Myths of Greece and Rome

Orpheus leading his beloved Eurydice back to life ...Ulysses battling to resist the mesmerising Sirens' song ...The tragedy of the vengeful Medea ...The timeless stories of the gods and goddesses of Greece and Rome are charged with passion and romance, magic and murder. Each one is brought to life beautifully in this lavishly illustrated edition of Thomas Bulfinch's "The Age of Fable" compiled by Bryan Holme. The narrative is clear and captivating, while the illustrations demonstrate the profound effect the myths had on the great artists of the West, via paintings and sculptures by masters from Botticelli to Picasso.

Joseph Campbell was interested in mythology since his childhood in New York, when he read books about American Indians, frequently visited the American Museum of Natural History, and was fascinated by the museum's collection of totem poles. He earned his B.A. and M.A. degrees at Columbia in 1925 and 1927 and went on to study medieval French and Sanskrit at the universities of Paris and Munich. After a period in California, where he encountered John Steinbeck and the biologist Ed Ricketts, he taught at the Canterbury School, then, in 1934, joined the literature department at Sarah Lawrence College, a post he retained for many years. During the 1940s and '50s, he helped Swami Nikhilananda to translate the Upanishads and The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna. The many books by Professor Campbell include The Hero with a Thousand Faces, Myths to Live By, The Flight of the Wild Gander, and The Mythic Image. He edited The Portable Arabian Nights, The Portable Jung, and other works. He died in 1987.