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Myths and Legends of the Celtic Race by T.W. Rolleston




This book is a great introduction to Celtic culture and mythology. One of the highlights is the introduction of Celtic culture based on written accounts and archaeological evidence. Most books about myths often proceed to the recounting of the stories right after a brief introduction. Knowing about the culture and background of the people behind it will make it easier for the readers to understand the motivation and inspirations behind the tales.

The book is divided into eight chapters. The ff. is the list of the titles of those sections:
1. The Celts in Ancient History
2. The Religion of the Celts
3. The Irish Invasion Myths
4. The Early Milesian Kings
5. Tales of the Ultonian Cycle
6. Tales of the Ossianic Cycle
7. The Voyage of Maeldun
8. Myths and Tales of the Cymry

The second chapter discusses the possible origin of the religious practices and worship of the Celts. While the third chapter is about the first of the four main divisions of the Irish mythical and legendary literature. The fourth  mentions the Geis for the first time which is essential in the Ulster cycle. The fifth chapter is about one of the popular mythical heroes in literature, Cuchulain. And chapter six completes the three main divisions through the stories of Finn and Oisin.

The last chapter is slightly diferrent from the other chapters and it is explained briefly in the first part. It contains the stories in the Mabinogion.

There is also a section dedicated to explaining the possible origins of the Arthurian legends and how the tales differ from those sources. The book however does not compile the stories of the later versions of Arthur.

Overall, the book is easy to understand. I recommend this to readers who don't have a background in mythology. Although the first chapter has a few commentaries that seem biased, this is one of the best compilation of myths I've read so far.

I'm giving this book a 9 out of 10 rating.
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