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Mythology

Tales' category of mythology contains some of the oldest written texts in history. The mythology books will take you on adventurous journeys through ancient worlds of brave heroes and great gods of the past. Our collection covers myth from all around the world. You can find stories about the Vikings’ Norse gods and sorceresses, but you can also dive into the legendary and heroic tales of Ancient Greece. You can also get wiser on Ancient Egypt and it’s gods and pharaohs. Finally you will find mythology books about Ancient Japan with descriptions of its traditions and customs. Get ready to be inspired by the stories of the past.
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  • by Richmond Lattimore
    £9.49

    Odysseus survives a storm and shipwreck, the cave of the Cyclops and the isle of Circe, the lure of the Sirens' song and a trip to the Underworld, only to find his most difficult challenge at home, where treacherous suitors seek to steal his kingdom and his loyal wife, Penelope.

  • by Marie Heaney
    £10.99

    'These legends are the action-packed stories - of ancient heroes, huge battles, attempted invasions, prophecies and spells, clashes between the underworld and the real world, abductions, love affairs and feasts - which have fascinated the Irish mind for more than 2,000 years .

  • by Salman Rushdie
    £8.99

    The novel that set the stage for his modern classic, The Satanic Verses, Shame is Salman Rushdie's phantasmagoric epic Omar Khayyam Shakil had three mothers who shared everything.

  • by Alexsandr Afanas'Ev
    £16.99

    The most comprehensive collection of classic Russian tales available in English introduces readers to universal fairy-tale figures and to such uniquely Russian characters such as Koshchey the Deathless, Baba Yaga, the Swan Maiden, and the glorious Firebird. Beautifully illustrated, the more than 175 tales culled from a landmark multi-volume collection by the outstanding Russian ethnographer Aleksandr Afanas'ev reveal a rich, robust world of the imagination.Translated by Norbert GutermanIllustrated by Alexander AlexeieffWith black-and-white illustrations throughoutPart of the Pantheon Fairy Tale and Folklore Library

  • by Bex Hogan
    £11.99

  • by Signe Maene
    £14.99

  • by Sharon Blackie
    £15.49

  • by Lev Grossman
    £15.49

  • by Bob (Senior Research Fellow at the C.W. Post Campus Brier
    £17.99

  • by Clare Pollard
    £14.99

  • by Pat Barker
    £15.49

  • by Heather Walter
    £13.49

  • by Mark Haddon
    £15.49

  • - My Voyages
    by Vito de la Vera
    £5.99 - 15.49

    My search for the origins of the whale culture has now taken me from the first findings on the East coast of Greenland across the Arctic Ocean and down the Bering Sea to the Aleutian Islands. Here I have found evidence that they originated in the Pacific, which brings us to Japan and the Yonaguni monument. Here it becomes evident that the Whale culture originated from hunter-gatherers, on the Eurasian Mammoth step, who have begun to hunt seals and whales in the Sea of Japan and have then crossed over to Japan from where their culture has adapted to the rich hunting waters of the Pacific during the ice age. The abundance of hunting game has led them to be very successful in the Pacific and to have the resources to develop their unique culture, where they lived on and hunted from the ice cover on the Ocean. On the journey from Japan across the Pacific we find evidence on Hawaii that causes us to take a detour to Kiritimati.There we find evidence that very specific ocean currents during the ice age created a continent of ice in the pacific during the ice age with very rich waters both to the north and south of this ice continent on which the whale culture established a civilization that must have been the real lost continent of Mu. From this continent the whale culture of Mu could cover the entire pacific in their airships based on whale skin and bone. In our continued search we come to Tahiti and New Caledonia to find the source of the specific conditions in the ocean currents that led to the formation of the ice continent of Mu and how these conditions started to collapse and led to the decline of the Whale culture in the Pacific. We thus end up following the whale culture to New Zealand, where it tries to adapt to the missing sea ice and follows the ice south towards the Antarctic before disappearing.

  • by Chantry Westwell
    £21.99

    This exquisite book builds on ongoing trends for re-telling classical and medieval stories from the perspective of female characters. Powerful tales are presented alongside some of the most exquisite examples of art to survive from the eighth to the sixteenth centuries.

  • by Liesl West
    £15.99

    She's a killer in disguise. He's determined to make her his queen.As a deep sea death-dealer, Enna Valomir's life is simple: kill the siren, deliver the body, collect the reward. There's just one problem. Enna owes a mermaid her life, and in the cutthroat waters of the Abyss, that's a lifelong blood oath of service.When the mermaid orders her to kill the Abyssal Princess, Enna is pulled into an impersonation scheme with no choice but to infiltrate a gaudy surface court and help the mermaid win the heart-and throne-of its unwitting future king.But Prince Soren isn't interested in courting the so-called Abyssal Princess, or any power-hungry princess, for that matter. He's finally met his match in her fierce and mysterious handmaid, and he'll be damned if he can't have Enna for his queen instead.Breaking a blood oath means death, but Enna falls for Soren anyway. Now she must watch him descend into a ruin of her own making, or warn him of the ruse-and die.Part of the Sirens of Adria dark fantasy romance series, Of Song and Scepter is a standalone little mermaid retelling for readers who like their fairytales morally grey.

  • by Judy I. Lin
    £14.99

  • by Martin Shaw
    £9.99

    'A modern-day bard.' Madeline Miller, author of Circe and The Song of Achilles'Shaw has so much wisdom and knowledge about the old stories, it emanates from his pores.' John Densmore, The Doors'Through feral tales and poetic exegesis, Martin Shaw makes you re-see the world, as a place of adventure and of initiation, as perfect home and as perfectly other. What a gift.' David Keenan, author of Xstabeth'I can still remember the first time I heard Martin Shaw tell a story. The tale that emerged was like a living thing, bounding around, throwing itself at us there listening. I had never heard anything like it before.' Paul Kingsnorth, Booker shortlisted author of The WakeToday, as we are confronted by not one, but many crossroads in our lives - identity, technology, love, seduction, politics - celebrated mythologist and wilderness guide Martin Shaw delivers Smoke Hole - three ancient myths that serve as metaphors for our world today. Assailed by the seductive promises of social media and shadowed by a pandemic that brought loneliness to an all-time high, Martin argues that we are losing our sense of direction, our sense of self. He invites us to use these stories to help find 'a commons for the imagination, a place to breathe deeper, feel steadier and become acquainted with rapture.' Smoke Hole is a passionate call to arms and an invitation to use these stories to face the complexities of contemporary life, from fake news to parenthood, climate crises, addictive technology and more. Available now as a podcast! Subscribe to Smoke Hole Sessions to hear amazing conversations between Martin Shaw and some of our most admired writers, actors, comedians, musicians and more, including Sir Mark Rylance and Tommy Tiernan (Derry Girls).

  • by Gareth Thomas
    £10.49

    Novel set in 1930s London and Wales against the background of approaching war and the fight against Fascism in Spain. Historical romantic fiction which documents the real contribution of Glamorgan and the Rhondda to the International Brigade.

  • by C. S. Georgadidis
    £11.99

    An enchanting tale of romance and tragedy that follows Goddess Panorea who descends alone to Earth as a mortal, where she embarks on a journey in search of life and love.

  • by EA Wallis Budge
    £13.49

    Explore fascinating tales from ancient Egyptian mythology in this beautiful hardback collection. From creation myths to tales of the underworld, these legends offer incredible insight into the culture and beliefs of this ancient civilization. This covetable edition is presented with a stunning gold cover embossing and stencilled page-edges.

  • by Jane Wilde
    £13.49

    This luxurious collection brings together some of the greatest retellings of Irish stories that have survived generations, penned by classic folklorists including Lady Wilde, Jeremiah Curtin, Joseph Jacobs and James Stephens. This edition is beautifully presented with gold cover embossing, full-colour endpapers designs and stencilled page edges.

  • by Joseph Jacobs
    £7.99

    Written by classic folklorist Joseph Jacobs, Celtic Folk & Fairy Tales includes over 26 charming tales from folklore from the Celtic tradition, including: ''The Shepherd of Myddvai'', ''The Story of Deirdre'', ''The Sea-Maiden'', and ''Beth Gellert''.

  • by Jeremiah Curtin
    £7.99

    Heroes of Irish Mythology includes some of Jeremiah Curtin''s exquisite retellings of Ireland''s most daring tales and their courageous heroes, including the skilled swordsman Elin Gow, the great yet unassuming Conal, the grimly determined Miach Lay, the extraordinarily proportioned Coldfeet, and the perspicacious Blaiman.

  • by Richard Gordon Smith
    £13.49

    This luxurious collection brings together 50 ancient tales from Japanese mythology, from historical legends such as ''History of Awoto Fujitsuna'' to magic realist tales such as ''How Masakuni Regained his Sight''. These tales presented in a stunning gift edition with gold cover embossing, full-colour endpaper designs and stencilled page edges.

  • by Mary Litchfield
    £7.99 - 15.49

Mythology
Mythology is the foundation of many of today's stories, take for example the stories of King Arthur and Merlin, a well-known story that goes back to the celtic mythologies. It has fascinated many writers all around the world and with good reason. Myths take you on fascinating and sometimes even magical journeys and into the ancient worlds of the past. The mythologies build on folklore and you can learn a lot about the ancient lifestyles by reading mythology books. The themes in mythologies are often built around honor and bravery, but the tales also have their own universal moral message. 

Norse mythology books
In the Nordic countries we have a long and proud history of folk tales and some of them can be traced all the way back to the Middle Ages and even before that, to what we describe as the Norse period, where all the Scandinavian countries were connected as one and not divided into nations. The North was instead formed by many smaller societies, who lived comparatively insulated and connected to nature. Such a life could be hard and created fertile soil for folklore and the belief in supernatural creatures, which are found in many folk tales. Most of the tales were part of an oral tradition and were often handed down through many generations. The mythology tales were first written down and converted into mythology books many years after they were told for the first time. 
We cannot mention the Norse period without the Vikings. Vikings are known all over the world for their strength, ships and sometimes brutal conquests, but the Vikings were defined by so much more than that. They had for example a vivid and intriguing tradition for mythology. To the Vikings they were so much more than myths, it was their religion. The Norse religion referred to as Asatru consists of multiple gods, goddresses, brave heroes and volvas, which were strong female sorcerers and fortune tellers. If you want to find your way to get started in Nordic mythology you can find a good description and overview in Penguin Book of Norse myths - Gods of the Vikings

Greek mythology books
Some of the greatest and most famous myths are found in Ancient Greece. You might have heard about the gods Zeus and Prometheus, the goddesses Athena and Aphrodite, and the heroes Hercules and Achilles? They are just a few of the unique figures of Ancient Greek mythology. They are found in some of the greatest classics of world literature; the Iliad and the Odyssey written by Homer. At Tales you can get them as mythology books in their traditional verse form, but we would also recommend you to take a look at Stephen Fry’s interpretations of the classical tales. Fry takes the timeless classics into modern times by rewriting the mythologies in a modern, easy understandable english, but he still keeps the essence of the Ancient mythologies. You can find Stephen Fry’s Heroes and Mythos in our selection of mythological books. 

Egyptian mythology books
Another world of mythologies is found in Ancient Egypt. Here we come across Ancient gods and goddesses with faces formed as animals. One of the central gods in Egyptian mythology is the sun god Ra. Ra was the incarnation of the sun, which was the foundation of life. In Egyptian mythology we also find mummies. Mummies were the deceased faraos, who were embalmed and covered in gaze to restore them for the afterlife. The god Osiris would then help them on their way through the afterlife. The mummies were placed in their own pyramid, who would show the greatness of the faraos for the times to come. The pyramids still stand in Egypt and show the history of the past. Among our egyptian mythology books you find the book Egyptian Mythology, which has collected all the fascinating tales of Ancient Egypt and all its gods, goddesses and legendary creatures. 

Japanese mythology books 
You can also find japanese mythology books in Tales’ selection. The japanese myths are little known to people, but contain many amazing stories. You can for example find the story behind the samurais, an Ancient collection of warriors in the japanese armies. A samurai had to live up to certain virtues in order to keep his status. A samurai should both be loyal and have a high level of endurance, modesty, and honor. You could learn a lot about a country from its mythology, because it is the foundation of the country’s culture, although a lot of changes have found place since then. If you aren’t familiar with japanese mythology, we recommend you to read the Handbook of Japanese Mythology among our collection of japanese mythology books. 

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