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	The Faeryland Companion Beatrice Phillpotts 0760718903 August 1999 Hardcover ·
Book Description From the Publisher From folk mythology and classical theater to contemporary film and dance, the mischievous and playful faery has fascinated mankind for thousands of years. These intriguing and ethereal creatures, with the myths and legends that surround them, have never ceased to inspire artists and illustrators. From Puck to Peter Pan, children and adults alike have never really stopped believing in faeries. The earliest religions and superstitions had their spirits and hobgoblins, symbolizing the forces of nature or watching over human infidelities. Although based on earlier myths and traditions, Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dreamwas a huge influence on the fantasies of generations of artists. Highly fashionable in the eighteenth century, faery paintings were a foil for discreet eroticism in a time of prudity,...


	The Encyclopedia of Celtic Mythology and Folklore Patricia Monaghan 0816045240 Jan 2004 Hardcover ·
From School Library Journal Grade 9 Up–Ancient Celtic peoples have made lasting contributions to current literature and culture in many parts of the world. Monaghan's 12-page introduction summarizes their possible origins, religious beliefs, languages, society, mythology, and relations with other cultures while the approximately 1000 alphabetically arranged entries describe gods, goddesses, heroes, folkloric elements, sacred sites, objects, and place names. Listings are by the most commonly accepted spelling of each item. Variant spellings often follow. Although an extensive bibliography is appended, many individual entries are followed by the bibliographic sources pertaining to them, complete down to specific pages. The well-designed index indicates each main article's page number in boldface, but also lists page numbers of...


	The Woman's Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets Barbara G. Walker 006250925X November 1983 Paperback ·
Book Review This fascinating, scholarly hodgepodge spotlights the feminist underpinnings of myth, religion, and culture. Before being lionized as zaftig Norse angels who guided strong warriors to Valhalla, Valkyries may have offered rebirth through cannibalization. "Little Red Riding Hood" was based on Diana, goddess of the hunt. Marriage was once considered a sin, not a sacred union: St. Bernard once proclaimed "it was easier for a man to bring the dead back to life than to live with a woman without endangering his soul." A few of the other topics expounded upon are the Milky Way, Cinderella, the moon, and males giving birth. While some of the references put a cranky feminist spin on words that might in context have different meaning--St. Paul's oft-quoted "better to marry than to burn," for...


	The Oxford Companion to World Mythology David Leeming 0195156692 November 2005 Hardcover ·
Book Description Cave paintings at Lascaux, France and Altamira, Spain, fraught with expression thousands of years later; point to an early human desire to form a cultural identity. In the Oxford Companion to World Mythology, David Leeming explores the role of mythology, or myth-logic, in history and determines that the dreams of specific cultures add up to a larger collective story of humanity. Stopping short of attempting to be all-inclusive, this fascinating volume will nonetheless be comprehensive, opening with an introduction exploring the nature and dimensions of myth and proposing a definition as a universal language. Briefly dipping into the ways our understanding of myth has changed from Aristotle and Plato to modern scholars such as Joseph Campbell, the introduction loosely places the concept in its present context and...


	Weird Pennsylvania: Your Travel Guide to Pennsylvania's Local Legends and Best Kept Secrets Matt Lake 1402732791 July 2005 Hardcover ·



	Werewolf Book: The Encyclopedia of Shape-Shifting Beings Brad Steiger 1578590787 August 1999 Paperback ·
Book Description WHEN THE FULL MOON INHERITS THE NIGHT SKY, THE TERROR IS JUST BEGINNING... From movies to the game, to folklore and case histories, THE WEREWOLF BOOK is the encyclopedic guide to all things lycanthropic. The author takes you back to the 15th century to uncover the origins of the werewolf legend. From there he leads you on an eye-opening world tour through the ages to the modern-day monstrous duality of creatures like cannibalistic serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer. Does the wolf live within each of us ? Learn how the legends of the werewolf can mirror the animal that exists in each and every one of us. Some have given in to these primal animal urges. Find out why. The answers lie within this book. THE WEREWOLF BOOK contains nearly 250 entries, a filography, and a resource guide with web sites. With more than 125...


	The Complete Encyclopedia of Elves, Goblins, and Other Little Creatures Pierre DuBois (Editor) 0789208784 October 2005 Hardcover ·



	Giants, Monsters and Dragons: An Encyclopedia of Folklore Legend and Myth Carol Rose 0393322114 November 2001 Paperback ·
From Library Journal There are three criteria for inclusion in this near-comprehensive reference work on a relatively narrow aspect of folklore: the creature cannot be divine, it must be a supernatural being from mythology, legend, folklore, or classic literature, and it may be a cryptozoological or symbolic being, such as a heraldic beast. Although various other sources treat giants, monsters, and mystery animals, none seems to cover them all at once, and this work's inclusion of the symbolic element appears to be unique. Entries give basic descriptions of each creature as well as its activities, region, culture, and historical period, and each entry is both cross-referenced and referenced to a selected bibliography. Appendixes categorize beings under country or region as well as such headings as "Beings Associated with Catastrophe."...


	Illustrated Encyclopedia of Fairies Anna Franklin 1843402408 June 2005 Paperback ·
Book Description For hundreds of years, fairies have enchanted imaginations, stirred awe and fear, and inspired a treasure trove of wonderful stories. Filled with hundreds of exquisite illustrations, this comprehensive directory provides a global, multi-ethnic, multicultural overview of fairies large and small, from tree spirits to winged sprites. Nearly 3,000 entries, arranged alphabetically from the South African Abatwa to the German Zwerge, offer glimpses into other worlds and times. There are creatures from Celtic and Scandinavian traditions, Greek and Norse mythology, Native American culture, the Far East, Africa, Eastern Europe, and more--all cross-referenced so it's easy to explore the themes that span the globe. An extensive introduction examines the origins of fairy folklore and provides general background on common...


	Great Encyclopedia of Faeries Pierre DuBois 0684869578 April 2000 Hardcover ·
Book Description They are known as the Little People, the Beautiful Maidens, the Godmothers, the Blessed, the Ageless Ones...for it is dangerous to say the name "faeries" without good reason. Ruling over earth, air, fire, and water, they protect forests, animals, and children, and in their hands lie the dreamy souls of all creatures.The faeries rose from the mist long, long ago, in the time of the Golden Age -- well before the creation of gods and men. In their magical fancy they created the singing grasses and the reflection of springs, the music of legends and the far side of the mirror. From the Valkyries of Valhalla to the Babouchka of Russia, Banshees, Dryads, Bogey Beasts, Sirens, and their ilk populate the imaginations and the forests of every culture.In this comprehensive celebration of the world of faery, renowned French...


	Encyclopedia of the Undead: A Field Guide to Creatures That Cannot Rest in Peace Bob Curran 1564148416 February 2006 Paperback ·
Book Description What lurks out there in the fog? What was that eerie sound in the dead of night? What flitted by at the end of the street, just beyond the farthest street lamp? From earliest times, tales of the restless dead and their fellow travelers have terrified mankind. Whether around a remote campfire or in the middle of a bustling city, the unquiet spirits and attendant creatures that have tormented humanity since the prehistoric darkness haven’t gone away – they still have the power to strike fear in our hearts. Encyclopedia of the Undead traces those shadowy entities – vampires, werewolves, ghouls and monsters – that lurk just outside the range of human vision and inhabit our most frightening tales. Drawing on a wide range of beliefs and literature, it traces these horrors from their earliest...