Legends of the World

by Richard Cavendish (Editor)

Legends are stories that spring from the collective consciousness of a people--no one writer ever invented the adventures of Robin Hood, the fanciful tales of the Buddha's childhood, or the exploits of the Aboriginal outlaw Yagan. Although legends have their roots in undefined history, and are shaped by constant telling and retelling, they become legends only after the facts have been transformed by the popular imagination, when real people become magical beasts, demons, or men with supernatural powers.

Here the most important, most popular, and most curious legends from each of the five continents, and from sophisticated and primitive cultures alike, have been chosen by thirty-four experts. These writers relate the cultural context of each legend. The authors also describe the effects these stories had on the people who first heard them, and they trace, where appropriate, the legends' distant origins in recorded events and characters. A comparative survey charts the recurring themes and motifs, providing a fascinating view of how the same legend, with minor variations, appears in many different parts of the world.

Genres: Mythology, History, Nonfiction, Anthologies, Reference

433 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1982

About the author

Richard Cavendish (1930 - 2016) was a writer, lecturer, broadcaster, historian & leading authority on Magic and Witchcraft. He is the author of 'The Black Arts', a study of the European tradition of magic.

Reviews

[Noella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dit boek is er geen waarin je kan doorlezen. Het is eerder een naslagwerk.
Legendes uit de hele wereld worden erin behandeld, volgens werelddeel.
Er worden legendes verteld, dikwijls in verkorte versie, maar er wordt ook veel aandacht besteed aan algemene overzichten van legendes bij bepaalde volkeren.
Het is best wel een interessant boek, als je er je tijd voor neemt.

[Mehmed Duhović · Rating 2 out of 5]

Iako je izuzetno bogata brojem mitova, legendi i prica, zbog sturih i nedojmljivih opisa postaje nepamtljiva i monotona.

[Tim Pendry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although probably out-of-date in terms of latest scholarship (it was published in 1982), this is a sound reference work covering the world's legendary (not historical or mythological) heritage.

I read it straight through from cover to cover over a long period but there is no need to do so. This might be best treated as a useful reference work.

The Editor (Richard Cavendish) has competently drawn together over 30 contributing experts to provide quick summaries of legends from every continent. Perhaps only Africa is under-represented.

The breadth is chronological as well as geographical, ranging from the legend of Sinuhe (Ancient Egypt) and the Trojan War through to tales of Jesse James, Billy the Kid and Australian aboriginal bandits.

There is a very useful comparative survey of all the legends in an appendix, a good index and a decent list of books for further reading (at least from those published before the book).

There is also a lot of material for theory, especially about archetypal attitudes to such things as love and property but also about attitudes to sustaining and resisting power.

The woodcut illustrations by Eric Fraser are very attractive additions.

[Kione · Rating 3 out of 5]

this is what i'm reading in between other books....
kind of cool...

8/11 I don't think I'll ever finish reading this book because I always refer to this book for one thing or another.
But, I'm just going to post it as read to get it off my list.

[Dave Peticolas · Rating 3 out of 5]

A compendium of articles about myths and legends in different parts of the world. Interesting, but a little dry.