Homer- Iliad, Odyssey
The myths of many supposedly primitive or marginal cultures are every bit as powerful and evocative as myth as those of the better known traditions. However, none of them were the basis for a major world religion nor were they used by the greatest poets. A certain “path dependency” starts to set in, and you tend to focus on those mythologies with a larger reach. If you want to understand the vast riches of European literature, you need to know something of Greek myth and King Arthur. So, no matter how rich the other myths are, they are likely to be rather neglected relative to their intrinsic merits.Which leads me to some preliminary apologies. First of all, talking about Indian, African, South American, and Native American mythology (or even folktales) is a bit silly. We are talking about whole continents here, with a wide variety of cultures and peoples in them. But that just brings up the broader, inevitable, failing here: you simply cannot become knowledgable all the world’s mythologies. So, you have to choose.However, even the treatment here of large, materially rich civilizations like Japan and China does not do them justice. I would note that not all of this is due to me. I’m not living in these other cultures, and sources and secondary materials on non-Western cultures are much harder to find in the West. But it is a bit of a failing in this list.Anyway, this list is Eurocentric. But I hope I’ve given you some hints as to where you might go, if you are so inclined.-----As modern people, chances are you won’t intuitively understand much of what is going on in these myths, so I would strongly suggest taking up some of the secondary literature listed here. Unfortunately, secondary work is also harder to find on a lot of the non-Western sources we do have access to.-----I do include a list of children’s lit here, which tends to be more mythological in form, but for most mythologies I tend to focus on works for adults.-----I would like to make a general recommendation of some useful series:1. The Legendary Past – Put out by the University of Texas, this series takes on Hindu, Persian, Chinese, Mesopotamian, Celtic, Norse, Russian, Egyptian, Roman, Etruscan, Greek, Inca, and Aztec & Maya mythologies. The books are fairly short, but usually of high quality.2. Library of the World’s Myths and Legends – Takes on Greek, Roman, Celtic, Christian, Jewish, Persian, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Oceanic and Australasian, African, Scandinavian, Mexican and Central American, South American, and North American Indian mythologies. Again, short, but generally high quality.3. Pantheon Fairy Tale & Folklore Library – Individual titles discussed below in Fairy Tale section.4. Folktales of the World – This is an older series put out by the University of Chicago Press. Available titles discussed below in Fairy Tale section.-----The Great Courses has an audio lecture series called Great Mythologies of the World. It includes quite large sections on the comparatively neglected mythologies of Africa and Native North America.-----Looking at the list, my guess is that you’re probably going to feel overwhelmed. You could kill yourself trying to read everything of worth in world mythology. So, unlike the other lists, where with time you really can get through them all, this is more about suggesting possibilities.My thoughts on where to begin are as follows:1. Greek and Roman Mythology (Jenny March)2. Arthurian Mythology (Malory or a modernization)3. The most well-known fairy tale collections: the Arabian Nights, Perrault, Grimm, and Anderson.4. A mythology from your local area, or which you have some pre-existing connection to, or which is used by a poet you particularly like.(I know some of you have connections to South America or Iran or the Caribbean. Why not start with those?)Then you can start branching out to see what fits you. The Legendary Past and the Library of the World’s Myths and Legends series are good places to start.Unlike the other lists, I cannot claim to have read through all of these works, though I have looked into most of them. The point is to give you options. I thought of adding some history here, but that would essentially make this list endless.-----Greek and Roman MythologyGreek and Roman Mythology is by far the most important for understanding European poetry of all eras. The book you should start with is:Jenny March – Penguin Book of Classical MythElizabeth Vandiver – Classical Mythology (The Great Courses audio lectures)I have looked at a lot of retellings of Greek and Roman myth, including well known versions by Bulfinch, Hamilton and Graves, but March is by far the best. Her book is comprehensive and the stark, unadorned retellings present the myths in all their archaic power. Her prose isn’t dazzling, but it has enough narrative panache to keep you reading. Her only rival would be the original Greek mythographer, ApollodorusOf course, you could simply get your knowledge of Greek and Roman myths from reading the Greek and Roman classics, and that would not be the worst way of getting to know them. However, inevitably you will miss out on some parts of the mythology, as you may only get part of the story or even just a cryptic allusion. For example, Hercules had a whole complex of stories around him, but they were only occasionally taken up by well-known writers. Still, even if you read March first, it is well worth it to take up the classic authors.Homer, Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, Pindar, Catullus, and Virgil contain a lot of mythological material, but are also in the top ranks of writers and deserve to be read for more than just their stories. They will be taken up elsewhere.There are, however, many works that aren’t really on that level, but who are nonetheless quite charming storytellers:Hesiod – Theogony and Works and Days, translated by Daryl HineThe Homeric Hymns, translated by Daryl HineOvid – Metamorphoses, translated by Allen Mandelbaum or Horace GregoryApuleius – The Golden Ass, especially Cupid and Psyche, translated by Robert GravesPlutarch – The Life of Theseus-----There are also myths and fables that aren’t really part of “Greek mythology,” but are certainly myths, or myth-like stories, told by Greeks. These include the myths told by Plato, including the myth of the cave and the legend of Atlantis, and the stories told by Aesop.Plato – Selected Myths, edited by Catalin Partenie.Aesop – FablesThe French poet Jean de la Fontaine did some superb adaptations of Aesop into verse. The best translations of these are by James Michie and Christopher Betts. -----The early history of Rome was heavily mythologized. The major stories are retold in March, but these originals are also worth reading: Plutarch – The Life of RomulusLivy – The Early History of Rome, Books 1-5-----Secondary authors I have found useful include Walter Burkert, Richard Buxton, John Ruskin (Queen of the Air), G.S. Kirk, M.I. Finley, and E.R. Dodds. Routledge has a series of short books on individual Greek gods and heroes that is excellent. Elizabeth Vandiver’s Classical Mythology audio lectures for The Great Courses company are a good mix of storytelling and interpretation. Her lectures on Greek Tragedy are good on how the individual tragedians adapted these myths for their own purposes.--------------King ArthurNext to Greek and Roman myths, the next most important series of mythological stories for European literature are those surrounding King Arthur. The following are what I think of as the most essential works based on Arthurian (or Arthurian attached) material, though there is much, much more out there:Geoffrey of Monmouth – History of the Kings of BritainThe Mabinogion, translated by Jeffrey Gantz Chretien de Troyes – Eric and Enid, translated by Burton RaffelChretien de Troyes – Cliges, translated by Burton RaffelChretien de Troyes – Lancelot, translated by Burton RaffelChretien de Troyes – Yvain, translated by Burton RaffelChretien de Troyes – Perceval, translated by Burton RaffelThe Vulgate Cycle, including Lancelot of the Lake, The Quest of the Holy Grail, and The Death of ArthurGottfried von Strassburg – Tristan, translated by A.T. HattoWolfram von Eschenbach – Parzival, translated by A.T. HattoSir Gawain and the Green Knight, translated by W.S. Merwin or Simon ArmitageThe Alliterative Morte D’Arthur, translated by Simon ArmitageSir Thomas Mallory – Le Morte D’ArthurAlfred, Lord Tennyson – Idylls of the KingMark Twain – A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s CourtRichard Wagner – Lohengrin (opera)Richard Wagner – Tristan and Isolde (opera)Richard Wagner – Parsifal (opera)Monty Python – Monty Python’s Quest for the Holy Grail (film)-----Basically, the two most essential of essential authors for this particular mythology are Sir Thomas Mallory and Chretien de Troyes. Chretien’s poems are perhaps the best works of literature as literature to come out of the Arthurian tradition, which he, to a large degree, extended and popularized. He added the Lancelot and Holy Grail stories, for example.But the near definitive compilation of Arthurian stories is Sir Thomas Mallory’s Morte D’Arthur. Most contemporary versions of Arthur are based on this book. However, Malory presents some issues for the modern reader. The earlier part of his book is pretty boring. There are some classic stories in this part, like the Sword in the Stone and the Lady of the Lake episodes, and Morgan La Fay’s villainy livens things up from time to time, but mostly it’s just one damn battle (or tournament) after another, with very little to differentiate them. The problem is compounded because you are working through all this in quite archaic prose. It is only towards the end, especially with the “Lancelot and Guinevere” and “Death of Arthur” sections, that things really start to pick up. So, you might want to consider a modernized version. I would strongly recommend Peter Ackroyd’s adaptation for a first go. He cuts out the boring and repetitive stuff, while scrupulously keeping all the most famous and memorable stories, all the while making sure you actually understand what is going on. It is a compulsive read. Keith Baines too is an excellent, straightforward modern language Morte. He keeps everything, including the boring bits, but his language is a bit more dignified and his characterizations have a bit more punch than Ackroyd. You might want to switch to him, or even try out the original, for the last two sections.-----The Tristan legend was originally separate, but came to be associated with Arthur. Gottfried is excellent. So is Wagner.If I had to pick literary works besides Malory and Chretien, I would go with Tennyson. Richard Wagner’s Lohengrin and Parsifal are superb. Monty Python is hilarious.Mostly avoid T.H. White. The related musical Camelot and the film made from it are mediocre. Disney’s Sword in the Stone isn’t a terrible introduction to Arthur for kids though.Aside from the Monty Python, most Arthurian films are not very good.-----I don’t know much about secondary material on the Arthurian stories. Much of Arthurian scholarship focusses on historical issues, or traces the development of the legend over time. In addition, the characters in Arthurian literature are not as symbolically weighted as, say, the Greek or Nordic gods, so I’m not sure if interpretation is as necessary for them. However, if you want to a good general introduction, Dorsey Armstrong’s audio lectures, King Arthur: History and Legend, are really helpful in making sense out of the tangle of Arthurian material. Richard Barber’s book King Arthur: Hero and Legend is another good short intro, if you prefer a book.Out of all the Arthurian stories The Grail Story has tended to attract the most attention among interpreters. There are books by Richard Barber, Roger Sherman Loomis, Emma Jung & Marie-Louise von Franz, and Jesse L. Weston (her book From Ritual to Romance was a big influence on T.S. Eliot’s The Wasteland). I haven’t read any of this stuff, so I can’t tell you how worthwhile any of it is. -----Celtic MythsThis is probably the third most important mythology to be familiar with for the understanding of European poetry. It is particularly relevant to Yeats, Eliot and Heaney.However, these myths were perhaps most influential in Europe through the not entirely authentic adaptations of James MacPherson under the name Ossian. Nevertheless, these poems inspired quite the cult following in 18th century Europe, provoking, for example, Mendelssohn to write his Hebrides Overture (Fingal’s Cave). Marie Heaney – Over Nine WavesPhilip Freeman – Celtic MythologyJeffrey Gantz – Early Irish Myths and SagasThe Book of InvasionsThe Tain, translated by Thomas KinsellaBook of the Elders, translated by Ann Dooley and Harry RoeSweeney Astray, translated by Seamus HeaneyThe Mabinogi, translated by Patrick K. Ford The Book of the Cailleach, edited by Gearóid ? Crualaoich-----Irish mythology can be divided up into four main cycles:1. the Mythological Cycle - deals with the gods and their coming to Ireland.2. the Ulster Cycle – mainly about the hero Cu Chulainn3. the Fenian Cycle - mainly about Fionn Mac Cumhaill/Finn MacCool/Fingal, and his son Oisin/Ossian.4. the Historical Cycle – set in the time when Christianity was starting to make its way through Ireland, the most well-known stories are about Mad King Sweeney.The best broad retelling of all the different myth cycles is Marie Heaney’s Over Nine Waves (yes, Seamus’ wife). Her book also includes many important, but otherwise scattered, tales, which are not a part of longer works, like the Tain or the Book of the Elders. However, her work does not include anything from the Historical Cycle.Philip Freeman also has a good compendium.Then you might follow up with Jeffrey Gantz’s anthology for Penguin. I would supplement this with a secondary work, Miranda Aldhouse-Green’s The Celtic Myths, as basic explanation is in short supply in Heaney and Gantz.After that I would go right to the most important books for the Mythological, Ulster, Fenian, and Historical cycles: The Book of Invasions, The Tain, The Book of the Elders and Sweeney Astray respectively. They don’t contain all the tales, but they are the most essential works.The Mabinogion (or Mabinogi) is our other main source of early Celtic mythology, this time through the Welsh tradition. Ford’s translation is a little better than Gantz’s, but does not include the Welsh Arthurian material.There are other myths as well, having to do with the Cailleach, a mother goddess, sometimes benevolent and sometimes not. But these tend not to be associated with any of the major Celtic myth cycles.There are also a lot of Celtic folktales. Well known collections include those by Joseph Jacobs, W.B. Yeats, Peter Berresford Ellis, and Henry Glassie (Pantheon).-----For secondary literature, Miranda Aldhouse-Green (sometimes as just Miranda Green), Marie-Louise Sjoestedt, Proinsias Mac Cana, Alwyn and Brinley Rees, Mark Williams and H.R. Ellis Davidson.-----Norse MythsThis mythology has had less impact on poetry and literature in the West than the Greek or Celtic myths, but it has certainly captured the popular imagination. Of course, it has also been the inspiration behind Wagner’s Ring cycle.The Poetic Edda, translated by Jeramy Dodds or Lee M. HollanderSnorri Sturluson – The Prose Edda, translated by Jesse L. ByockKevin Crossley-Holland – The Norse MythsThe Saga of the Volsungs, translated by Jesse L. ByockThe Nibelungenlied, translated by A.T. Hatto (prose) or Burton Raffel (verse)Richard Wagner – The Ring of the Nibelungs (opera cycle)Fritz Lang – The Nibelungen (film)-----The two most important texts here are the Prose Edda and Saga of the Volsungs.The Prose Edda contains only stories of the gods, as does Crossley-Holland. This is the stuff featuring Odin, Thor, Loki etc. For this material, Crossley-Holland’s retellings are more complete, but is also a bit duller.The Saga of the Volsungs (prose) and The Nibelungenlied (verse) are versions of the same story, though there are often significant differences. This is the heroic story cycle, featuring Sigurd/Sigfried, Brunhilda etc. that captured Wagner’s imagination. When it comes to this material, the Saga is preferable to the Nibelungenlied.The Poetic Edda contains the earliest versions of these myths and of the heroic stories of Sigurd/Sigfried. All in verse. Of the better English verions, Dodds is the best as poetry, but Hollander has better footnotes and has more of an Old Norse feel. I’d recommend at least reading the Voluspa (Song of the Seeress).However, to get anything out of the Poetic Edda, you will need to already understand the stories. For the stories about the gods, I’d recommend Kevin Crossley-Holland’s retelling, which is more comprehensive than the Prose Edda. For the stories of the heroes, I’d recommend The Saga of the Volsungs and the short recap in Carolyne Larrington’s The Norse Myths.Wagner’s Ring operas are classic, and I’d recommend getting to them at some point. I would start out with Solti for an audio recording and Barenboim for video. Parodies by Anna Russell (comedienne) and Chuck Jones (animator) are great too.Fritz Lang’s Nibelung movies are pretty good too.The Marvel movies are dumb, but still entertaining, and they do help you start to keep these characters straight in your head.------For secondary works, I would suggest starting out with H. R. Ellis Davidson’s Gods and Myths of Northern Europe and Carolyne Larrington’s The Norse Myths, as these stories won’t make a lot of sense unless you know a bit about who the different gods are and what they do. Then take a look at her other work, as well as John Lindow, E.O.G. Turville-Petre, Rudolf Simek, Paul Bauschatz, Neil S. Price, and Collin Cleary. Some of the Youtube videos by Jackson Crawford can be helpful too.-----Egyptian MythologyEgyptian mythology is probably more relevant to those interested in art rather than those interested in literature. Ancient Egyptian myth has been mostly lost to the literary world until the last couple hundred years, though Plutarch’s retelling of the Isis and Osiris myth has been influential, and lots of Pseudo-Egyptian “stuff” has been knocking around Europe since the time of the Greeks.Here are the books I would start with:Gary J. Shaw – The Egyptian MythsJoyce Tyldesley – The Penguin Book of Myths and Legends of Ancient EgyptThe Egyptian Book of the Dead, translated by R.O. Faulkner and Ogden GoeletShaw’s book is by far the best place to start. He retells the stories well and (mostly) comprehensively. He also explains who the most well-known gods and goddesses were, and takes you through the elaborate geography of the Ancient Egyptian underworld. Tyldesley is a much duller writer, but fills in some details missing from Shaw, including some of the eye opening creation myths. She is much more readable after finishing Shaw.I haven’t much enjoyed reading The Book of the Dead, but some people apparently find it profound. It is much easier to understand after reading Shaw and getting to know which god and goddess is which. Many of the other texts on which the retellings are based can be found in Miriam Lichtheim’s three volume anthology of Egyptian texts. Plutarch’s essay on Isis and Osiris is worth a read too.Secondary literature would include Barry Kemp, Richard H. Wilkinson, Geraldine Pinch, Jan Assmann, Edward Hornung, Donald Redford, and George Hart.-----Mesopotamian and CanaaniteThe works here are all of particular interest for their impact on the writers of the Bible, but are also well worth reading on their own.Poems of Heaven and Hell from Ancient Mesopotamia, translated by N.K. SandarsGilgamesh, translated by David Ferry, Stephen Mitchell, or N.K. SandersInnanna, translated by Kim EchlinStories from Ancient Canaan, translated by Michael D. Coogan and Mark S. Smith-----The first book included the Eneuma Elish, the Babylonian creation epic, as well as some other valuable Mesopotamian works, and deals mostly with the Babylonian gods. Gilgamesh, on the other hand, focuses on a human hero. It is probably the best known work here.-----Secondary works would include those by Thorkild Jacobsen, Samuel Noah Kramer, Jean Bottero and Jeremy Black.-----Charlemagne and RolandThe Song of Roland, translated by C.H. Sisson or W.S. MerwinLuigi Pulci – MorganteMatteo Maria Boiardo – Orlando InnamoratoLudovico Ariosto – Orlando Furioso, translated by Barbara ReynoldsG.F. Handel – Orlando (opera)Though not nearly as widely known as the King Arthur cycle, stories developed around the legendary king Charlemagne and his heroic general Roland. By the time of the Old French Song of Roland, history has already gotten quite distorted, but when you get to the Italians, the whole things is completely out hand, and their poems are rather outrageous fantasies.-----Other European national epicsBeowulf, translated by Seamus Heaney (England)The Poem of the Cid, translated by Burton Raffel or W.S. Merwin (Spain)Song of Igor’s Campaign (Russia)The Kalevela, translated by Keith Bosley (Finland)----Christian SaintsJacobus de Voraigne – The Golden LegendOxford Dictionary of Saints-----Robin HoodYou could go back to the original ballads, but I don’t think many of them are terribly worthwhile. The best and most straightforward retelling is by Roger Lancelyn Green. There are various film versions of wildly different quality too. The most famous features Errol Flynn.-----Don JuanTirso de Molino – The Trickster of Seville, translated by Roy CampbellMoliere – Don Juan, translated by Richard WilburLord Byron – Don JuanMozart – Don Giovanni (opera)All of these are good, but Mozart’s version is the masterpiece. There is an excellent video recording with John Eliot Gardiner conducting.Byron’s poem is very good and very funny, but it is a wild parody that doesn’t much bother with the original story.-----FaustChristopher Marlowe – Dr. FaustusJohann Wolfgang von Goethe – Faust, Parts I and II, translated by Stuart Atkins, David Luke, or Louis MacNeice Hector Berlioz – The Damnation of Faust (oratorio)Charles Gounod – Faust (opera)F.W. Murnau – Faust (film)The original Faust story seems to be based on the legend of Simon Magus, originally told by the Church Fathers Justin Martyr and Irenaeus and later expanded upon in the apocryphal Acts of Peter. This tale wound its way through the Middle Ages and then merged with the life of one Johann Faust, a medieval German astrologer and alchemist. A chapbook of stories was published in Germany during the 1500s, and this was the basis for the Marlowe and Goethe plays.Marlowe is the best place to get the basic story. Goethe’s play is the greatest of all works based on this story, but is also much more elaborate and self-conscious. The other works listed here are all worthwhile too.There are many works that allude to the Faust story, even if they are not a straightforward retelling. The most prominent of these is Thomas Mann’s Doctor Faustus.-----Reynard the FoxA European version of the trickster, with tales mainly of French origin. There are various English versions by F.S. Ellis, Patricia Terry, D.D. R. Owen, and Jeffrey Simpson.-----Japanese MythologyJapanese Tales, translatec by Royal Tylor for Pantheon. Chushingura (puppet play), translated by Donald KeeneI’ve put the two main Japanese mythological works under Shinto scriptures. The Chushingura is the story of the loyal 47 ronin, and is a central story in Japanese culture. Michael Ashkenazi is a good place to go for a secondary source.-----Chinese MythologyRomance of the Three Kingdoms, translated by Moss RobertsWu Cheng'en – Journey to the WestChinese Fairy Tales and Fantasies, translated by Moss Roberts for PantheonThe Romance of the Three Kingdoms is a sort of epic of China’s founding, while Journey to the West features the well known tale of Monkey.Anne M. Birrell is a good place to start for a secondary work.-----Indian MythologyMost of Indian mythology has been included with the Hindu scriptures.Joseph Jacobs made a collection of Indian Fairy Tales, and A.J. Ramanujan did the same for Pantheon.-----Persian MythologyAbolqasem Ferdowsi – Shahnameh, translated by Dick DavisNizami Ganjavi – Layla and MajnunThe Shahnameh is the most highly thought of retelling of Pre-Islamic Persian myths, and features the legendary hero Rostand. The story of Layla and Majnun is central in Iran and many surrounding cultures. It even made its way into the West through an Eric Clapton song.-----Native North AmericanThere are just so many different cultures here that I am not going to pretend that my suggestions here are comprehensive or even particularly representative.I’ve picked two particular cultures for a couple reasons. First, these are cultures from the area I live in, and reflect links to the land that I know. Europe might as well be another planet, in terms of the stories that go with it. Second, both of these cultures have produced visual art of the very highest achievement. I’d single out Bill Reid for the Haida, and Norval Morrisseau for the Ojibwe, but there are many others.But since many of you live in places with very different Native American groups nearby, I would suggest perhaps looking at investigating whatever culture is local to where you are.The Great Courses audio lectures Great Mythologies of the World has an extensive section on Native American mythologies.-----Haida:Ghandl – Nine Visits to the Myth World, translated by Robert BringhurstSkaay – Being in Being, translated by Robert BringhurstBill Reid and Robert Bringhurst – The Raven Steals the LightSecondary work: Robert Bringhurst, Hilary Stewart, J.H. Van Den Brink, Marianne Boelscher.-----Ojibwe/Anishinaabe:William Jones – Ojibwa TextsBasil Johnston – Ojibwe HeritageBasil Johnston – The ManitousWilliam Berens - Memories, Myths, and DreamsSecondary work: Rupert Ross, Shawn Smallman, Theresa H. Smith, Michael Pomedli.-----AfricanBamba Suso/Banna Kanute - SunjataMarcel Griaule – Conversations with OgotemmeliRoger Abrahams – African FolktalesThis is wholly inadequate, focusing mostly on one particular area of Africa that has managed to capture the imagination of Westerners more than others: Mali. The Sunjata epic is a story told of a great king of the Mali Empire, and comes from griots in the Mande culture. Marcel Griaule’s work focusses on the mythology of the Dogon, another people in Mali, and was a strong influence on the African-American poet Jay Wright. Some have questioned its authenticity.But the fact is that African myths have not made their way into poetry of the same quality that Greek or even Celtic myth has. So, it tends to get neglected. I doubt I would have become interested in Dogon mythology were it not for Wright, which is no doubt highly unjust to the African myths themselves. The Great Courses audio lectures Great Mythologies of the World has an extensive section on Native American mythologies.Abrahams’ book is the African entry for the Pantheon Library.-----Fairy TalesThe four most influential fairy tale collections are:The Arabian Nights, translated by Husain Haddawy (selections) or Malcolm C. Lyons (complete)Charles Perrault, translated by Jack Zipes, Angela Carter, or Christopher BettsJacob and Wilhelm Grimm, translated by Jack Zipes, Ralph Manheim, David Luke or Philip PullmanHans Christian Anderson, translated by Tiina NunnallyZipes’s translation of Perrault also includes other French fairy tales, like Beauty and the Beast. Betts translates the verse tales into verse.All of these translations of Grimm have their virtues. Zipes is the only one to translate an earlier, less bowdlerized, collection of the tales. David Luke bizarrely translates some dialect tales from Grimm into Scots, while Pullman includes a few unfortunate modernizations, like “weapon of mass destruction.” Manheim and Zipes are more complete, while Luke and Pullman are selections of the most famous tales. But all are good, and will do the job well.-----Many English fairy have become quite famous as well. There are collections by Joseph Jacobs and Katharine Briggs:Joseph Jacobs – English Fairy TalesKatharine Briggs – British Folk Tales and Legends-----During the 19th century, the work of Perrault and the Grimms set off a mania for folk tale collecting. So, you have a lot of national collections, many of which are translated into English in the Pantheon Library.The Pantheon Fairy Tale and Folklore Library:ArabFrenchIrishNorwegianLatin AmericaJapaneseAfrican-AmericanAfricanLegends and Tales of the American WestNorthern TalesYiddishIndiaAmerican IndianA couple of collections not in the Pantheon Library, but very similar in format:Italo Calvino, ed. – Italian FolktalesLone Thygesen Blecher and George Blecher, eds. – Swedish FolktalesThere is also the Folktales of the World series from the University of Chicago:IndiaChinaJapanIsraelIrelandEnglandNorwayGermanyGreeceEgyptMexicoChile-----I should mention another folklore collection:Joel Chandler Harris – Uncle Remus StoriesHarris’ work stand in an equivocal position. A white Southerner who collected black folklore, his work is controversial today, including his use of black dialect. Nonetheless, his work has been influential and there are stories only available here. Roger Abrahams’ volume in Pantheon, for example, does not include some of the more famous ones.-----The work of the Grimms and the translation of the Arabian Nights into French also set off a lesser trend of writing original tales in imitation. Hans Christian Andersen is the most famous of these writers, but he was not the only one. Washington Irving is known for his Rip Van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. George MacDonald and Oscar Wilde did some good work in this area too. In the 20th century, many revisionists rewrote traditional fairy tales, often with the purpose of making comment on contemporary society. Very few of these have successfully challenged the status of their originals, but the versions of Angela Carter are something of an exception.Washington Irving – The Sketch BookGeorge MacDonald – Fairy TalesOscar Wilde – The Happy Prince and Other StoriesAngela Carter – The Bloody Chamber and Other StoriesI am generally not all that impressed with much of the secondary literature on fairy tales, which is often ferociously ideological, but Marina Warner and Katharine Briggs are a good place to start.-----Novels and StoriesThere are adult several novels and story collections that seem to have taken on mythic resonance in our culture:Miguel de Cervantes – Don QuixoteJohn Bunyan – Pilgrim’s ProgressJonathan Swift – Gulliver's TravelsDaniel Defoe – Robinson CrusoeVoltaire - CandideJohann Wolfgang von Goethe – The Sorrows of Young WertherVictor Hugo – Les Miserables, Notre Dame de ParisAlexander Dumas – The Three Musketeers, The Man in the Iron MaskJules Verne – 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Around the World in 90 DaysE.T.A Hoffmann – Tales, especially The NutcrackerMary Shelley – FrankensteinCharles Dickens - A Christmas Carol, Oliver Twist, A Tale of Two Cities, Great ExpectationsRobert Louis Stevenson – Treasure Island, Kidnapped, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. HydeBram Stoker – DraculaJames Fennimore Cooper – Last of the MohicansNathaniel Hawthorne – The Scarlet LetterHerman Melville – Moby DickMark Twain – Huckleberry FinnEdgar Allen Poe – TalesF. Scott Fitzgerald – The Great GatsbyFranz Kafka – The Castle, The Trial, The MetamorphosisSholem Aleichem – Tevye the DairymanHermann Hesse – SiddharthaOscar Wilde – The Picture of Dorian GreyJoseph Conrad – Heart of DarknessGeorge Orwell – 1984, Animal FarmAldous Huxley – Brave New WorldH.G. Wells – The Time Machine, War of the Worlds, The Invisible Man, The Island of Dr. MoreauWilliam Golding – Lord of the FliesJohn Steinbeck – The Grapes of Wrath, Of Mice and MenRobert Penn Warren – All the King's MenMargaret Atwood – The Handmaid's TaleThere are also plays and musical dramas that have done the same:Edmond Rostand – Cyrano de BergeracThornton Wilder – Our TownRichard Wagner – The Flying Dutchman As is to be expected from stories with mythological resonance, many of these works have gone on to make excellent films, though obviously some versions have been better than others. However, even if a good film is available, I would still recommend reading these. Just don’t feel too guilty if you’ve only seen the film.-----Children’s StoriesLewis Carroll – Alice in Wonderland, Through the Looking GlassRudyard Kipling – Kim, Just So Stories, Puck of Pook's Hill, The Jungle BooksJ.M. Barrie – Peter PanKenneth Grahame – The Wind in the WillowsCarlo Collodi – PinocchioC.S. Lewis – Narnia BooksJ.R.R. Tolkien – The Hobbit, The Lord of the RingsL. Frank Baum – The Wizard of OzJohann David Wyss – The Swiss Family RobinsonJohanna Spyri – HeidiKate Douglas Wiggin – Rebecca of Sunnybrook FarmAntoine de Saint-Exupery – The Little PrinceLouisa May Alcott - Little WomenL.M Montgomery – Anne of Green Gables seriesFrancis Hodgson Burnett – The Secret Garden, A Little Princess, Little Lord FauntleroyEdith Nesbit – many novelsBeatrix Potter – Peter Rabbit TalesMother Goose Nursery RhymesEleanor H. Porter – PolyannaAnna Sewell – Black BeautyThomas Hughes - Tom Brown's School DaysJohnny Gruelle – Raggedy Ann and Raggedy AndyJack London – The Call of the Wild, Wild FangGeorge MacDonald – The Princess and the Goblin, At the Back of the North Wind, Lilith, PhantastesRoald Dahl – Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach, MatildaE.B White – Charlotte's Web, Stuart LittleMadeline L’Engle – A Wrinkle in TimeRichard Adams – Watership DownUrsula K. Le Guin – The Earthsea TrilogyJ.K. Rowling – Harry Potter novelsAstrid Lindgren – Pippi LongstockingTove Jansson - Moomin BooksA.A. Milne – Winnie the PoohPeter S. Beagle – The Last UnicornMichael Ende – The Neverending StoryWilliam Goldman – The Princess BrideNorman Juster – The Phantom TollboothPhilip Pullman – His Dark MaterialsThis is a somewhat arbitrary list of classic children’s stories, many of whom have quite a significant resonance in our culture. I’ve restricted myself to books that were mostly text, though I’ve stretched things for a couple of them. Anything that is in the Puffin Classics series is here (excluding retellings), but I haven’t restricted myself to those books.Some of these are better watched as movies. The Wizard of Oz and Winnie-the-Pooh are better in that format, as is the Lord of the Rings trilogy. In some cases, it is fairly indifferent between book and movie, and in others it is better to simply read the book. Sometimes, both are good but wildly different, as is the case with Pinocchio or The Jungle Book.-----MiscellaneousThere are many adult science fiction and fantasy writers who do very good work with mythic type material, but whose stories don’t seem to have quite taken on a life of their own like a good myth does. Among these, I would include: Sir Walter Scott, James Hogg, Charles Maturin, Alexander Pushkin, Nikolai Gogol, Jeremias Gotthelf, Adalbert Stifter, Guy de Maupassant, George MacDonald, William Morris, G.K. Chesterton, Mervyn Peake, David Lindsay, Karel Capek, H.P. Lovecraft, Jorge Luis Borges, Stanislaw Lem, Ursula K. LeGuin, Kurt Vonnegut, Russell Hoban, Philip K. Dick, Thomas M. Disch, Thomas Pynchon, Ishmael Reed, John Crowley, Neil Gaiman.-----There are also a lot of classic crime writers whose work is of note: Wilkie Collins, Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, Daphne du Maurier, Graham Greene, Josephine Tey, Patricia Highsmith, Dashiell Hammet, James M. Cain, Raymond Chandler, Elmore Leonard, James Ellroy, Truman Capote, Georges Simenon, Umberto Eco, Leonardo Sciascia and others. Most of these are better encountered in their (often excellent) film or TV versions.-----There are various other mythic stories that have become well known though their film or television versions, though some started off as books or comics. Among them I would include: Tarzan, Conan the Barbarian, King Kong, Godzilla, Zorro,The Lone Ranger, James Bond, Planet of the Apes, Star Trek, Star Wars, X-Files, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Aliens, Terminator, Mad Max, Dr. Who, Hitchhiker`s Guide to the Galaxy, Superman, Batman, Spiderman, X-Men, The Avengers, The Matrix, Blade Runner, 2001, Night of the Living Dead/Zombies. A few of these will become classics, but I am doubtful about many of them. For most of them, I’d stick with the film or TV versions. ................
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