Monsters and Mythical Creatures from Around the World, by Heather Frigiola

I received an ARC of the book from the author in exchange for an honest review. In now way does this impact my opinions. 

I went for a rare non-fiction book here, as it was about mythology and folklore, one (two?) of my favourite subjects. There’s no plot or tagline to hook you in, so I won’t write a mini-synopsis, but it is worth a look for fans. Here’s my thoughts:

• I like how this book is laid out. It’s not a one-stop mythological shop, as that would be rather large, nor is it another rundown of European legends masked as world legends. Instead, the creators have split the book up into five world regions, which makes a lot of sense from an ethnicity standpoint and the evolution of the different critters
• As already mentioned, this is a somewhat stripped down guide, with roughly 24 tales from each region. Some you’ll know, but most you probably won’t, an offshoot of splitting up the book. The author also compares similar tales that likely diverged from a single source,and how it differs in neighbouring countries.
• One aspect in particular that I liked was how many of the legends of former colonial countries were impacted by European settlers, often merging with their legends from home. The author tries to dig to the root of the original legends, but mainstream media seems to have made such searches impossible
• One thing I particularly liked was when the author talked about cryptids (the Yeti, Nessie etc). She often delves into various studies by cryptozoologists, and these asides can be just as interesting as the other folk tales, and worth a book of their own
•  If I had one gripe, it’s that I didn’t get to see the accompanying pictures. I’m not sure if this was just because of mobi format, because it was an ARC, or some other mysterious reason, but I feel like I missed an important part of the book. Maybe I’ll check out the print version. I believe this is also mostly suitable for kids. There is some mention of rape though (it is mythology), but for the most part it’s engaging for younger readers.

Verdict

A nicely presented, wide-ranging view of some of the world’s sometimes bonkers mythologies and folklore. Recommended for casual fans, and people looking to jump on the myth train.