bit of information about theGods. Many times, he would find stories and references about Godsunder a variety of names - but he was able to identify them as thesame diety. So, often, you'll be able to see if your favorite mythicalgod had counterparts in other cultures and other lands.

This reallywas the work of a lifetime. When he finished the book and selected theart for the cover, Chuck decided that he was too ill to go on. And hewent to join the Gods.

The book was published two years after hisdeath.

What a great place to start exploring the foundation oftoday's cultures, societies and frames of reference.

Oh yes, alongthe way, Chuck's sense of humor being irrepressible, he wrote a totalspoof about the romping of the gods in modern-day Greece - if you wantto laugh out loud while you're reading, pick up a copy of 'Ponce'sFountain" (and NO, it is not totally out of print. His wife stillhas about 100 copies, plus about 30 that were autographed before Chuckdied.)

Charles Coulter had a passion for the Gods. For 10 years, he collected books, magazines, reference material and devoured all the information about the dieties of the ancient worlds.

Coulter painstakingly cataloged and cross-referenced every bit of information about the Gods. Many times, he would find stories and references about Gods under a variety of names - but he was able to identify them as the same diety. So, often, you'll be able to see if your favorite mythical god had counterparts in other cultures and other lands.

This really was the work of a lifetime. When he finished the book and selected the art for the cover, Chuck decided that he was too ill to go on. And he went to join the Gods.

The book was published two years after his death.

What a great place to start exploring the foundation of today's cultures, societies and frames of reference.

Oh yes, along the way, Chuck's sense of humor being irrepressible, he wrote a total spoof about the romping of the gods in modern-day Greece - if you want to laugh out loud while you're reading, pick up a copy of 'Ponce's Fountain" http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1569015074/ (and NO, it is not totally out of print. His wife still has about 100 copies, plus about 30 that were autographed before Chuck died.)

Walk down any where in Wales, Scotland, Ireland and even England and the shadow of a lost culture echoes all around. Bob Currans book opens the door to that lost world in so many ways. He's a great writer. This could have been one dodgy new age or academic slog but it wasn't. It's well written and has excellent images to fill out the pages. My only criticism is that this book ends rather abrubtly just at the point where I could have read a lot more. As an Artist this is the kind of book I love. So much to take in but it all digests so well. I highly recommend anyone with a desire to explore Mythology and the celtic shadow that lingers yet in the UK and the Island of Ireland to explore this book and have new eyes to see it all through by the end of it.

This is truly an excellent book; meticulously researched and artistically laid-out. The author has obviously put a lot of time and effort into the production of this book, making it a wonderful resourse for information on Celtic culture. This is a scholarly book, containing information about the myths and society of early cultures that we now deem "Celtic": those of Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Cornwall, Man, Brittany, etc. And yet, it is also very accessible and easy to read and has a "user-friendly" lay-out. This is definitly a book for those interested in a historically-accurate view of Celtic mythology; it contains no hazy, pop-culture constructions.

Sometimes it is hard to find reliable information regarding the Celts, ever since that very term became a buzz-word for all types of stuff. This is a down-to-earth collection, but still retains a very poetic and "story-telling" aspect to it. Great book to just sit back and read by a fire....

This is the first of the Myth and Mankind books i have read, but I have really enjoyed it. It lays out a large selection of near eastern myths in a story format that is easy to read and understand, while also providing notes about variations on the stories and some background information on the re-discovery of these myths. The photographs are excellent and include some less commonly seen artifacts along with the classics (you can't have an ancient near eastern book without a picture of the Standard of Ur). Although this is not an extensive in-depth analysis of the myths, it is not overly simplistic or a children's book. It is a great introduction to the myths or the region and enjoyable to read.

This is easily one of the better developed Myth and Mankind books. The book is well rounded in scope between all of the ancient Middle East cultures and provides amazing comparisons between them. From Sumerian, Hittite, Babylonian and Assyrian myths this book does an exceedingly proficient job of providing suficient myths of the pantheons of all cultures as well as background and side/hero stories.

The tales in this book are very invigorating as well as exciting and provide a wealth of information on Middle Eastern Mythology expecially in terms of pantheons, creation and hero tales. The stories as well are often accompanied with vivd pictures or descriptions to add to the whole flamboyant presentation of the book and provide real life evidence of the culture through history and artifacts.

Much like the other books in the series this book does an exceptional job of using comparitive mythology to analyze the cultures of the region between each other as well as on a global view. The books power to provide direct and engaging examples of myth between cultures provides for an amazing view of how all the cultures shared beliefs as well as to how different cultures adopted and manipoulated certain myths for their own region.

I would highly recomend this book as well as the rest of the Myth and Mankind series for a fan of comparitive mythology as well as a fan of ancient world culture an mythology.

I read this book as part of an ethics seminar at MIT, and I found it to be one of the best anthropology books that I've read in years. It opens with a strong summary of ethical issues by Carolyn Fluehr-Lobban, then David Price presents a well-documented and disturbing historical summary of the American Anthropological Association's covert relationships with the Central Intelligence Agency, Gerald Berreman further examines such relationships and others explore other ethical issues.

This book is a must read for any serious anthropologist.

This is a remarkable book that should be read my all anthropologists, or by anyone interested in ethics. Carolyn Fluehr-Lobban opens with a comprehensive review of important landmarks in the development of anthropological ethics in America. Her observations of the American Anthropological Association's decission to remove language critical of secret research or espionage are chilling. But then the next chapter by David Price documents an instance of the American Anthropological Association's covert work with the Central Intelligence Agency. Very troubling. Gerald Berreman's chapter further illustrates the problems of covert research, while discussions of the Yanomamo disaster, NAGPRA and other issues makes clear that anthropologists are not removed from important ethical issues.

All anthropologists should read this and think about the impact they have on the lives they impact.

Yet again the folks at Amazon have bungled matters. The other "review" of this book is in fact a review of (or a puff for) the Penn series of translations of Greek tragedy, not of Euripides' "Selected Fragmentary Plays," a scholarly edition offering Greek texts, English translations, and detailed notes on several of Euripides' fragmentary plays. It should also noted that the book in question is the recently published---and long-awaited---second volume of a work whose first volume appeared in 1995. Eventually, there will be a Loeb Classical Library edition of the major fragments of Euripides, but it is unlikely to replace these volumes of Collard et al., for their very full notes will remain invaluable.

I went to Columbia, with the most prominent 'great books' curriculum still in existence. 25 years later, I'm finding myself re-reading and discussing many of the titles. The Penn Greek Drama series is a handsome library of new translations that give fresh takes on the classics. It's useful to have Euripides on the shelf when you return home from the recent bravura performance by Fiona Shaw as Medea--it settled an argument too on how it 'originally' ended.

Luthi's book, like Bettelheim's "The Uses of Enchantment," Stith Thompson's "The Folktale" and Propp's "Morphology of the Folktale," is an indispensable guide and resource on the folktale, covering all the elements that make folktales "tick": their abstract style, one-dimensional characters, and deliberate lack of detail regarding locale. In addition, he touches upon symbolism and what he calls the folktale's "true" and "false" styles. I most appreciate his minute dissection and analysis of all the components of the folktale. My field is folklore research, and I feel Luthi's "The European Folktale," has helped me to understand folktales more than any other book. This is all the more remarkable when one considers that this is a relatively slim volume (164 pages).

Luthi's book, like Bettelheim's "The Uses of Enchantment," Stith Thompson's "The Folktale" and Propp's "Morphology of the Folktale," is an indispensable guide and resource on the folktale, covering all the elements that make folktales "tick": their abstract style, one-dimensional characters, and deliberate lack of detail regarding locale. In addition, he touches upon symbolism and what he calls the folktale's "true" and "false" styles. I most appreciate his minute dissection and analysis of all the components of the folktale. My field is folklore research, and I feel Luthi's "The European Folktale," has helped me to understand folktales more than any other book. This is all the more remarkable when one considers that this is a relatively slim volume (164 pages).

I can't believe i had the luck to have stumbled upon this book.This classical book on ancient superstitions,is a must-read for any serious neo-pagan and bewitching heathen scholar.At first,i thought it would be another inaccurate historical text ,in the line of Wallis Budge's Egyptian books.Yet,it's filled with quite amazing accounts of folk-superstitions ,from past civilizations through the late nineteenth century.Being very much interested in the affect that 'Occultism' has had on world history,i read this book in one sitting.All these global ancient cultures had some form of basic belief in mysticism,that resonated into our modern times.They also had various defensive amulets and protective incantations that aided themselves from the malvolent powers of curses,hexes and the dreaded evil-eye.There are also some references of the Bible,and how founding Christians cast antidotes against the forces of Nature.One could argue that Jesus was the first true 'Magician',that performed illusions and tricks, which were heralded as 'Miracles' among the peasants.There are many excellent illustrations of the array of sacerdotal hand gestures and artwork,used through the ages.This wonderful text is 'Mana for the Maga',to imbue the magician's cloak of knowledge, with the best of supernatural lore.

What can I say about this book? If you are Pagan or a witch of any kind, this is an indispensible resource. Written over one hundred years ago and reprinted in 2004, it contains excellent museum quality drawings of charms and history that is not prevalent in modern books on spellcrafting. Even such information as it offers as an aside to its main thesis is pertinent to anyone interested in magickal and mythical studies as well as superstitions. This is a scholarly work which does not adopt a superior attitude with readers. Though its ultimate audience was not meant to be any but folklorists and other scholars, the sheer weight of information contained in this book makes it a must have for any Pagan or Witch interested in more indepth studies than modern publishers are willing to offer us.

Books like this gem are just not being written any more.

Please note that the following is not a customer review. It is a summary of the book contents. The five-star rating is not objective, but it is there because it is impossible NOT to rate a book when using this space.


Abstract for the book Evolution and Religious Creation Myths: How Scientists Respond

Paul F. Lurquin and Linda Stone

Intelligent Design thinking and older style creationism argue that evolution by natural selection is an incorrect theory. We demonstrate that, in doing so, neo-creationism (Intelligent Design, ID) and classical creationism misinterpret the meaning of scientific theories. This is because these religious doctrines imply teleology and purpose in the natural world, which are not analyzable scientifically. In addition, the concept of "irreducible complexity" often invoked by ID proponents is based on a flawed interpretation of scientific data. We also demonstrate that evolutionary thinking in the sciences is a powerful tool that can be used in the study of the origin of the universe, the origin of life and its diversification, and human evolution. Creationism and ID do not belong in the realm of science and have contributed nothing to its advancement. Further, attempts to force the teaching of creationism and ID in schools can only weaken a science curriculum which already leaves much to be desired.


Abstract for Chapter 1
We demonstrate that Intelligent Design can be called a form of neocreatonism that, just like old-style creationism, confuses the word "theory" with the words "postulate" and "fact." We also show that Intelligent Design implies purpose in the universe, a concept that science can neither support nor refute. We further describe creation myths as found in Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam and Judaism, and discuss how these myths influence scientific thinking in various societies.


Abstract for Chapter 2
This chapter describes the Darwin-Wallace theory of evolution by natural selection. In particular, we explain the notion of fitness, which underlies the concepts of descent with modification and the appearance of species categorized into clades. We show that descent with modification is a much better evolutionary theory than the "Great chain of being" model which implies that evolution is driven toward the production of more perfect and complex life-forms. Finally, we explain how the science of genetics strongly supports evolution through the notions of mutation, gene frequencies in populations, and drift.

Abstract for Chapter 3
Here, we rebut irreducible complexity and creationism by explaining the reliability of dating techniques as well as sophisticated laboratory techniques that allow researchers to synthesize extinct genes (genetic archaeology, gene resurrection) and study their homology to other genes. These techniques clearly demonstrate that the irreducible complexity of the eye, the immune system and the bacterial flagellum are subjective impressions. On the contrary, phylogenetic trees based on gene homology show a deep evolutionary link between simple life-forms and complex ones. Finally, we give several examples of "poor design" that cast doubt on the principle of Intelligent Design.

Abstract for Chapter 4
The notions of natural selection and drift also apply to humans and their biological and cultural evolution. The science of paleoanthropology explains human evolution through the study of intermediate fossil forms. In addition, geneticists have been able to retrace, through the study of mitochondrial DNA and Y-chromosome DNA, the origin and migrations of prehistoric humans.
The understanding of human cultural evolution has greatly benefited from the application of evolutionary thinking.


Abstract for Chapter 5
This chapter demonstrates that the origin of the universe was probabilistic, not preordained, because Heisenberg's uncertainty principle would have been violated at the level of the Big Bang. The appearance of structure in the universe was made possible by the decoupling of matter and radiation about 400,000 years after the Big Bang. Structure appeared--and continues to appear--without violating the second law of thermodynamics because entropy is not increasing as fast as it could, and this keeps the universe in a state of disequilibrium, not equilibrium. Life appeared as a consequence of this disequilibrium, possibly involving a sequence of events such as formation of an organic prebiotic soup (or synthesis of organic compounds in hydrothermal vents), the appearance of an RNA world, and the formation of lipid-bound hypercycles.


Abstract for Chapter
First life-forms appeared at least as early as 3.5 billion years ago in the form of prokaryotes. Some of these species developed oxygenic photosynthesis, which resulted in the presence of oxygen gas in the atmosphere. Later, eukaryotes appeared and diversified through mutation and gene duplication (including mutation and duplication of master genes), which led to the rewiring of entire gene networks. We show that there is no fundamental difference between macroevolution and microevolution. Finally, we show that making artificial life in the lab, as well as transgenic life-forms, would be impossible if the Intelligent Design scenario were correct. Indeed, ID posits that living systems were holistically designed and thus cannot be constructed in a piecemeal fashion.

Abstract for Chapter 7
Creationists and some conservative politicians are allies in a culture war that threatens science education in the United States. The threat comes from religious ideologies, such as Intelligent Design, that have never provided a shred of experimental evidence to buttress their claims. The proposition that evolutionary science is against human free will is baseless, and so is the contention that the theory of evolution deprives humans of purpose in life.

Good information useful in refuting creationist myths. No one intent on intelligent discourse in the world of science and culture should be without the counter-arguements contained within.

Mr.Eddy's bizarre and creative stories have such a unique style. Tired of the same type of reading, I was looking for something different. I'm so glad I chose this particular book. I was suddenly immersed into Mr. Eddy's writings, so much so that when I was finished with the book I wished there were more. I highly recommend

I found this book to be excellent reading! I thoroughly enjoyed the story, "Miscreant From Murania". What a clever plot...especially since the story was written almost 60 years ago! Parallel time and vampirism have always intrigued me and this story put the two together nicely. "The Vengeful Vision" was a masterful twist of plot and "The Solitary Solution" shows Mr. Eddy's versatility in writing. It's a shame he died before finishing the last story in the book. Highly reccommended!!