Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes is a book written by Edith Hamilton, published in 1942 by Little, Brown and Company. [1] It has been reissued since then by several publishers, including its 75th anniversary illustrated edition. [2] It retells stories of Greek, Roman, and Norse mythology drawn from a variety of sources. The introduction includes commentary on the major classical poets used as sources, and on how changing cultures have led to changing characterizations of the deities and their myths. It is frequently used in high schools and colleges as an introductory text to ancient mythology and belief. P.S. This also can serve as a good reference text when approaching Greek Myths, but still by itself it's quite engaging. Access-restricted-item true Addeddate 2023-05-03 22:43:33 Autocrop_version 0.0.14_books-20220331-0.2 Boxid IA40916716 Camera Sony Alpha-A6300 (Control) Collection_set printdisabled External-identifier Norse Section, I love the little bits of Norse Mythology we get here, but unfortunately provided very little, that it feels like an afterthought. I knew that before purchasing it but still somewhat a shame, that there are never revised versions that included much more Norse Mythology. I was stressing out last night over trying to get a handle on the third part of Aeschylus' Oresteia, The Eumenides. I'd started reading the introductory material by the translator, but it was so long, so involved ... almost as if it were a postmodern retelling of the play.

Edith Hamilton's Mythology succeeds like no other book in bringing to life for the modern reader the Greek, Roman, and Norse myths that are the keystone of Western culture--the stories of gods and heroes that have inspired human creativity from antiquity to the present. And although each chapter starts with a reference, every now and then I got the sense there were parts missing, like the ending of the story of Arachne, where Edith Hamilton has a happy ending showing Athena regreting her anger to Arachne, but my 3 translations of Ovid’s Metamorphosis shows her wrath is not appeased as she also curses her family. One thing became clear to me as I read these books. Although the myths remain unchanged, the way that we think about them has evolved considerably over the last 150 years. This is one reason why the bowdlerized myths presented to us by Bulfinch, in which each story is rendered moribund by being stripped of all reference to sex, violence, or any hint of unpleasantness, are so unsatisfactory to a 21st century reader. I don't really mind if she disses Hercules, but her gratuitous dissing of my boy Ovid really didn't win her any points.

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Access-restricted-item true Addeddate 2011-06-16 18:31:24 Boxid IA140123 Boxid_2 CH101501 Camera Canon EOS 5D Mark II City New York, N.Y. Containerid_2 X0001 Donor Niobe, daughter of Tantalus, disrespected the Goddess Leto by exclaiming to the people that they should worship and burn incense to her and not to the Goddess. Leto’s children, Artemis and Apollo avenged their mother by killing all 14 of Niobe’s children. Story after story of this kind, of vengeful acts and lust for power are what you can expect here. This is no Fortunately, Edith Hamilton is no prude. Her enthusiasm for the stories in "Mythology" is evident throughout the book. At times, she comes across as a woman on a mission - her conviction about the importance of these myths in Western culture is so passionate that she is determined to spread the message to a broader audience. She is scrupulous about identifying her source materials (on this point Bulfinch is, sadly, more dilettante than scholar). She knows how to structure a narrative. Her prose is clear and reasonably accessible - slightly dated, but largely unburdened by archaic language or academic jargon. "Mythology" even comes with a bunch of nifty illustrations, done by someone with the improbable name of Steele Savage (with a great fondness for winged horses, apparently). Though her first book wasn't published until she was in her sixties, her work achieved great popular success. Book-of-the-Month Club selection in 1957, honorary citizenship of Athens, a highly laudatory obit in the New York Times when she finally died at age 95 - what's not to love?

This book makes me feel smarter," says my GR friend in her review of this book. I worked the same for me. Vivid, decadent, and full of action, Hamilton's retellings of these timeless tales from the birth of the goddess Athena, who sprung fully formed from the head of her father Zeus, to the great adventures of Ulysses and the labors of Hercules - appeal to readers of all ages and reveal essential truths about the behavior of man.Edith Hamilton may have written Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes more than a half century ago and she may have been fairly ancient when she did so, but she still put out one seriously readable book! It's almost as bad as Bulfinch telling the readers which myths are Christian enough to be included and which had to be shortened/changed for his "genteel" readers. It is precisely the original stories I want to be told about or at least I want a thorough comparison!