Mythical Creatures and Magical Beasts: An Illustrated Book of Monsters from Timeless Folktales, Folklore and Mythology: Volume 1

by Zayden Stone

We have all been exposed to a mythological beast in one form or another. Whether it is the three headed guard dog Fluffy in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series, or even the story of Smaug in J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle Earth in The Hobbit ; all these pop culture mythical creatures have a deep connection to the mythologies and folktales of ancient cultures. Where did they come from? What relevance do they serve in mythology? Why are some so obscure, while others become pop-culture enigmas? Get the answer to these questions, and learn about beasts from different world cultures. Folklorist Zayden Stone dives deep into the stories of these magical beasts and provides In the Mythical Creatures and Mythological Beasts book, the illustrated guide takes you through six themes that have been specifically chosen since they are consistent across cultures. The categories Presenting the creatures in categories makes it easier to see what the beasts have in common. You will find some overlapping themes across ancient cultures that point to universal ideas in how humans perceive the world. If you wonder where your favorite creature is, you will probably find them within these pages, even if they do not have their own chapter. For example, the ever-popular Pegasus can be found in the tale of the Gorgon sisters. He also had a half-brother, Arion, who features in the ungulates section. There is also a brilliant white-winged horse from Islamic tradition which may sound very familiar to Pegasus as well. If you have a love for the myths and want to learn about the unique beasts that dwell within them, this book is a great way to do it. Not only will you learn about ones you may have never heard of, but you will also be able to draw parallels between cultures and see how they interpreted their surroundings through stories of mythical creatures and magical beasts.

Genres: Fantasy, Mythology, Folklore

186 pages, Paperback

Published September 1, 2021

About the author

Zayden Stone is a self proclaimed folklorist. As a child, he was swallowed up by the world of mythology. He let the stories of ancient cultures transport him to an imaginary worlds. He would often re-imagine these stories. It has been a life long dream of Zayden’s to combine all the stories he was told about into comprehensive books for others. His books are an ode to his own childhood and fascination for ancient tales, and dedicates his work to the ever curious souls who love to learn about folktales and myths from ancient cultures.

Reviews

[Swati Tanu · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book took hold and simply captivated me.

It was very well researched. It would give good knowledge as well about various mythological tales and stories behind the existence of many mythical and magical creatures. There are so many creatures in this book and the illustrations have enhanced its grace. As the title speaks, this book is all about the mythical creatures and magical beasts which exist around the world. The author deeply divulges to the readers by expressing the tales and origin of each mythological creature or folklore. 

The author divides the book into six sections and each section has chapters that convey the tale of each mythological creature deeply. The origins of the creatures are from Greek mythology, Japanese mythology, Slavic mythology, Chilean mythology, Hindu mythology, Norse mythology, Inuit mythology, Filipino mythology and Folklore, Islamic mythology, French Folklore and Scottish Folklore.

There are some references made to violence, but I think they are well-handled and not disturbing. The author of this book focuses on the stories and myths of various animal beasts and he has meticulously organised them and segregated them into four sections. This fictional book blended itself with some beautiful black and white illustrations reimagined by artist Herdhian.

You might like to wander through a few artistic journals — they’re full of sparks and surprises.

[Melina Lobo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Almost every significant body of water in Scotland has an associated kelpie story, and the common theme is that if you get onto their back, you are doomed to drown.
🦄🦄🦄
Mythical Creatures and Magical Beasts: An Illustrated Book of Monsters from Timeless Folktales, Folklore and Mythology: Volume 1 by Zayden Stone is the perfect book for everyone out there who loves magic and mythology because it provides a guide to the roots from where these stories have emerged. It is said that every myth we believe stems from some form of truth, be it superstitions or stories about mythical creatures, the stories and tales we've grown to love have told and retold over the generations, but have you ever wondered what is it's true origin?
The author of this book focusses on the stories/myths of various animals/beasts and he has meticulously organised them and segregated them into six sections: Arthropoda, An Ancient Aviary, Cryptic Canines (by far my favorite section), the Eternal Hiss, the Unusual Ungulates and Aquatic Beasts. You might be familiar with most of not all these terms and what they stand for do it's not difficult to guess that just by reading the titles I was already hooked. It took me less than two hours to complete this book because I couldn't put it down. Every little detail was so interesting, so captivating that I wanted to know and learn more and by the time I reached the end I was heartbroken because I wanted to know what other creatures are out there that have such beautiful and intriguing histories but I never realised it.
Overall, if you didn't realise already, I loved every page if this book including the illustrations because it was so captivating!
🦄🦄🦄
Rated 10/10
Melina L.

[Saloni Singh Chauhan · Rating 4 out of 5]

"MYTHICAL CREATURES AND MAGICAL BEATS" by Zayden Stone is a tremendous book where an author has described many mythical creatures with an excellent research.

The book is mainly divided into three sections with thirty-five chapters. It makes us aware about so many different mythical creatures and their beasts such as Japan, India, Greek, Filipino and more.

As the title suggests, the book consists of mythical creatures, their appearances, significance, and stories related to them. It talks about various creatures like Jatayu, Garud, Sigbin, Cerberus, and many more. It is accompanied by pictures of the creatures along with a description of which timeline they were seen in and what role they played.
It is divided into 6 main sections mainly - Arthropoda, An Ancient Aviary, Cryptic Canines, The Eternal Hiss, Unusual Ungulates, and Aquatic beasts.
You will be introduced to a lot of cultures. Norse, Islam, Hinduism, Greek, Japanese; to name a few.

This book opened up a whole new world for me. Reading this book made me feel so dumb, yet I was awestruck with all the legends and mythologies. The illustrations were just an added bonus to the whole storytelling. Every new creature started with an illustration and a small incident about the creature, imagining the creature became so much easier for me because of the illustrations.

I cannot wait for the Volume II of this book. A definite must read for all those who love mythologies and short stories.

[Ashwati · Rating 5 out of 5]

Omg this book is a gem! I loved this and will treasure it😍 I am an big fan of myths and mythology and have at a point in my life wanted to be a mythologist, thus this book is really special for me.

From the usual Greek myths to Hindu myths to Celtic myths and mythical beings, this book is definitely a treasure trove for me. Each of the myths are also accompanied with illustrations which makes it easy to access for even the beginners in this field.

And it very well researched which is the most important aspect in such a book.

Anyone who wants to learn and understand more about the various myths and beings or is a beginner about these, has to check out this book for sure! Even mythology geeks would love this for sure, as there are in details descriptions on many beings along with their origin stories (which are my favorite tbh).

I highly recommend this book and will probably keep recommending it in the future as a very accessible and wonderful guide to mythical creatures and magical beings. Great work Zayden Stone🤩👏

[theindianreads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review // MYTHICAL CREATURES & MAGICAL BEASTS An Illustrated Book of Monsters from Timeless Folktales, Folklore and Mythology: Volume 1 by Zayden Stone

A treasure to any mythology lover. This book presents a well researched and detailed tale or re-telling of the creatures and magical beasts you often find in mythological tales and fantasies. The author Zayden Stone is a self proclaimed folklorist, who has put together his dream and hard work into the pages of this book.

It’s a collection of the fantastical creatures in myths, folktales, and legends, from around the world, covering Greek mythology, Hindu mythology, Islamic mythology, Norse mythology and many more. It will be an absolutely exciting read to anyone, because you will meet at least one familiar creature/ beast.

"We have seen that creatures and gods represent the duality of human nature.." "The majority of the stories that have been recorded have something to say about human behavior, highlighting what is virtuous and what is a vice or folly".

I’m not a mythology reader, but still I found this book informative and intriguing at the same time. I had recently visited the Jatayu Tourism center in Kerala (India), which is the largest bird sculpture in the world, and I always wanted to know more about the legend of Jatayu, especially after the visit and this book brilliantly gave me everything I was looking for. A great piece of art, which will be an even greater addition to history and literature.

[varsha Book_ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow..
cannot wait for the second volume and more books by this author. I hope he plans to write more of these types of books that have both a fictional and non-fictional element to them. The writing was flowy and the illustrations was soo good! What I most loved was that I got to know about more mythical creatures.Beautiful pages with black and white illustrations of each mythical beast, and an in depth look at each character. You can tell the author really did their research! This would make an amazing gift for teens who want to get into mythology. It would give good knowledge as well about various mythological tales and stories behind the existence of many mythical.arthropods for insects, crustaceans, and arachnids;
avian for birds;
canines for wolves and dogs;
serpents for snakes and dragons;
ungulates for hooved animals like horses and cows; and
aquatic for water dwelling beasts.
Presenting the creatures in categories makes it easier to see what the beasts have in common. You will find some overlapping themes across ancient cultures that point to universal ideas in how humans perceive the world.love this book very very much

[Darshayita Thakur · Rating 4 out of 5]

'Mythical Creatures And Magical Beasts' does what I have always wanted in a book.

These magical beings are the main characters; they are the protagonists, around whom the book is centered, not a side character, which just makes the plot interesting. Spanning thirty-five chapters, the author traces the story associated with different beasts and creatures used in famous books as well as movies. The book is well researched and delves deep into the history behind each creature their country of origin, the folklore associated with it, and the significance of their powers or physical appearance.

I liked that the book is not limited to one particular continent but addresses the stories to be told from all seven. The thirty-five chapters are spread across six sections - Arthropoda, An ancient Aviary, Cryptic Canines, The eternal Hiss, The Unusual Ungulates, and aquatic Beasts. So the classification is on point, and the biologist in me is satisfied.

The stories are accompanied by illustrations, to make them more captivating.

[Sayan Mondal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Any beastly creature that has its part in a book has always been an attractive and eye-stuck part of the story. Mostly in mythological read, we see all sorts of beastly and heavenly creatures. Creatures like fire god, or flying beasts, a talking snake, and well you know the count is endless. The author through this book has tried to make those creatures a whole another story for us.

Do read to know about the mythical creatures. I always wanted to know more about world history and cultures, so this is the perfect book for me. Inside this, you will find a retelling of the original myths of popular mythical creatures from all over the world. The author collected these mythical creatures from all the religious stories and folktales, and he deserves a Big Applause for this hard work.

There was so much to know, so much to read about fantasy and the mythological world. Every fantasy lover must read this book. Even, I want to add that, this book is worth reading again and again.

[S.Readss · Rating 5 out of 5]

We all have listened to stories of mythological creatures as kids. It is fascinating to read and learn about them and why they existed, their folklore and origins, etc.

This book talks about mythological creatures from around the world, like Chinese, Persian, South African, Japanese, Salvia and many more. The author divides the book into six sections and each section has chapters that convey the tale of different mythological creatures.

All the chapters start with an illustration of the mythological creature the chapter is about which adds to the explanation and story that precedes. The language used is quite intriguing and easy to understand. Overall, it is a very unique and interesting read.

[Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating read. Tons of cryptozoological and mythological creatures to learn about. Most of which I had never heard of. Well worth checking out for a relaxing read

[Soumya K S · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book says about 70 different creatures, their origin and their stories. There are beasts from different mythologies like Greek mythology, Hindu mythology, norse mythology, inuit mythology, etc. There are beasts from different sections like birds, arthropods, canines, etc. This book is a treasure for all fantasy lovers. If you're a fantasy lovers go and grab this book its for you. This book contains illustrations of all mythical creatures and magical beasts. It is really informative
The author has done a lot of research for this book. The language is lucid even a child can read it. This book is a page turner. The cover is really gorgeous

[Aakanksha Jain · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mythical Creatures and Magical Beasts is an illustrative guide that captures the stories of origin, details and nature of the mythical creatures that we got to hear the names of, in various mythologies and folklores around the globe.

The book, penned by author Zayden Stone, is very captivating. The creatures of book are divided into six sections on the basis of their physical similarities with arthropods, birds, canines, snakes, ungulates and aquatic animals.

Each chapter starts with name of the creature and its origin. Then is a beautiful colourless illustration. Following is a story or important mention, then given is the full description with its rise, important incidences, what that creature represents and what is the current situation of the creature as per mythology or folklore.

The book not only mentions the popular ones we all have heard of, like Jatayu, Typhon, Cerberus, but also the lesser popular creatures, giving the readers a chance to know about more creatures and divulge again into mythologies.

I found the creatures from Norse, Greek and Hindu mythology the most interesting ones, as I am familiar with these mythologies. Though the book mentions all the important details from scratch, you might find yourself scratching head if you are not familiar with the mythology the creature originated from.

The loveliest aspect is how the book makes you feel like those creatures exist in some parallel world or even maybe our own, despite being mentioned as myth. At the end of a chapter, you may feel like the encounter with the creature is not impossible.

The Fenrir was most realistic, leaving a feeling like it will return in future. On the other hand, some chapters have mention of sight-seeing of animals that looked similar to the described creatures, quoting that their existence might not be a complete myth afterall.

The book also talks about the inter-relation and cross-inspiration between reality and myth. It talks about how mythology could be derived from animals and their evolving relationships with humans to teach morality. It also talks about how mythical creatures could be just a sight away from becoming reality.

Being a fan of mythology, this book was a treat and I'd love to read the volume 2 soon.

[Mahesh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing Read

Mythical creatures and magical beasts by Zayden Stone.The book is for the most part partitioned into three segments with thirtyfive chapters.The writer through this book has attempted to make those animals an entire one more story for us.The stories exclusively discusses them, their point of view of things, their deeds. Sort of made them a winner all alone. 
Writer has portrayed numerous legendary animals with a fantastic research.The book grabbed hold and essentially spellbound me. This book was very well-informed too.It would give great information too about different fanciful stories and stories behind the presence of numerous legendary and otherworldly animals.
There are a few references made to savagery, yet I think they are all around took care of and not gorey or disturbing.The writer of this book focusses on the accounts fantasies of different creatures monsters and he has fastidiously coordinated them and isolated them into four sections.You may be acquainted with a large portion of not this load of terms and a big motivator for they do it's not hard to figure that just by perusing the titles I was at that point hooked.In the give great information too about different fanciful stories and stories behind the presence of numerous mythical.The choice of Mythical Creatures is extraordinary and the writer has a genuine ability to recount their accounts. 

I cherished each page of this book,written in a very clear language which was simpler to catch.It was a connecting with perused.

[Rajeswari Nandi · Rating 4 out of 5]

" Mythical Creatures and Magical Beasts: An Illustrated Guide to Monsters from Timeless Folktales, Folklore and Mythology: Volume 1" by ' Zayden Stone ' is the pure combination of magic and mythology. This amazing book is a retelling of the original myths, an analysis of the symbolism and relevance of the creatures as it provides a guide to the roots from where these magical stories have emerged.

This fictional book blended itself with some beautiful balck and white illustrations reimagined by artist Herdhian...

Unique creatures and beasts like Pegasus, Arion, white winged horse, fire god etc are beautifully crafted here. In the ' Mythical Creatures and Magical Beasts ' the illustrated guide will take you through six themes that have been specifically chosen since they are consistent across the cultures.
The categories include : arthropods for insects, crustaceans and archnids, avian for birds, canines for wolves and dogs, serpents for snakes and dragons, ungulates for hooved animals like horses and cows, and aquatic for water dwelling beasts...

Q) Have you ever wondered about the actual origin of these creatures n beasts ?
Q) What is the tall tale behind Filipino Folklore's sea serpent Bakunawa, who flies through the night skies devouring moons ?
Q) What made Athena furious with a local weaver that she transformed her into Greek mythology's first spider woman, Arachne ?
Q) What is the symbolism behind French Folktale's infamous night rider, Cheval Mallet ?

Folklorist Zayden Stone dives deep into the stories of these magical beasts and provides a fictional anecdote. This interesting book spins around extremely fascinating tales of creatures and detailing of beasts. Well packed easy short read with simple narrative style and lucid Language...

# Highly recommended to those who loves myths and magic in a package combo... Happy Reading....

[Piyush Goel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book explores the Mythical and Magical creatures across six categories which is quite informative.

Each of the creature features an reference to the tale of folklore which encounters the sighting of them.

The illustrations are beautiful created by the artist. However it would have been better if it were in full color.

The author has clearly mentioned from which mythology these creatures belong too and I quite enjoyed many of them which includes references from the Hindu Mythology too.

Each of the creature have a ancient story or a folktale associated with it. Some are worshipped while others are most evasive beats.

Although many creatures have their instances in the form of carvings and depiction on the walls, there are some mentions which can only be seen or told as per the stories by people and there exists no actual proof of them.

The Japanese , Greek, Indian, Norse, Scottish, Fillipino mythology each have their respective creatures worshipped either as protector or destroyer. Some of them are considered good as God while others are evil as demons.

There were many creatures who are interconnected with each other along with other mentions of the Gods, especially Jatayu and Garuda.

There are some descriptions of creatures which are missing while mentioning their ancestors or their siblings for instance Medusa which is a setback. It raises your curiosity to know more about it in details.

You will also find some lesser known creatures that exists across vast oceans and continents which is a good to know information.

There is also the description of creatures having the distinct hybrid forms of human and animal like characteristics which is intriguing.

Overall a good book to read if you are fond of learning about these creatures along with their folklore.

[Booklytical_ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Blurb :
What made Athena furious with a local weaver that she transformed her into Greek mythology’s first spider woman, Arachne?

What is the tall tale behind Filipino folklore’s sea serpent Bakunawa, who flies through the night skies devouring moons?

Folklorist Zayden Stone dives deep into the stories of these magical beasts and provides -
a fictional anecdote,
a retelling of the original myths,
an analysis of the symbolism and relevance of the creatures.

Review :
I hardly read any non-fiction books, but this one fascinated me and urged me to read ahead.

Mythical Creatures and Magical Beasts : An Illustrated Book of Monsters from Timeless Folktales, Folklore and Mythology : Volume 1 by Zayden Stone is an ideal book for someone who loves mythology and folktales.

It mostly consists of  retellings of Greek, Filipino, Japanese, slavic ,Chilean, Hindu, Norse, Inuit, Islamic mythologies, folktales and folkores.
The book is divided into 6 sections -
▪️Anthropods
▪️Avian           
▪️Canines     
▪️Serpents     
▪️Ungulates   
▪️Aquatic

Each section has 4-5 creatures, with a beautiful black and white illustration of the said creature and it's history, deeds and tale. A synoptic outline of every tale is given at the starting of each chapter, which adds curiosity. The language is simple and easy to understand.

The creatures author has chosen are astonishing. Not only does it contain popular mythical creatures but also lesser known mythical creatures.
After reading the book, it can be said that author took their time to research and did an amazing job to assemble  and narrate the information very well.
Overall, it was a captivating read. I also loved how the cover is designed, simple yet alluring.

Genre   : Mythology, Non-fiction
Pages  : 186
Author  : Zayden Stone 

[Gopal · Rating 5 out of 5]

First of all I was too fascinated with the title and the cover, the way it has been designed ; I was pretty sure that this book is going to be my most unique read.
Since childhood I always loved the fairy tales and mythology stories and always urged to know the other side of story but in most of the stories only the positive or the hero characters kept presenting.
Hence that's where this book stands different.

"Mythical Creatures and Magical Beasts" is a collection of stories that are based on a negative characters about whom we don't know much.
Since the characters have been picked from various civilizations and foreign Mythology stories, they made me agree to the fact that the Author has made a good amount of research before writing this book. Being an Indian reader I was quite familiar with the Indian stories.
I knew the stories associated with jatayu and Garuda but Gandabherunda was something that was too new for me.
Even the rest of the Indian stories surprised me with different perspective.

Reading this book gave me exposure to new mythological stories that I would have never come to know about.
All the 35 stories are too brilliant and the writing is flawless and impressive.
As it is a collection of short stories one can easily read this book anytime.
Every story will take hardly 15 to 20 minutes of our time in case if we are a very slow readers.
Another thing which I loved about this book is the brief description of the stories on whom the characters are based.
It makes the readers to understand the stories better.
Overall this is the perfect and the most unique book that I read till now and I highly recommend it to everybody.

[SIDDA RAVITEJA · Rating 4 out of 5]

I generally needed to find out about world history and societies, so this is the ideal book for me.

Inside this, you will discover a retelling of the first legends of well known legendary animals from everywhere the world. Indeed, trust me from everywhere the world. The all-unique stories where was whenever these monsters first have seemed are enrolled here. Asian, Middle Eastern folktales additionally included, even Indian Hindu strict stories likewise, all are old and credible stories are here. The creator gathered these legendary animals from every one of the strict stories and folktales, and he merits a Big Applause for this difficult work.

Furthermore, this isn't all, here included some more conversation a truly intriguing theme. An absolute necessity have book, a collectible book for history darlings too in light of the fact that writer has let some know investigation of imagery as well. This works like an additional a treat, a cherry on the highest point of a cake which I am certain any peruser doesn't want to miss.

On the off chance that you begin perusing this book, I bet you were unable to put it down. I was so energized and winded while perusing this is on the grounds that it was a lot invigorating to find out with regards to the way of life and history of others' nations. It was more than I anticipated from this book. There was such a great amount to know, so much to find out with regards to dream and the legendary world. Each dream sweetheart should peruse this book. Indeed, I need to add that, this book merits perusing over and over. Presently I am hanging tight for the subsequent part..

[Mili Das · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first thing that caught my eyes is this beautiful, gorgeous cover, so next, I read the blurb and I was stunned! I must say it was a dream book for me, I always wanted to know more about world history and cultures, so this is the perfect book for me.

Inside this, you will find a retelling of the original myths of popular mythical creatures from all over the world. Yes, believe me from all over the world. The all-original stories where was the first time these beasts have appeared are enlisted here. Asian, Middle Eastern folktales also included, even Indian Hindu religious stories also, all are old and authentic stories are here. The author collected these mythical creatures from all the religious stories and folktales, and he deserves a Big Applause for this hard work.

And this is not all, here added some more discussion on a really interesting topic. A must-have book, a collectible book for history lovers too because author has told some analysis of symbolism too. This works like an extra treat, a cherry on the top of a cake which I am sure any reader doesn't wanna miss.

If you start reading this book, I bet you couldn't put it down. I was so excited and breathless while reading it because it was too much exciting to read about the culture and history of others' countries. It was more than I expected from this book. There was so much to know, so much to read about fantasy and the mythological world. Every fantasy lover must read this book. Even, I want to add that, this book is worth reading again and again. Now I am waiting for the second part..

[Bibliomane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book Name: Mythical Creature and Magical Beasts

Genre: Mythology

Author: Zayden Stone

"Mythical Creatures and Magical Beasts" by Zayden Stone is an anthology of the different mythological creatures and the history behind them, from timeless Folktales, Folklore, and Mythology. This is the first volume of this series and I am keenly waiting for the second volume. The book is divided into six sections and thirty-five chapters. Six sections are Arthropoda, Ancient Aviary, Cryptic Canines, The Eternal Hiss, The Unusual Ungulates, and Aquatic Beasts. Arthropoda talks about insects like lobsters, scorpions, and spiders. Ancient Aviary talks about birds. Cryptic Canines talks about canines, such as dogs and wolves. The Eternal Hiss talks about serpents. The Unusual Ungulates talks about animals with hooves, such as horses, cows, and boars. Aquatic Beasts talks about creatures that live in bodies of water. It talks about creatures from Greek Mythology, Hindu Mythology, Islamic Mythology, Maori Mythology, Norse Folklore, Scottish Folklore, Celtic Folklore, French Folklore, Flipino Mythology, Norse Mythology, Japanese Mythology, Filipino Folklore, Inuit Mythology, Chilean Mythology, and Slavic Mythology.

This book is a treat for Mythology lovers and you must check this book out once. The language is quite easy and every chapter has an illustrated picture of the creature about which it is talking. So, this book is a must-add up in your mythological book collection.

Do read and don't forget to share your views in the comment section.

[Diya Roy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not many mythology books approach the readers the way this piece of writing does. What a beautiful way to blend the animal hierarchy with the mythical creatures. The author precisely divided the creatures into 6 categories: Arthropoda, ancient Aviary, cryptic Canines, Eternal Hiss, unusual Ungulatus, and aquatic Beast.

The author draws the differences between three major ways through which these mythological beasts rule our consciousness: Myths, Folklores, and Legends. Thus, an overview of what are the author will be dealing with, is made clear at the very onset.

Each category covers a fair amount of mythical and magical creatures and shares their origin as well as their consecutive mischiefs or benevolence. All the mystical creatures are skillfully culled from various countries and cultures, such as India, Filipin, New Zealand, France, Greece, Ireland, etc, providing a huge spectrum of rich mythic stories, i.e the Manga artist Mizuki Shigeru popularized the yokai story of the sea monster Kake- Kujira in his GeGeGe Kitaro series

Occasional strokes of humor make the reading all the more enjoyable. This book also explores the infusion of these mystic animals into pop cultures, showing how they inadvertently influence our perceptions.

I urge all the mythology enthusiasts to give this book a shot. This face-paced short piece of diversified magical tales won't disappoint you.
4/5

P.S : A special mention to the artist Herdhian who drew all the intricately beautiful and lively pictures of the mythical creatures in this book.

[Piyush Jain · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book name -
Mythical creatures and magical beasts

Author - Zayden Stone

It is an awesome book .
The title is apt till the core !

SYNOPSIS:
I love how the author has beautifully illustrated every mythological creature , which really made me feel connected and kept me engaged with the book- my favourite was the Jataka . Another good thing about the book is that the author has given a short description about every creature before starting its tale. I was able to imagine every creature playing a part in the role in the tales.

These amazingly penned down short stories are extremely fascinating and majestic . They excite you as a reader and completely make you fall in awe with the creative world . Even though I did feel kinda stupid while reading it, the kid inside me urged me to keep reading as we've all imagined and dreamed these magical creatures , fire Gods, fairies , flying beasts , giants etc as kids !

The author - Mr. Zayden , has Beautifully penned down these amazing folktales from ALL OVER THE WORLD . It was more than I expected from this book. There was so much to know, so much to read about fantasy and the mythological world. It was an amazing experience to read about the culture and history of other countries.

The book is an absolute TREAT for all mythological and history lovers too !
Awesomely penned , beautifully combined , this book will give you what you expect. Waiting for volume 2...!

RECOMMENDED to fantasy, history, and mythological readers.

RATING - 4.5

THANK YOU !

[kriti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book :Mythical creatures and Magical beasts
Author: Zayden stone
Review: The book is about folklore of creatures deeply rooted in mythology and stories.
I can only imagine the insane amount of research that went into this book .

In the Mythical Creatures and Mythological Beasts book, the illustrated guide takes you through six themes that have been specifically chosen since they are consistent across cultures. The categories include:

arthropods for insects, crustaceans, and arachnids;
avian for birds;
canines for wolves and dogs;
serpents for snakes and dragons;
ungulates for hooved animals like horses and cows; and
aquatic for water dwelling beasts.
Presenting the creatures in categories makes it easier to see what the beasts have in common. You will find some overlapping themes across ancient cultures that point to universal ideas in how humans perceive the world.
I loved how the author has categorically divided and tried to make sort of a classification of these creatures.
Only thing I disliked was in some places it became too monotonous and overload of knowledge.
Nevertheless it was fascinating to read .
If you liked jk Rowling’s fantastic beasts and where to find them then you will love this one for sure because the book kicks it up by a notch.
It includes i think it’s fair to say everything under earth, I could be wrong but I don’t think any author has ever written such a wide collection of stories and information about creatures.
If you are into mythology or remotely into reading something different pick this up
4/5

[Alfina Daisy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mythical creatures and magical beasts by Zayden Stone.The book is mainly divided into three sections with thirtyfive chapters.The author through this book has tried to make those creatures a whole another story for us.The stories solely talks about them, their perspective of things, their deeds. Kind of made them a conqueror on its own.author has described many mythical creatures with an excellent research.The book took hold and simply captivated me. This book was very well researched too.It would give good knowledge as well about various mythological tales and stories behind the existence of many mythical and magical creatures.
There are some references made to violence, but I think they are well handled and not gorey or disturbing.The author of this book focusses on the stories myths of various animals beasts and he has meticulously organised them and segregated them into four sections.You might be familiar with most of not all these terms and what they stand for do it's not difficult to guess that just by reading the titles I was already hooked.In the give good knowledge as well about various mythological tales and stories behind the existence of many mythical.
The selection of Mythical Creatures is outstanding and the author has a real talent to tell their stories.I loved every page of this book,written in a quite lucid language which was easier to catch.It was an engaging read.

[FIA AMIR · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a kind of book where the title explains the whole content. Yes, it's all about some ‘mythical creatures and magical beasts’ which definitely deserves the attention.

There are stories from a lot of mythologies - Greek, Japanese, Hindu, and Islamic mythologies, to name a few. Some of them were quiet familiar, whereas some were pretty new to me.

The author has done a lot of research and properly compiled them without any lags. I would like to recommend it to mythology lovers who love to know more about these amazing creatures.

[Anjali Sharma (Anjali_scribed ) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who isn't interested in folklores and mysticism and magical beings.

Do you ever wonder and have curiosity to know about the Known and unknown mystical creatures and beasts of the world.

Don't you wanna know what magic has been known and what creatures exist in the ancient mystical world.

This mesmerising book is a treasure chest full of different creatures and beasts and their stories. The known and the unknown names of these magical entities and knowledge anout their existence and folklore is so rich that no one would have expected.

About the book: Volume 1 have descriptions of various creatures in 6 categories - Arthropoda, An Ancient Aviary, Cryptic Canines, The Eternal Hiss, Unusual Ungulates, and Aquatic beasts and Volume 2 consists of the folklores of them and other cretures as well.The book is mainly divided into three sections with thirty-five chapters and six broad sections.

Arion,Bakunawa,Garuda,Signin,Jatayu, Cerberus are some of the names of the many magical mysterious creatures.

This book transcends boundaries and beliefs to cumulate and show the significance of various ethnicities, cultures, civilizations and faith.
Japan, India, Greek, Filipino
Norse, Islam, Hinduism, Japanese;to name a few.

Firstly the much needed applause is deserved by the author for his dedication and hardwork to bring together and create a magical universe of mystical creatures. The writing style is phenomenal and easy going and very well written and distinctive.

Intially the thought of the reader might be that this is time consuming bookk with some difficult characters and their origin and names. and will they be able to keep interest. But this book devours all doubts and is such a engrossing read that you'll keep getting into it till the end and at the end you'll have these innumerable knowledge about the world and mysticism and yes definitely a new perspective too.

The book cover is equally magical and creates a vibe. I absolutely loved the folklores and the creatures. To chose a favourite in my opinion will be unfair because each story, creation and culture serves such enriching and powerful performance.

This book is an ultimate and must read.

[Ketaki Nirkhi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mythical Creatures and Magical Beasts

Author name - Zayden Stone
Language - English
Pages - 202
Genre - Mythology and culture

In the introduction, the author states - at the heart of every myth, folktale or legend is excellent story telling. This is something that I completely agree with. The reason a reader is fascinated with mythology is not just about the characters or their supernatural elements, but the way they are all moulded into an interesting story.

The author further elaborates the basic difference between Myths, legends and folklore, with appropriate examples.

In the book, the author has compiled the stories of all myths, legends and folklore from all cultures and traditions across the globe. He has described the stories as told by the common folk tales and also the different versions of the same story. He has tried the describe the essence of the stories with an explanation as to why that particular story has been told or what moral it gives. The book is very well researched, and gives an in depth analysis of different forms of these mythological creatures, their divine or humane connections and the supernatural powers they supposedly possess. The author has also pointed out some overlap in the creatures across different cultures or origins.

The book is divided into six broad sections - Arthropoda, Ancient Aviary, cryptic canines, the eternal hiss, the unusual ungulates and aquatic beast - each depicting a separate category of animals and creatures and the stories relating to those. The stories cover everything, all the interesting tales from Greek mythology, Hindu mythology, Islamic culture, Inuit mythology, Japanese legends and so on and so forth.

My favourite was the story of Arachne and Athena, and how, to teach Arachne a lesson in modesty and humility, Athena challenges her to an all encompassing weaving competition.

The language is nice and simple. The book is captivating and leaves the reader fascinated as well as satiated.

The illustrations are well thought of and beautifully created. The cover page is attractive.

I rate it 5 stars

[Ruqaiyya Mohammed · Rating 5 out of 5]

BOOK REVIEW- An amazing book with beautiful facts, stories which are myth but wish to believe. A scientific branch I was exposed to in a very interesting way. The quote that mesmerises alot is "Be a mermaid. Swim fast , wear a crown , and dream big. "

AUTHOR- Zayden Stone

SYNOPSIS- As the contents explain the characters of mythological stories beautifully, hence they are posted.

LESSONS FROM BOOK- One of the beautiful things about genre fiction is how authors are able to bring mythical creatures to life on the page — whether that’s a demonic being in a horror novel or a winged sidekick in a fantasy series. And while many of the creatures you see in the pages of your favorite books are original creations, they’re very often inspired by (or an amalgam of various) creatures from myth.
In this post, we’re running through aIn this post, we’re running through a list of mythical creatures and giving you a couple of literary examples to help you begin your hunt for these wonderful, fantastical beings.
First up, let's look at the creatures who look human (but most definitely are not).
●Dragons and mythical beasts have starred in books, movies, songs and even kid shows live on stage for many years, with griffins being a huge part of ancient mythology. It’s thought that myths around these creatures were brought to countries like Egypt and Greece by traders from Asia who had travelled the Silk Road (more on that later). But what’s the story behind griffins and what powers were they thought to have? Let’s find out more…
●My favourite creature would be :
Unicorns are mythical magical beasts that have appeared in countless legends, movies and story books over the years. In fact, the first known images of unicorns were found in a cave and are thought to be over 15,000 years old! These horse-like creatures have a single horn and are beautiful to look at. They’re often presented on TV with a multicoloured mane and a glittery body. Read to know more!

RATINGS-🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟/5

RECOMMENDED- To people with artistic skills and interested in mythology

[Srijoni Chakraborty · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am bagging lots of mythologies these days since every book I am reading surprisingly I am not being able to put it down. I endeared the cover of this book and expected a lot before starting because of my already enthralling experiences of mythology. It didn’t come entirely up to my expectation but it was good.

As titled several magical creatures were denoted in the book with their myths which we tend to excerpt. It has six different sections named- Arthropoda, Ancient Aviary, Cryptic Canines, The Eternal Hiss, The Unusual Ungulates, and Aquatic which periodically talk about the lobsters, scorpions, and spiders, birds, dogs and wolves, serpents, horses, cows, and boars and underwater creatures. Now to relate the stories of these creatures several era’s mythical tales are found in the book and that covers almost all the categories such as Greek, Hindu, Islamic, Maori, Filipino, Norse, Japanese, Inuit, Chilean, Slavic Mythologies and Norse, Scottish, Celtic, French, Filipino Folklores. It’s hard to get a book that combined all this information bound so mystically.

I loved the research the author had put into the story but it more felt like a Wikipedia to me. I saw how the author created the correct places to put the mythologies and brought the references of the folklores but it felt more like reading a documentary than a story to me. Giving lives to the beasts and creatures made the book vibrant for the children but at the same time, the mythological testimonials can be boring for a while. Admired the illustrations inside the book; it made the book engaging. Being a new fan of mythologies I expected this to be more enraptured instead of only fantasies and particulars. I am still expecting so much from the next volume which I already can’t wait to read. Good Luck and warm wishes to the author.

[Anushka (adishka_diaries) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well researched and a worth a read for mythology, legends and folklores lovers.

Apart from the protagonists in the stories, who do you think is the most discussed? The animals. Be it a friendly pet or a dangerous beast. They steal the limelight in their own tiny way.

In the book “MYTHICAL CREATURES & MAGICAL BEASTS:An Illustrated Book of Monsters from Timeless Folktales, Folklore and Mythology: Volume 1 (The Legendary Lores Series)”, author Zayden Stone explores diverse cultures & their mythologies, folklores & legendary tales to write a guide of all the magical & mystical creatures mentioned in their story tellings.

Divided into 5 sections focusing different beasts from each category–Arthropods, Aves, Canines, Reptiles & Ungulates; Stone brings to life the timeless tales with a brief retelling & the description of the animals throughout the culture & their similarities with others.

I personally loved some of the tales & it was fun to read the magical pages of the beasts we've come across so many times in Greek, Indian, Scandinavian, Norse, Finnish tales–Garuda, Gorgon Sisters, Fenrir & many more.

The illustrations of the creatures drawn by Herdhian is a beauty. When the words & art is infused, the imagery of the monsters/saviors come alive in the reader's minds.

If you are someone who loves listening to the tales of undying & everlasting monsters, their indispensable position in cautionary tales told innumerable times to teach a moral then surely you can give this a go!

I won't agree to all the morals that's being taught to people using these beasts though! The animals always are an easy target, right!

It's our evil self that gives rise to a monster