Wry political fairy tales from a nineteenth-century politician that speak to our current timesÉdouard Laboulaye (1811–1883), one of nineteenth-century France’s most prominent politicians and an instrumental figure in establishing the Statue of Liberty,...

Two thousand years of legend and lore about the menace and majesty of dragons, which have breathed fire into our imaginations from ancient Rome to Game of ThronesA Penguin ClassicThe most popular mythological creature in the human imagination, dragons...

For twenty-five centuries, the animal stories that go by the name of Aesop's Fables have amused and instructed generations of children and adults alike. The tales are still as fresh and poignant today as they were to the ancient Greeks who composed them...

An accessible exploration of how diverse cultures have explained humanity's origins through narratives about the natural environment Drawing from a vast array of creation myths--Babylonian, Greek, Aztec, Maya, Inca, Chinese, Hindu, Navajo, Polynesian,...

"Reflections on a lost poem and its rediscovery by contemporary poets. Gilgamesh is the most ancient long poem known to exist. It is also the newest classic in the canon of world literature. Lost for centuries to the sands of the Middle East but found...

The great epic poem of Northern Europe, born deep in the heart of ancient Karelian forests Sharing its title with the poetic name for Finland--the land of heroes--Kalevala is the soaring epic poem of the Finnish people. Born of an ancient tradition of...

One of the New York Times's Ten Best Books of the Year: These traditional stories of Italy, retold by a literary master, are "a treasure" (Los Angeles Times). Filled with kings and peasants, saints and ogres--as well as some quite extraordinary plants...

A classic, enchanting document of Scottish folklore about fairies, elves, and other supernatural creatures.Late in the seventeenth century, Robert Kirk, an Episcopalian minister in the Scottish Highlands, set out to collect his parishioners’ many...

Presented in a brand new translation, this most comprehensive collection of classic Russian tales will enchant readers for their raw beauty and constant ability to surprise and excite.Towards the middle of the nineteenth century, following the example of...

An inspired and urgent prose retelling of the Maya myth of creation by acclaimed Latin American author and scholar Ilan Stavans, gorgeously illustrated by Salvadoran folk artist Gabriela Larios and introduced by renowned author, diplomat, and...

A collection of radical political fairy tales―some in English for the first time―from one of the great female practitioners of the genreHermynia Zur Mühlen (1883–1951), one of the twentieth century’s great political writers, was not seemingly destined...

An enchanting retelling of nineteen fairy tales, introduced by popular fantasy writer Philip PullmanOriginally published in 1927, Told Again is an enchanting collection of elegant fairy tales, showcasing the formidable talents of Walter de la Mare, one...

The first anthology to present the entire range of ancient Greek and Roman stories―from myths and fairy tales to jokesCaptured centaurs and satyrs, incompetent seers, people who suddenly change sex, a woman who remembers too much, a man who cannot...

Don’t be fooled by Tinkerbell and her pixie dust—the real fairies were dangerous. In the late seventeenth century, they could still scare people to death. Little wonder, as they were thought to be descended from the Fallen Angels and to have the power to...

A synthesis of psychology, anthropology, history, and the New Physics employs The Odyssey as a metaphor for the rebirth of consciousness and provides exercises and dramatic enactments enabling readers to explore their own life stories. Original.

A new collection of subversive French fairy talesThe wolf is tricked by Red Riding Hood into strangling her grandmother and is subsequently arrested. Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella do not live happily ever after. And the fairies are saucy, angry, and...

A NEW YORK TIMES BEST POETRY BOOK OF THE YEARIn the beginning, the world is spoken into existence with one word: “Earth.” There are no inhabitants, and no sun—only the broad sky, silent sea, and sovereign Framer and Shaper. Then come the twin heroes...

"From the Bible through Dante and up to Treblinka and Guantánamo Bay, here is a rich source for nightmares." --The New York Times Book ReviewThree thousand years of visions of Hell, from the ancient Near East to modern AmericaA Penguin ClassicFrom the...

Why have societies all across the world feared witchcraft? This book delves deeply into its context, beliefs, and origins in Europe's history The witch came to prominence--and often a painful death--in early modern Europe, yet her origins are much more...