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Rating: 
Summary: Everyone should have one!
Review: Aside from not including Ut-napishtim in the "Flood" section of this tome, this book is spectacular. Using the Arne-Thompson Tale-Type format, Funk and Wagnall's did a great job compiling a fun-to-read and fascinating book. Kids should have this in bed with them at night, seeing just how interconnected all our stories actually are.
A great, fun, read.
Rating:
Summary: Everyone should have one!
Review: Aside from not including Ut-napishtim in the "Flood" section of this tome, this book is spectacular. Using the Arne-Thompson Tale-Type format, Funk and Wagnall's did a great job compiling a fun-to-read and fascinating book. Kids should have this in bed with them at night, seeing just how interconnected all our stories actually are.
A great, fun, read.
Rating: 
Summary: If you're interested in mythology seriously, then possess
Review: these books you must. I have read enough reviews here to know that people dole out 5 stars with impugnity (the ones that don't like certain books don't bother to look at other reviews of them) and realize that the rating system here is meaningless (not because of Amazon), but if you have ANY interest in the serious study of mythology, these books, edited by Maria Leach, are a necessity; look thru whatever foul paperbacks pretending to be concerned with mythology you own and notice they all reference this grand work, full of SCHOLARLY treatise on a vast array of subjects. And they are fantastic reading in sortes fashion; to just open randomly and read whatever your finger touches. Nuff said.
Rating:
Summary: Packed full of very interesting information
Review: This is the kind of book that you can randomly flip through and always find something interesting, and can read about customs and ideas that are totally different than one's own. The diversity among human beliefs is indeed amazing and is an indication that the human mind adapts and invents concepts that are very different depending on the situation in which individuals find themselves. On the other hand, there are common themes in all of these myths that point to the necessity for the employment of certain concepts that are universal. A gigantic book, it probably would only be read from cover to cover by those who intend to specialize in the study of mythology both from an anthropological and historical point of view. But it is fair to bet that anyone who opens this book will walk away with a deeper appreciation of all human cultures, wherever they may be, and at all levels of technological development. Lack of space prohibits a detailed review of all the articles I read, but some of the more interesting entries that I ran across include: 1. "Ababinili". This is the name of the supreme being of the Chickasaw Indians, and the god of the fire apart from the Sun. This belief is an indication again that the concept of an ultimate being is pretty universal among all cultures. Apparently the Chickasaws believed that Ababinili caused a great flood also, although this fact is not discussed in this article. 2. "abdominal dance". An article discussing the origin of "belly dance", as it is called in some cultures. Interestingly, in some areas it was not done as a seductive movement or to provoke a sexual response. In Asia for example, it was symbolic of the pain of motherhood. 3. "African and New World Negro folklore". The author discusses the "Tortoise and the Hare" story which interestingly was held by some African peoples. He compares it with the European version, with the tortoise winning in both versions. However, in the African version, the tortoise wins by employing his wits. This "brains over brawn" version of this story is fascinating given the bias towards logical thinking in European culture. 4. "bagpipe". The origin of bagpipes goes back to the emperor Nero, who reportedly played it. Bagpipes were played by the Romans in their colonization of Britain. 5. "barber's pole". There was a time when barbers were also surgeons, thus the red and white strips on the pole: white for bandages to symbolize the healing process. 6. "chain tale". This is a folktale based on a series of numbers, characters, events, etc. Supposedly the game of chess originated in a chain tale involving numbers in geometric progression. The inventor requested in payment one grain of wheat for the first square, two for the second, four for the third, eight for the fourth, and so on. 7. "Dalai Lama". The Tibetian monk of highest rank, who is the incarnation of Avalokita, whose spirit passes into a child at the death of each Dalai Lama. 8. "euphemism". This came from the belief that if you speak of the Devil he will appear. Hence one must refer to him by another name: a euphemism. The origin of the name "Jehovah" was also such a euphemism, since uttering the name of the Hebrew god was forbidden. 9. "female rain". Among some North American Indian tribes, this is a soft, gentle rain; to be contrasted with a downpour, which is "male rain" (How then did hurricanes become to be name after women?). 10. "games". This is an excellent article, too long to summarize here. 11. "grateful dead". Folktake in which a hero runs into a group of people who are refusing to bury the corpse of a deadbeat man. The hero makes good the debts, and later is rewarded with happiness. 12. "holler". A spontaneous, improvised song by American slaves engaging in solitary work. Usually with no words, it was meant to keep oneself company. 13. "jack-o-lantern". In some legends, This is a phosphorescent light frequently observed above marshes. The author describes many more. 14. "kitchen gods". The thousands of paper images representing Tsao Chun, the Chinese god of the kitchen stove. 15. "looking tabu". The act of looking at a forbidden object or person will cause its loss. 16. "magical inpregnation". A child conceived via some act or circumstance which has no connection with fertilization. Very common in mythology, the author gives several very interesting examples. 17. "mending the jug". A folktale based on a task considered impossible and always associated with an impossible countertask. 18. "mnemonic device". This is an excellent article, too long to summarize here, of the strategies employed by different cultures to remember or recollect things. Particularly interesting was the use of them when no language or mathematical systems were in place. 19. "momentary gods". These, interestingly, are gods who exist only for a special purpose and for a limited time, and then only at special places. 20. "need fire". This was a ceremony wherein fire was made when livestock were threatened with plague. 21. "never-finished weaving". The Shawnee Indian tale of the female creator who weaves a basket which is unraveled every night. Finishing the job will cause the world's end. 22. "orchesis". The Greek word for dance, which was considered indispensable in Greek drama. 23. "orgia". The winter ritual dedicated to Dionysus, and involving after sometime to what the author describes as "unbridled, licentious mass intoxication". He describes similar types of ceromonies in the West Indies, Indian peyote cults, and in Mexico. 24. "overlooking". This is the act of one who casts the "evil eye", a belief that according to the author is world-wide and found from earliest times. 25. "paternity test". An infant magically picking out his unknown father. The author gives several different tests employed by many different cultures. 26. "primitive and folk art". A very long but excellent article on all kinds. 27."scalp dances". These were American Indian "victory" dances done around the enemies scalps. Apparently in some tribes the scalps were considered tabu and contained supernatural powers.
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