10 h 34 minAudiobook7 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 10 h 34 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if the gods walk among us, quarrel like us, and leave heroes to face impossible tasks?
In A Book of Myths, Jean Lang retells ancient legends in clear, welcoming English. Gods love and quarrel, people meet powers beyond their own, and heroes set out on dangerous quests. Monsters stand in their way, but wit can matter as much as strength when a task seems impossible.
These stories also explore the questions behind everyday wonders: why the sun rises, why winter comes, and why storms strike. Lang brings those old answers within reach of readers new to mythology. Each tale stands on its own, so you can linger over one adventure, stop, and return for another.
What you’ll discover
- Stories behind nature’s wonders Explore tales that turn questions about sunlight, winter, and storms into stories you can follow.
- Gods with familiar faults Meet gods who take sides in human quarrels and sometimes make mistakes of their own.
- Courage against impossible odds Follow young heroes into dangerous tasks where monsters must be faced and wit offers hope.
- A welcoming first encounter Enter the ancient world through clear retellings that ask for no previous knowledge of mythology.
- One tale at a time Enjoy complete stories at your own pace, with room to pause or read aloud together.
Who will love it
Perfect for readers who meet Icarus, Narcissus or Baldur in poems and conversation and want the tales behind the names, and for anyone who loves a good legend read aloud.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A Titan steals fire and the gods answer
- Beauty and pride lead to dangerous wishes
- Love crosses the border between worlds
- Love is tested by pursuit, doubt and speed
- Mortal pride and mortal love face the gods
- Perseus wins gifts and flies across the world
- Gods punish pride, grief and foolish wishes
- Transformations explain the natural world
- The northern and Celtic tales sound a darker music
Who’s who
- PrometheusA Titan who shapes man from clay and steals fire from Olympus to protect him, though Zeus will not forgive it.
- PsycheA princess so beautiful that people worship her, who is carried to a hidden palace and a husband she cannot see.
- OrpheusA musician and son of Apollo whose lyre charms beasts and trees, and who goes into the underworld to win back his wife.
- PerseusA young hero, son of Zeus, who sets out with gifts from the gods to bring back the head of Medusa.
- AtalantaA huntress raised by a bear, swift as the wind, who joins the Calydonian hunt and races her suitors.
- BeowulfA giant young warrior of the Goths who sails to Denmark to free King Hrothgar's hall from the monster Grendel.
- RolandNephew and champion of Charlemagne, brave to the point of pride, who commands the rearguard in the mountain pass.
- DeirdrêA girl of Ulster, raised in hiding, who is foretold to bring ruin and who falls in love with Naoise.
Formats and delivery
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- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, once the book texts are online.
- Audiobook
- Read by Lucas Linden, complete. It opens once the recording is online.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 7 minutes, to read today.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
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Ein Buch der Mythen in 25 languages, side by side, paragraph by paragraph, once the book texts are online: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
Ein Buch der Mythen
by Jean Lang · 1914
A boy begs to drive the sun's chariot for one day, and a sculptor falls in love with his own statue.
Medium level10–20 hours to read25 languages
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In short
A boy begs his father for one day at the reins of the sun. A sculptor falls in love with his own marble woman.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A Titan steals fire and the gods answer
The book opens with the Greek account of how the world began. Prometheus and his brother Epimethus must equip every creature, but they spend all their gifts on the beasts and have nothing left for Man. Pitying the naked creature he has shaped from clay, Prometheus carries fire down from Olympus in a hollow torch.
Zeus is furious. The gods decide to punish mankind through a gift, a woman made by Vulcan and dressed by Athené, with beauty from Aphrodite, music from Apollo and a persuasive tongue from Hermes. They name her Pandora, which means gifted by all the gods. Prometheus refuses her, remembering how gifts from enemies can hide treachery.
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What is A Book of Myths about?
It retells many myths and legends in order, from the Greek story of Prometheus and Pandora to Norse tales of Baldur and Freya, and heroic stories such as Beowulf, Roland and Deirdrê.
Which myths are in A Book of Myths by Jean Lang?
It includes Pygmalion, Phaeton, Orpheus, Psyche, Perseus, Midas, Narcissus, Icarus, Persephone and Pan, plus Norse and Celtic tales. Lang leaves out Herakles, Theseus and the Argonauts.
Who was Jean Lang and when was the book written?
Jean Lang retells old myths for general readers. She completes this work in 1914, before the First World War begins.
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