Jump on a daring adventure against time and see the wonders of the world in Jules Verne’s Around the World in Eighty Days, unabridged and illustrated in this special edition.Mr. Phileas Fogg is not your typical Englishman. He may be a routine-loving timekeeping gentleman, but when adventure knocks on his door one evening at his local club, he bets half his fortune on a daring bet to complete a seemingly impossible task: travel around the world in 80 days.To his good fortune, his loyal French valet Passepartout, curious, capable, and brave, is by his side. And when their journey takes them on a race against the clock from the busy docks of Victorian London to the Wild West and the treacherous jungles of India, Phileas and Passepartout will have to face every adventure that comes their way with courage. But they don’t know that their every move is watched and a detective follows them, waiting for the mistake that will bring everything down. As the deadline draws near, Phileas knows that if they don’t make it back to London in time, all their efforts will be lost. Can they make it?Find out in Verne's Around the World in Eighty Days, a breathtaking portrait of the 19th-century world’s splendor and technological change – the perfect book for readers who love adventure, history, and eccentric characters.Discover exclusive features in this brand-new version of the beloved classic:More than 50 original illustrations from the 1873 James R. Osgood edition.A fun quiz to test your knowledge of facts and trivia at the end of the book.A modern cover design for your collection.Easy reading layout for young and adult readers.A fun and fast-paced adventure with brilliant characters, Around the World in Eighty Days completes every library collection. Get your copy and experience the adventure of a lifetime today! Read more

Bulfinch's Mythology is the ultimate collection of myths and legends that have inspired countless generations.This timeless masterpiece is divided into three volumes: The Age of Fable, The Age of Chivalry, and Legends of Charlemagne, each of which is a must-listen for anyone who loves mythology and legends. In The Age of Fable, you will be transported to the world of ancient Greece and Rome, where you will encounter the stories of gods, goddesses, and heroes like Zeus, Athena, and Hercules. In The Age of Chivalry, you will journey to the medieval world of knights, castles, and dragons, and discover the legends of King Arthur, Lancelot, and the Knights of the Round Table. And finally in Legends of Charlemagne, you will explore the epic tales of Charlemagne and his paladins, including the famous story of Roland. This classic work is not only entertaining, but also educational, providing a window into the beliefs, values, and cultural practices of ancient and medieval civilizations. It is a must-have for anyone interested in literature, history, or mythology.American author and banker Thomas Bulfinch (1796–1867) is best known for his book Bulfinch's Mythology, a thorough compendium of myths and stories from all across the world.When Bulfinch's Mythology was originally released in 1855, both America and Europe were becoming more interested in myths and stories from the distant past. As academics and authors looked to rediscover the literary and aesthetic traditions of the past, the middle of the 19th century was a time of cultural and intellectual upheaval. In this regard, Bulfinch's Mythology was a component of a larger initiative to rekindle interest in classical and medieval literature and to delve deeper into its symbolic and spiritual significance.Bulfinch's Mythology became an immediate hit, and has been a well-liked reference source ever since. The book gained great acclaim in the United States, where it was adopted as a required text in educational institutions. Its accessibility and interesting writing made it a useful tool for literature, history, and mythology students, and it also helped many become familiar with the vast and intricate world of ancient and medieval narrative.PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio. Read more

Arthurian Matters of Britain explores a world inspired by the Celtic, Christian, and Islamic traditions, and arrives at new interpretations of the old stories, including Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and the legends of the Grail. Mahmoud Shelton returns here to his roots in Medieval Studies while deepening his research into the ancient landscape of Glastonbury. More than a study of the past, however, Arthurian Matters of Britain demonstrates how this living world of symbols informs the reign of King Charles III, the "Green Man King." Read more

An updated edition of the beloved final volume in Joseph Campbell’s monumental Masks of God series, Creative Mythology tells the inner story of humanity’s entire philosophical, spiritual, and artistic history since the Dark Ages, ultimately positioning each of us as the creator of our own mythology. In this fourth and final volume in The Masks of God series — Joseph Campbell’s major work of comparative mythology — the preeminent mythologist looks at the birth of the modern, individualistic mythology as it developed in Europe beginning in the twelfth century. Tracing the disintegration of orthodox tradition up through the radical art and philosophies of the late twentieth century, Campbell arrives at an astonishing insight: modern humans are the first to witness the creation of myth and position themselves as the center of their own mythology. Upon completing Creative Mythology, he wrote that his work on The Masks of God had confirmed his long-held belief in the unity of humanity, “which has everywhere unfolded in the manner of a single symphony, with its themes announced, developed, amplified and turned about, distorted, reasserted, and, today, in a grand fortissimo of all sections sounding together, irresistibly advancing to some kind of mighty climax, out of which the next great movement will emerge.” Updated with new illustrations that support Campbell’s perceptive analysis of human cultural evolution, this new edition of Creative Mythology remains as vital, revelatory, and urgent as the original did upon publication more than half a century ago. Read more

AlthoughThe History of the Holy Grail opens the Vulgate Cycle, it was added after the events described in Lancelot and The Quest of the Holy Grail were already an established part of the Arthurian story. It is, in Hollywood terms, a `prequel', and relates the story of the Grail from its first appearance at the Crucifixion up to the point where it is placed by Alain, the Fisher King, in the castle of Corbenic, whose inhabitants then await the arrival of the chosen Grail knight. Many points in the narrative are designed to foreshadow or to explain the later adventures connected with the Grail, but it also draws on the stories in the apocryphal gospels and other legends of the crucifixion such as the story of Veronica, as well as unrelated material such as the story of Hippocrates. But it also provides many details about the Grail itself which are not found anywhere else. It is less chivalric in tone from the subsequent books of the Vulgate Cycle, and relatively few copies of the original survive. For a full description of the Vulgate Cycle see the blurb for the complete set. Read more

The discovery of seven manuscript fragments of the Old French Suite Vulgate du Merlin in a set of early printed books in the Bristol Central Library hit global headlines in 2019. This book contains a comprehensive study of these fascinating Arthurian fragments.Beginning with an extensive contextual history, the authors reveal details of the fragments’ origin, their importation to England, and their subsequent journey to a waste pile in a bookbinder’s workshop, where they would be incorporated into the bindings of a four-volume edition of the works of Jean Gerson in the early sixteenth century. A full enquiry into the provenance of these host volumes sets out the possible routes from the bookbinder’s workshop to their final home in Bristol Central Library.Using multi-spectral imaging to read the damaged sections of text, the authors also provide a full edition and translation of the narrative contained in the fragments. Read more

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The Longman Anthology of Old English, Old Icelandic and Anglo-Norman Literatures provides a scholarly and accessible introduction to the literature which was the inspiration for many of the heroes of modern popular culture, from The Lord of the Rings to The Chronicles of Narnia, and which set the foundations of the English language and its literature as we know it today. Edited, translated and annotated by the editors of Beowulf and Other Stories, the anthology introduces readers to the rich and varied literature of Britain, Scandinavia and France of the period in and around the Viking Age. Ranging from the Old English epic Beowulf through to the Anglo-Norman texts which heralded the transition Middle English, thematically organised chapters present elegies, eulogies, laments and followed by material on the Viking Wars in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Vikings gods and Icelandic sagas, and a final chapter on early chivalry introduces the new themes and forms which led to Middle English literature, including Arthurian Romances and Chaucer's Canterbury Tales.Laying out in parallel text format selections from the most important Old English, Old Icelandic and Anglo-Norman works, this anthology presents translated and annotated texts with useful bibliographic references, prefaced by a headnote providing useful background and explanation. Read more

The renowned and illustrious tales of King Arthur, his knights and the Round Table pervade all European vernaculars, as well as the Latin tradition. Arthurian narrative material, which had originally been transmitted in oral culture, began to be inscribed regularly in the twelfth century, developing from (pseudo-)historical beginnings in the Latin chronicles of "historians" such as Geoffrey of Monmouth into masterful literary works like the romances of Chrétien de Troyes. Evidently a big hit, Arthur found himself being swiftly translated, adapted and integrated into the literary traditions of almost every European vernacular during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. This Handbook seeks to showcase the European character of Arthurian romance both past and present.By working across national philological boundaries, which in the past have tended to segregate the study of Arthurian romance according to language, as well as by exploring primary texts from different vernaculars and the Latin tradition in conjunction with recent theoretical concepts and approaches, this Handbook brings together a pioneering and more complete view of the specifically European context of Arthurian romance, and promotes the more connected study of Arthurian literature across the entirety of its European context. Read more

It is hard to overstate the importance of this trilogy of prose romances in the development of the legend of the Holy Grail and in the evolution of Arthurian literature as a whole. They give a crucial new impetus to the story of the Grail by establishing a provenance for the sacred vessel - and for the Round Table itself - in the Biblical past; and through the controlling figure of Merlin they link the story of Joseph of Arimathea with the mythical Britishhistory of Vortigern and Utherpendragon, the birth of Arthur, and the sword in the stone, and then with the knightly adventures of Perceval's Grail quest and the betrayal and death of Arthur, creating the very first Arthurian cycle. Ambitious, original and complete in its conception, this trilogy - translated here for the first time - is a finely paced, vigorous piece of storytelling that provides an outstanding example of the essentially oral nature of early prose.NIGEL BRYANT is head of drama at Marlborough College. He has also provided editions in English of the anonymous thirteenth-century romance Perlesvaus, published as The High Book of the Grail, and Chretien's Perceval: The Story of the Grail. Read more

A fine collection...an excellent introduction to Chrétien's world and work. Highly recommended. CHOICEChrétien de Troyes is arguably the creator of Arthurian romance, and it is on his work that later writers have based their interpretations. This book offers both crucial information on, and a comprehensive coverage of, all aspectsof the work of Chrétien de Troyes - the literary and historical background, patronage, his influence on other writers, manuscripts and editions of his work and, at the heart of the volume, major essays on the themes, techniques and artistic achievements in each of his compositions; the contributions, all from leading experts in Chrétien and related studies, have been commissioned especially for this volume and are designed to remain accessible to studentswhile also addressing specialists in Arthurian studies and Chrétien de Troyes. They reflect the most current critical and scholarly views on one of the greatest of medieval authors. CONTRIBUTORS: JOHN W. BALDWIN, JUNEHALL MCCASH, LAURENCE HARF-LANCNER, NORRIS J. LACY, DOUGLAS KELLY, KEITH BUSBY, PETER F. DEMBOWSKI, ROBERTA L. KRUEGER, DONALD MADDOX, SARA STURM-MADDOX, JOAN TASKER GRIMBERT, MATILDA TOMARYN BRUCKNER, TONY HUNT, RUPERT T. PICKENS, ANNIE COMBES, MICHELLE SZKILNIK, EMMANUELE BAUMGARTNER Read more

The Birth of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table“’My good sir, is she your daughter then?’ ‘Yes, but don't pay any attention to what she says,’ said the lord. ‘She's a child - a silly, foolish thing.’ ‘Indeed,’ said my lord Gawain, ‘then I'd be very ill-mannered not to do what she wants.’” - Chrétien de Troyes, Arthurian RomancesArthurian Romances by Chrétien de Troyes is a collection of short stories set in the Early Middle Ages, in England. They follow the path of several knights – including Lancelot’s dad – through adulthood focusing on their romantic affairs. What tests will the knights encounter in order to prove themselves worthy of a woman’s love? Read more

This superb collection of medieval myths and legends, including those of Beowulf, Charlemagne, Siegfried, Arthur and Guinevere, Merlin, Tristan and Iseult, El Cid, and Reynard the Fox, come down to us from the bards and minstrels who traveled from castle to village, entertaining their audiences with tales of heroic exploits. Not only do these stories still have the power to move and amuse us, they are valuable for what they reveal of European cultures in the Middle Ages.Typically, the medieval romance and other kinds of myth and legend from this period offer a heady mix of Christian and pagan elements, reflecting both the passing of an ancient culture and the arrival of a new order. Stories of the Crusades perhaps best illuminate the transition. Not purely legend, not really history, they often involve pagan heroes reshaped to fit tales of knighthood and Christian endeavor. In many, the Holy Grail may be the object of diligent search, but magic and witchcraft are still very much in evidence.The mythic qualities and colorful subject matter of the stories have long exerted a powerful influence on Western art, music, and literature. The 36 illustrations included in this edition — by such well-known artists and illustrators as Edward Burne-Jones, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, and Willy Pogany — are engaging proof of their power to inspire. Folklorist and mythologist H. A. Guerber’s splendid retelling of these myths is preceded by her enlightening introduction to their cultural and historical roots. Read more

This witty and accessible book traces the history of Arthurian romance from medieval to modern times, explaining its enduring appeal. Traces the history of Arthurian romance from medieval to modern times. Covers art and films as well as the great literary works of Arthurian romance. Draws out the changing political, moral and emotional uses of the story. Explains the enduring appeal of the Arthurian legend. Written by an author with vast knowledge of medieval literature. Read more

Monstrous Fantasies asks why medieval romances reimagining the crusades ending in a Christian victory circulated in England with such abundance after the 1291 Muslim reconquest of Acre, the last of the Latin crusader states in the Holy Land, and what these texts reveal about the cultural anxieties of late medieval England. Leila K. Norako highlights the impact that the Ottoman victory and subsequent massacre of Christian prisoners at the battle of Nicopolis in 1396 had on intensifying the popularity of what she calls recovery romance. These two episodes inspired a sense of urgency over the fate of the Holy Land and of Latin Christendom itself, resulting in the proliferation of romances in which crusading English kings like Richard I and anachronistic legends like King Arthur not only reconquered Jerusalem but committed genocidal violence against the Muslims. These romances, which―as Norako argues―also influenced Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, conjure fantasies of an ascendant global Christendom by rehearsing acts of conquest and cultural annihilation that were impossible to realize in the late Middle Ages. Emphasizing the tension in these texts between nostalgia and anticipation that fuels their narrative momentum, Monstrous Fantasies also explores how the cultural desires for European and Christian hegemony that recovery romances versified were revived in the wake of the so-called wars on terror in the twenty-first century in such films as Kingdom of Heaven and American Sniper. Read more

The motif of death and dying traced through over a thousand years of the English Arthurian tradition.It is arguably the tragic end to Arthur's kingdom which gives the myth its exceptional resonance and power. The essays in this volume explore the presentation of death and dying in Arthurian literature and film produced in Englandand America from the middle ages to the modern day. Authors, texts and topics covered include Geoffrey of Monmouth, the chronicle tradition, and the alliterative Morte Arthure; Gawain and the Green Knight, Ywain and Gawain, the stanzaic Morte Arthur, and Malory's Morte Darthur; Tennyson's Idylls, Pyle's retelling of the myth for American children, David Jones, T.H. White, Donald Barthelme, Rosalind Miles and Parke Godwin. Featured films include Knight Rider, Excalibur, First Knight, and King Arthur. CONTRIBUTORS: Sian Echard, Edward Donald Kennedy, Karen Cherewatuk, Michael W. Twomey, K. S. Whetter, Thomas Crofts, MichaelWenthe, Lisa Robeson, Cory James Rushton, Janina P. Traxler, James Noble, Julie Nelson Couch, Samantha Rayner, Kevin J. Harty Read more

`Provides an excellent one-volume guide to the works of the anonymous Gawain-poet.' CHOICEThe essays collected here on the Gawain-Poet offer stimulating introductions to Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Pearl, Cleanness and Patience, providing both information and original analysis. Topics includetheories of authorship; the historical and social background to the poems, with individual sections on particularly important features within them; gender roles in the poems; the manuscript itself; the metre, vocabulary and dialect of the poems; and their sources. A section devoted to Sir Gawain investigates the ideas of courtesy and chivalry found within it, and explores some of its later adaptations from the fifteenth to the twentieth centuries. Afull bibliography completes the volume. The late DEREK BREWER was Emeritus Professor of English Literature, University of Cambridge; JONATHAN GIBSON has worked as a lecturer in the Universities of Exeter and Durham. Read more

One of the most popular genres of modern times, fantasy literature has as rich a cultural and literary heritage as the magical worlds that so enrapture its readers. In this book, a concise history of the genre, Adam Roberts traces the central forms and influences on fantasy through the centuries to arrive at our understanding of the fantastic today. Pinning the evolution of fantasy on three key moments - the 19th-century resurgence of interest in Arthurian legend, the rise of Christian allegory, and a post-Ossian, post-Grimm emergence of a Norse, Germanic and Old English mythic identity – Roberts explores how the logic of 'the fantastical' feeds through into the sets and trappings of modern fantasy. Tracking the creation of heroic and high fantasy subgenres through antiquarian tradition, through C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien and into the post-Tolkien boom in genre fantasy writing, the book brings the manifestation of the fantastic beyond literature into art, music, film and TV, video games and other cultural productions such as fandoms. From Tennyson and Wagner, through Robert Graves, David Jones, Samuel Delany, Dungeons and Dragons, Terry Pratchett and Robin Hobb, to the Game of Thrones, Skyrim, The Witcher and The Lord of the Rings media franchises, the book digs into the global dissemination and diversity of 21st-century fantasy. Accessible and dynamic, wide-ranging but comprehensive, this is a crash-course in context for the most imaginative form of storytelling. Read more

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