This examination of myths from around the world focuses on the role nature plays within mythology. Creation myths from myriad cultures recognized that life arose from natural elements, inextricably connecting human life to the natural world. Nature as portrayed in myth is unpredictable and destructive but also redemptive, providing solace and wisdom. Mythology relates the human life cycle to the seasons, with spring, summer, fall and winter as metaphors for birth, adulthood, old age and death. The author identifies divinities who were direct representations of natural phenomena. The transition of mythic representations from the Paleolithic to Neolithic period is discussed.

Comprehensive and cross-referenced, this informative volume is a rich introduction to the world of nature as experienced by ancient peoples around the globe. 51 halftones.

Engage young readers in stories they love while teaching important content with this fun book that features more than 40 folktales from around the world celebrating the animal-human bond. • Encourages reading with rich vocabulary, engaging narrative, and vivid imagery • Includes cross-curricular content with information about domestic and wild animals and their habitats • Features stories drawn from a variety of sources, including folktale collections, oral histories, and science and sociology books • Showcases the theme of cooperation to help promote teamwork and anti-bullying • Contains exercises, questions, and suggestions for further study

Sacred Wells is an in depth study of springs, wells and waters that have been venerated from California to Cornwall, Russia to Australia. Tales of faeries, black hounds, hauntings and miraculous cures are explored. Many of these sites are still locations for religious festivals and ritual, unchanging for hundreds of years. The book is illustrated with photos taken by the author.

Though not generally perceived as graceful, crows are remarkably so—a single curve undulates from the tip of the bird’s beak to the end of its tail. They take flight almost without effort, flapping their wings easily and ascending into the air like spirits. Crow by Boria Sax is a celebration of the crow and its relatives in myth, literature, and life. Sax takes readers into the history of crows, detailing how in a range of cultures, from the Chinese to the Hopi Indians, crows are bearers of prophecy. For example, thanks in part to the birds’ courtship rituals, Greeks invoked crows as symbols of conjugal love. From the raven sent out by Noah to the corvid deities of the Eskimo, from Taoist legends to Victorian novels and contemporary films, Sax’s book ranges across history and culture and will interest anyone who has ever been intrigued, puzzled, annoyed, or charmed by these wonderfully intelligent birds.

World's Greatest Horror Stories: Collection of 42 Best Horror Novels of All Time This Combo Collection (Set of 42 Books) includes All-time Bestseller Books. This anthology contains: At the Mountains of Madness: H. P. Lovecraft's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by H. P. Lovecraft The Devil's Pool: George Sand's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by George Sand A Christmas Carol in Prose; Being a Ghost Story of Christmas: Charles Dickens's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Charles Dickens The King in Yellow: Robert W. Chambers's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Robert W. Chambers Frankenstein or, The Modern Prometheus: Mary W. Shelley's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Mary W. Shelley The Boats of the Glen Carrig: William Hope Hodgson's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by William Hope Hodgson The Vampyre a Tale: John William Polidori's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by John William Polidori The Best Psychic Stories: Joseph Lewis French's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Joseph Lewis French The Devil Doctor: Sax Rohmer's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Sax Rohmer The Turn of the Screw: Henry James's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Henry James Green Tea : (Fantasy, Horror, Short Stories, Ghost, Classics, Literature) by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu The Best Ghost Stories: Arthur B. Reeve and Joseph Lewis French's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Arthur B. Reeve and Joseph Lewis French Dracula's Guest: Bram Stoker's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Bram Stoker The Mystery of the Sea: Bram Stoker's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Bram Stoker Three Ghost Stories: Charles Dickens's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Charles Dickens Tales of Terror and Mystery: Arthur Conan Doyle's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Arthur Conan Doyle The Christmas Eve: A Ghost Story: Charles Dickens's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Charles Dickens Indian Ghost Stories: S. Mukerji's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by S. Mukerji The Parasite: Arthur Conan Doyle's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Arthur Conan Doyle Ghosts: A Domestic Tragedy in Three Acts: Henrik Ibsen's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Henrik Ibsen The History of the Devil, As Well Ancient as Modern: In Two Parts: Daniel Defoe's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Daniel Defoe The Haunters;The Haunted: Ernest Rhys's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Ernest Rhys The Shadow over Innsmouth: H. P. Lovecraft's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by H. P. Lovecraft The Mysteries of Udolpho: Ann Radcliffe's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Ann Radcliffe The House of the Seven Gables (Illustrated): Nathaniel Hawthorne's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Nathaniel Hawthorne Dracula: Bram Stoker's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Bram Stoker Humorous Ghost Stories: Dorothy Scarborough's Best Classic Humorous Horror Thrillers by Dorothy Scarborough Present at a Hanging and Other Ghost Stories: Ambrose Bierce's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Ambrose Bierce The Monkey's Paw: W. W. Jacobs's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by W. W. Jacobs The Devil in Iron: Robert E. Howard's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Robert E. Howard The Monk: A Romance: M. G. Lewis's Best Classic Horror Thrillers (Best Classic Horror Novels of All Time) by M. G. Lewis The Dunwich Horror: H. P. Lovecraft's Best Classic Horror Thrillers (Best Classic Horror Novels of All Time) by H. P. Lovecraft Great Ghost Stories: Joseph Lewis French's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Joseph Lewis French Can Such Things Be? : Ambrose Bierce's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Ambrose Bierce The Phantom 'Rickshaw and Other Ghost Stories: Rudyard Kipling's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Rudyard Kipling Demonology and Devil-lore: Moncure Daniel Conway's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Moncure Daniel Conway Carmilla: Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu The Phantom of the Opera: Gaston Leroux's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Gaston Leroux The Legend of Sleepy Hollow: Washington Irving's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by Washington Irving The Great God Pan: Arthur Machen's Best Classic Horror Thrillers (Best Classic Horror Novels of All Time) by Arthur Machen Supernatural Horror in Literature: H. P. Lovecraft's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by H. P. Lovecraft The Lifted Veil: George Eliot's Best Classic Horror Thrillers by George Eliot

Dating back to the early traditions of oral storytelling, the short story has evolved through the ages from myths, legends, fairy tales, fables, parables, stories in the Ramayana and Mahabharata, tales in the Panchatantra, the adventure tales of the Odyssey, biblical stories, the Norse sagas and many others. As the oriental tale and Gothic novel gained popularity in the latter half of the eighteenth century, short story began developing in Britain. And by the beginning of nineteenth century, it had highly evolved as a form. This anthology is a compilation of some of the classic short stories of the eighteenth and early nineteenth century, from around the world. Beginning with the realistic stories of Pushkin and Chekov, it includes ‘The Necklace’ by Guy de Maupassant, ‘Eve’s Diary’ by Mark Twain, ‘The “Slapping Sal”’ by Arthur Conan Doyle, ‘The Fly’ by Katherine Mansfield, ‘A Little Cloud’ by James Joyce, ‘White Nights’ by Fyodor Dostoevsky, ‘The Postmaster’ by Rabindranath Tagore and ‘The Gift of Magi’ by O. Henry. “Short stories are tiny windows into other worlds and other minds and other dreams. They are journeys you can make to the far side of the universe and still be back in time for dinner.” – Neil Gaiman “‘What shall I write?’ said Yegor and he dipped his pen in the ink.” – Anton Chekov, At Christmas Time “There was a woman who was beautiful, who started with all the advantages, yet she had no luck.” – D. H. Lawrence, The Rocking-Horse Winner

We are a product of nature. Every single cell of our body is made of, and depends, on nature. Our inner soul is heavily influenced by nature. We feel sad if the sun is not shining for a few days, and feel pleasure when drawn to the wonder of flowers and uplifted by the song of birds. We came from nature; we are part of nature. In short, we are nature. Nature has been an intimate part of the human experience from the earliest times. Different religions and cultures, from all corners of the world, have honoured and worshipped nature in art, ritual and literature in their own unique ways. This book shows how we learn about our own human nature, our own sense of identity and how we fit into the larger scheme of life and spirit when we come to better understand how our human ancestors, through art, symbol and myth, expressed their relationship with the natural world.