World Mythology: From Indigenous Tales to Classical Legends

by Tamsin Hughes

A guide to the world's many and varied mythologies. Exploring the legends that have been told from the earliest times and carried down through the millennia to the present day. This is a rich source of information on the most famous stories and legends spanning the globe and conveyed in concise, fact-packed sections that allow you to thumb-through this treasure trove at your own pace.

Genres: Mythology, Nonfiction

256 pages, Paperback

Published June 15, 2020

Reviews

[Azadeh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Okay. So many things. First off. I am a inupiaq. (Native Alaskan) I couldn’t finish this because of the inaccuracies and just rudeness. Calling Native Americans “Indians” is not appropriate and edging on racist.
And the grammatical errors. But also our world creation story. That wasn’t how it goes. I was so happy to get this book and then I started reading it and it just went to a no.
I don’t recommend buying this book.

[Adrianne Bowyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a very interesting book! I love learning new things. Especially mythology.

[Sierra · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just picked this up because it was on sale without looking into it. I love mythology and have a decent knowledge of Greek, Roman and Norse myths and wanted to do some more reading about other cultures' folklore. This book is good for giving very brief little summaries of different folktales from around the world.

However, in just the bits that I read I noticed a fair amount of inaccuracies in the mythologies that I do know which makes me suspect they are present in the myths I wasn't familiar with as well and there are quite a few grammatical errors.

The book also refers to Native Americans as "Indians" throughout which made me assume it was really old but apparently it was only written in 2020 which is shocking. It also includes stories from several present day, active religions which to me seems kind of offensive and patronising, especially if you're not going to present them accurately. And it just has a slightly patronising tone in the way it relates some of the stories.

So I don't know, I guess if you want like a very basic intro to mythology then it might be a good starting point but I could list many better ones. This just feels like it wasn't really edited or checked by anyone. Probably not worth the time.

[Terry · Rating 3 out of 5]

This brief survey covers a lot of the world's mythology although most is way too general and short to give one a real sense of the myth. e.g. The Iliad and Odyssey are covered in a couple of pages and many other well-known myths get a lot less ink.

I think it would be a good as something to pique one's interest and maybe lead to further research in whatever areas are most of interest. But as someone who has already read and researched many mythological stories it was way too general for my taste.

[Vicki Milham · Rating 3 out of 5]

As an overview it works. I guess I was hoping for an actual retelling rather than a synopsis for each tale. Also the inaccuracies that I spotted made me wonder how many other retellings weren't quite right.
As a way to pique your interest, great. But read it as a starter and go find the tales in full elsewhere.

[Mary Helen Young · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting content but so many grammatical errors and typos, and strange phrasing. In one story, the gender of the character changes without any acknowledgement, then changes back again later. Is this a feature of the myth or just a mistake? No idea with this book.

[Peter MacMillan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Similar to other reviews on this book, I was disappointed to say the least. I found most of the stories to be half-baked and read more like a collection of blurbs you would find on the back of a book.

[Kiersten Good · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too basic.

Grammar issues throughout.

[Katie George · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not good. The order of the stories was illogical.

[kiaan ÷) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Yeah weird structure, bad grammar and i have a general disdain for ANYONE who writes Natives as Indians and includes barely anything other than white, well known mythology. Dissapointed ÷(

[Leif · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good for a quick flip through to get ideas or expand your horizons on what to research. Not detailed enough, extremely vague, and some parts are incorrect.