The Road to Avalon


Joan Wolf - 1988
    This realistic retelling of the legend shows Arthur severing the bonds of bastardy, vanquishing the Saxons, and loving one woman. As the daring teenage warrior prepares for the throne, he discovers true love with Morgan of Avalon, the youngest of Merlin’s daughters, but fate cruelly thwarts their hopes for a future together. Never before has a telling of the Arthur story made the breathtaking drama of this charismatic king more real or moving.

The House of the Wolfings


William Morris - 1888
    Newly designed and typeset in a modern 6-by-9-inch format by Waking Lion Press.

The Acts of King Arthur and His Noble Knights


John Steinbeck - 1976
    In this highly successful attempt to render Malory into Modern English, Steinbeck recreated the rhythm and tone of the original Middle English.

Myths of the Norsemen: Retold from the Old Norse Poems and Tales


Roger Lancelyn Green - 1960
    In course of time ice piled over the Well, and out of it grew something they called Ymir, the father of the terrible Frost Giants. Ymir was fed on the milk of a magic cow who licked the ice, and with it salt from the Well of Life. As she licked with her tongue, she formed the first of the gods, the Ǣsir, who was called Buri. Buri had a son Borr, and Borr was the father of Odin. Odin and his brothers overcame the ice and frost giants. They thrust Ymir down into the Yawning Void, and of his body they made the world we live in. They set the sea in a ring about the world, and planted the World Tree, the Ash Yggdrasill, to hold it in place. From this making of the world, to Ragnarok, the last Great Battle, Roger Lancelyn Green tells the story in one continuous narrative. It is easy to read, and there is a clear rhythm carrying through to the final climax. He has taken his material from original sources, of which he gives a brief account in his foreword. “The interest in these myths often preceded reading abilty, but this telling will be found good to read aloud, and boys and gtirls from 10 up will easily manage it for themselves. “

Blue Roots: African-American Folk Magic of the Gullah People


Roger Pinckney - 2000
    On the plantations of the American South, slaves passed their African roots to their descendants in a rich and lasting oral tradition, a tradition that survives today. Prominent among Gullah culture was the belief in herbalism, spiritualism, and black magic. Meet Dr. Bug, Dr. Fly, Dr. Crow and the infamous Dr. Buzzard, professional root doctors who can administer a root to bring money, find love, or cure ailments.

Arabian Nights: The Marvels and Wonders of The Thousand and One Nights, Volume 1 of 2


Jack D. Zipes
    First introduced into the West in 1704, the stories of The Thousand and One Nights are most familiar to American readers in sanitized children's versions. This modern edition, based on Richard F. Burton's unexpurgated translation, restores the lushness of the original Arabic. Here are the famous adventures of Sinbad, "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves," and "Aladdin and the Magic Lamp." Here too are less familiar stories, such as "Prince Behram and the Princess Al-Datma," a delightful early version of The Taming of the Shrew, and "The Wily Dalilah and her Daughter Zaynab," a hilarious tale about two crafty women who put an entire city of men in their place. Intricate and imaginative, these stories-within-stories told over a thousand and one nights continue to captivate readers as they have for centuries. "Arabian Nights: The Marvels and Wonders of The Thousand and One Nights, Volume 2 of 2, Adapted By Jack Zipes"

The Shape of Illusion


William Edmund Barrett - 1972
    The work of an obscure German artist, the scene showed Christ leaving the palace of Pontius Pilate under a guard of Roman soldiers forcing their way through a stone-throwing mob. There was no doubt that it was a true masterpiece of Renaissance art. But for the four people who gathered to view it, the picture possessed a qualit that was absolutely unique: As each of them looked upon it he found himself clearly depicted as one of the howling mob.In this new novel by the author of The Lilies of the Field, a young man's search for the secret of the strange genius who created that seemingly magical painting leads him to a beautiful, and perfectly intact medieval town in Germany, and, finally, to the discovery of the most precious gift a person can receive.

Holy Land


Rauan Klassnik - 2008
    Rauan Klassnik's HOLY LAND is not a book for the faint of heart. His poems--dreamlike fables that conflate the domestic and quotidian with the dangerous and the perverse--are bathed in tears and blood: a trip to the bank becomes a journey to Auschwitz; bullets and gore find equivalence in rivers, birds and lush grass. In Klassnik's startling vision, 'the world knows what you want, and it knows what you need. It brings you bodies. And it brings you a gun.--Gary Young

The Kalevala


Elias Lönnrot - 1835
    The lyrical passages and poetic images, the wry humor, the tall-tale extravagance, and the homely realism of the 'Kalevala' come through with extraordinary effectiveness.

The Sword Brothers


Peter Darman - 2013
    The battle to convert the natives is savage and unrelenting and into this holy war is thrust Conrad Wolff, a young native of the city of Lübeck whose family has suffered a terrible injustice. Forced to leave his homeland to seek sanctuary in Livonia, Conrad’s fate is soon entwined with that of the Sword Brothers, the order of warrior monks that fights to defend and expand Christendom in the Baltic. But as Conrad begins his training to become a member of the brethren, the enemies of the Bishop of Riga gather and soon Livonia is surrounded and battling for its very existence. Conrad and the order soon find themselves fighting for their lives as the enemies of the Sword Brothers close in on all sides. This, the first volume in the Crusader Chronicles, tells the story of Conrad Wolff and the Baltic Crusade during the first years of the thirteenth century.

The Faerie Queene


Edmund Spenser
    Dedicating his work to Elizabeth I, Spenser brilliantly united medieval romance and renaissance epic to expound the glory of the Virgin Queen. The poem recounts the quests of knights including Sir Guyon, Knight of Constance, who resists temptation, and Artegall, Knight of Justice, whose story alludes to the execution of Mary Queen of Scots. Composed as an overt moral and political allegory, The Faerie Queene, with its dramatic episodes of chivalry, pageantry and courtly love, is also a supreme work of atmosphere, colour and sensuous description.

Le Morte D'Arthur, Volume I


Thomas Malory
    Malory interprets existing French and English stories about these figures and adds original material (e.g., the Gareth story). Le Morte d'Arthur was first published in 1485 by William Caxton, and is today one of the best-known works of Arthurian literature in English. Many modern Arthurian writers have used Malory as their principal source, including T. H. White in his popular The Once and Future King and Tennyson in The Idylls of the King.

Scottish Fairy and Folk Tales


George Brisbane Douglas - 1892
    These include brownies, kelpies, trolls, mermen, and other beings from the unseen world that pop up again and again to assist, annoy, and otherwise meddle in the lives of simple country folk.This treasury was assembled by a noted folklorist who heard these picturesque traditional tales over a century ago while visiting in rural homes throughout Scotland. Recounted in their native vernacular, they include nursery tales and animal fables, stories of fairies, accounts of witchcraft, comic and literary lore, and more.Included in this collection are clever and imaginative stories of "The Strange Visitor," "How the Wolf Lost His Tail," "The Smith and the Fairies," "The Scottish Brownie," "The Witches of Delnabo," "The Witty Exploits of Mr. George Buchanan," "The Haunted Ships," and scores of other delightful tales. Together, they offer folklore lovers, readers, and listeners of all ages hours of imaginative storytelling entertainment.

King Arthur: Tales from the Round Table


Andrew Lang - 1918
    The myths surrounding his reign have been recounted in endless tales. This collection includes thirteen of the best-loved legends of the man and his Knights of the Round Table.Bewitching stories, related by one of the world's great storytellers, tell of how the young Arthur pulled a sword from a stone to become king; his meeting with the Lady of the Lake and acquisition of the mighty sword Excalibur; gatherings at the Round table; the death of Merlin; how the mysterious sorceress Morgan Le Fay attempted to kill Arthur; the quest for the Holy Grail; the romance of Lancelot and Guenevere, Arthur's wife; the passing of King Arthur, and more.Magnificent engravings appear throughout the text, further enhancing this splendid introduction to Camelot and its enchanting lore.These stories have inspired numerous film adaptations, including the 2017 release King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, directed by Guy Ritchie and starring Charlie Hunnam, Jude Law, Eric Bana, Djimon Hounsou, and Annabelle Wallis.

Celtic Myths and Legends (Myths of the World)


Charles Squire - 1905
    A comprehensive study of Celtic mythology, legend, and poetry provides background information on the Celts, Ancient Britons, and Druids, and includes the tales of such noted figures as Cuchulain, Blodeuweek, Branwen, and Fenn.