We have always conjured up creatures never seen in nature, from flying horses and two-headed birds to fire-breathing dragons and enormous killer skunks, as well as fantastic distortions of our own image, from giants to nubile maidens. In these pages you will meet extraordinary beings from Hindu and Navajo religions, Scandinavian tales, Russian folklore, Lithuanian stories, Irish oral history, American tall tales, and Aztec myth. Just some of the monstrous entourage: - Baku, a benevolent Japanese monster with the body of a horse, the head of a lion, and the legs of a tiger, who helps people by devouring their nightmares. - Kurma, the giant tortoise of Hindu myth, whose upper shell forms the heavens and lower part the earth. - Missipissy, the feared fish serpent of North America's Great Lakes region. This illustrated encyclopedia not only identifies and describes individual beasts in their cultural context but also groups them together across cultures and discusses common mythological strands and conceits.

Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Published: 11/17/2001
ISBN: 9780393322118
Pages: 428
Weight: 2.02lbs
Size: 9.90h x 7.65w x 1.00d

Review Citations: Kliatt 03/01/2002 pg. 32