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Mythology
is one of the things that underpins our history and defines
our humanity. Literature and everyday life is packed with
references to it, and a basic knowledge of it is a useful
thing to have. This small book is a good introduction to a
vast subject that will tell you the basics in a nutshell.
Most world mythologies are touched on in here, along with
a few salient facts about the various civilizations. Australian
aboriginal, Maori, Sumerian, Egyptian, Norse, Greek, Roman,
Chinese, and South, Central and North American are all briefly
covered, giving the reader the most basic facts and possibly
whetting the appetite to discover more. If you are thinking
that these are very big topics and wondering how one section
can cover, for example, the beliefs of all the Native American
tribes, then obviously it cannot, but this is not the idea.
Open a section, and you can discover the main points. For
example, the Australian chapter contains information about
the Dreamtime, walkabout custom, rainbow serpent myth and
stories about the sun and moon. The Chinese chapter contains
a list of the characteristics of the Chinese zodiac, plus
short pieces about dragons, Chinese New Year and the stories
of Kua Fu and the white snake woman. The parts about Greek,
Roman and Norse mythology are longer, and you can see a family
tree of deities, learn what the twelve labours of Hercules
were, and the meanings behind our names for days of the week.
This is a good book to dip into at odd moments and savor one
of the aptly-named bite-sized chunks of information. A handy
starting point to whet the interest on a huge topic.
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