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Books > Social sciences > Sociology, social studies > Social institutions > Customs & folklore > Folklore
AN EPIC BATTLE THAT LASTED TEN YEARS. A LEGENDARY STORY THAT HAS
SURVIVED THOUSANDS. 'An inimitable retelling of the siege of Troy .
. . Fry's narrative, artfully humorous and rich in detail, breathes
life and contemporary relevance into these ancient tales' OBSERVER
'Stephen Fry has done it again. Well written and super
storytelling' 5***** READER REVIEW ________ 'Troy. The most
marvellous kingdom in all the world. The Jewel of the Aegean.
Glittering Ilion, the city that rose and fell not once but twice .
. .' When Helen, the beautiful Greek queen, is kidnapped by the
Trojan prince Paris, the most legendary war of all time begins.
Watch in awe as a thousand ships are launched against the great
city of Troy. Feel the fury of the battleground as the Trojans
stand resolutely against Greek might for an entire decade. And
witness the epic climax - the wooden horse, delivered to the city
of Troy in a masterclass of deception by the Greeks . . . In
Stephen Fry's exceptional retelling of our greatest story, TROY
will transport you to the depths of ancient Greece and beyond.
________ 'A fun romp through the world's greatest story. Fry's
knowledge of the world - ancient and modern - bursts through' Daily
Telegraph 'An excellent retelling . . . told with compassion and
wit' 5***** Reader Review 'Hugely successful, graceful' The Times
'If you want to read about TROY, this book is a must over any
other' 5***** Reader Review 'Fluent, crisp, nuanced, begins with a
bang' The Times Literary Supplement 'The characters . . . are
brilliantly brought to life' 5***** Reader Review PRAISE FOR
STEPHEN FRY'S GREEK SERIES: 'A romp through the lives of ancient
Greek gods. Fry is at his story-telling best . . . the gods will be
pleased' Times 'A head-spinning marathon of legends' Guardian 'An
Olympian feat. The gods seem to be smiling on Fry - his myths are
definitely a hit' Evening Standard 'An odyssey through Greek
mythology. Brilliant . . . all hail Stephen Fry' Daily Mail 'A
rollicking good read' Independent
'A captivating tale of love and loss and finding connection in the
most unexpected places' Nikki Marmery, author of On Wilder Seas A
lyrical and atmospheric homage to the strange and extraordinary,
perfect for fans of Angela Carter and Erin Morgenstern. This is the
story of The Greatest Funambulist Who Ever Lived... Born into a
post-war circus family, our nameless star was unwanted and
forgotten, abandoned in the shadows of the big top. Until the
bright light of Serendipity Wilson threw her into focus. Now an
adult, haunted by an incident in which a child was lost from the
circus, our narrator, a tightrope artiste, weaves together her
spellbinding tales of circus legends, earthy magic and folklore,
all in the hope of finding the child... But will her story be
enough to bring the pair together again? Beautiful and
intoxicating, A Girl Made of Air brings the circus to life in all
of its grime and glory; Marina, Manu, Serendipity Wilson, Fausto,
Big Gen and Mouse will live long in the hearts of readers. As will
this story of loss and reconciliation, of storytelling and truth.
In this dazzling history of the imagination, Patrick Harpur links
together fields as far apart as Greek philosophy and depth
psychology, Renaissance magic and tribal ritual, Romantic poetry
and modern models of the Universe, to trace how myths have been
used to make sense of the world. In so doing he uncovers that
tradition which alchemists imagined as a Golden Chain of initiates,
who passed their mysterious 'secret fire' down through the ages. As
this inspiring book shows, the secret of this perennial wisdom is
of an imaginative insight: a simple way of seeing that re-enchants
our existence and restores us to our own true selves..."His
flame-like knowledge is central to the urgent seriousness of this
book; buy a copy before it vanishes." THE LONDON MAGAZINE ..."It
would be hard to overestimate the value of Harpur's book or to
praise it too highly." RESURGENCE MAGAZINE ..."Once we believed
that truth was 'out there', now we hold that it's 'in here', but if
Harpur is right then it lies in the line of vision between the two"
THE INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY ..."Mr. Harpur links together fields as
far apart as Greek philosophy and depth psychology, Renaissance
magic and tribal ritual, Romantic poetry and the ecstasy of the
shaman, to trace how societies over time have used myths to make
sense of the world. Harpur leads us through history's secret
chambers with such grace of language and insight that we forget the
hour. I would make Harpur's book required reading for every student
of philosophy, depth psychology, and history." DIANNE SKAFTE
Naomi "Omie" Wise was drowned by her lover in the waters of North
Carolina's Deep River in 1807, and her murder has been remembered
in ballad and story for well over two centuries. Mistakes,
romanticization and misremembering have been injected into Naomi's
biography over time, blurring the line between reality and fiction.
The authors of this book, whose family has lived in the Deep River
area since the 18th century, are descendants of many of the people
who knew Naomi Wise or were involved in her murder investigation.
This is the story of a young woman betrayed and how her death gave
way to the folk traditions by which she is remembered today. The
book sheds light on the plight of impoverished women in early
America and details the fascinating inner workings of the Piedmont
North Carolina Quaker community that cared for Naomi in her final
years and kept her memory alive.
Here are the great stories of the Blackfeet, including the
entertaining Na'Pi (Old Man) stories of mischief and trickery; the
hero Kut-o-yis', who got rid of the bad things; the secret
societies and how the earth was created. Recorded in person by the
famous conservationist and ethnologist, George Bird Grinnell, who
became a tribal member in 1885.
Throughout the early modern period, the nymph remained a powerful
figure that inspired and informed the cultural imagination in many
different ways. Far from being merely a symbol of the classical
legacy, the nymph was invested with a surprisingly broad range of
meanings. Working on the basis of these assumptions, and thus
challenging Aby Warburg's famous reflections on the nympha that
both portrayed her as cultural archetype and reduced her to a
marginal figure, the contributions in this volume seek to uncover
the multifarious roles played by nymphs in literature, drama,
music, the visual arts, garden architecture, and indeed
intellectual culture tout court, and thereby explore the true
significance of this well-known figure for the early modern age.
Contributors: Barbara Baert, Mira Becker-Sawatzky, Agata Anna
Chrzanowska, Karl Enenkel, Wolfgang Fuhrmann, Michaela Kaufmann,
Andreas Keller, Eva-Bettina Krems, Damaris Leimgruber, Tobias
Leuker, Christian Peters, Christoph Pieper, Bernd Roling, and Anita
Traninger.
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