Enchanted Beasts and Celestial Myths

A Mythology Collection (Annotated): Journey Through Timeless Lore of Legendary Dragons, Lunar Legends and the Mystical Unicorns from Across the Ages

By: Edith Nesbit, Rev. Timothy Harley, Odell Shepard

Narrated by: James Francis Markert

Embark on an extraordinary voyage through the enchanted realms of mythical creatures and celestial legends with this captivating collection. Dive into the timeless tales of unicorns, dragons, and moon lore that have fascinated humanity for centuries.

About the authors and their work included in this collection:
Odell Shepard (1884-1967) was an American author, poet, and professor of English at Trinity College. He was known for his scholarly works and won the Pulitzer Prize for Biography in 1938.

"The Lore of the Unicorn" explores the history, myths, and symbolism of unicorns across different cultures and time periods. Delving into literary and artistic depictions, examining the fascination and mystery surrounding this legendary creature.

Edith Nesbit was an influential English author and poet, pioneering modern children's literature. Her innovative storytelling, which mixed fantasy with realistic child characters, inspired many later writers.

"The Book of Dragons" is a collection of eight whimsical dragon stories by Edith Nesbit. Each story features unique dragon adventures, blending fantasy, humor, and moral lessons, captivating listeners of all ages.

Rev. Timothy Harley was an English clergyman and author known for his interest in folklore and mythology. His scholarly work, particularly "Moon Lore," reflects a deep curiosity about the intersection of religion, myth, and popular culture.

"Moon Lore" compiles myths, folklore, and superstitions about the moon from various cultures. Timothy Harley explores lunar legends, including the man in the moon and other celestial myths, providing a Victorian-era perspective on the moon's mystical influence.
This anthology is a treasure trove of mythical wonders and celestial stories, perfect for lovers of fantasy, folklore, and the enduring magic of timeless tales.

Public Domain (P)2024 Chronos Publishing

Stories for everyone

There’s nothing like listening to stories that bring out your imagination. This book does it all. As a kid I listened to stories about unicorns but it was children’s stories. The stories here were from different cultures which made it more interesting. I used to be into dragons but again it was in children’s stories. After listening to the ones about dragons it brought back memories.

Unicorns and Dragons who could wish for more?

Really interesting compilation of mythologies! I thought I was going to be familiar with most of the dragon content but I was wrong. There were a lot of cool things that I never knew. Most of the unicorn content was new to me. The narration was really good.

I Liked It

I enjoyed this collection. The stories about dragons and the lunar legends were my favorites, but even the part about unicorns was interesting. Narrator did a great job, I loved his voice and the way he narrated each story was just perfect. Overall this was a great listen.

Extremely powerful read on mythological history

The book gives a well defined layout of the similarities and differences between the mythology of different cultures, especially as pertains to the celestial bodies.

Great stories, but weird combination

Usually the mythology collections have a single unifying theme, usually collected by culture. This collection, however, combines mythology surrounded dragons, the moon and unicorns. The themes are presented differently, with the dragon lore being in the form of stories and the rest having a traditional non-fiction, or research-based, presentation. It's like getting three unrelated books in one.

That is not to say that they are not each fantastic in their own way! The stories about the dragons are a lot of fun and our narrator has such a perfect storytelling manner for this section. When we move into hearing about the moon, however, it is a real mind tilt. I suggest the reading taking a break between listening to these two sections.

The moon mythology is comprehensive and comparative, which is very interesting. It takes a look at the moon from many aspects I never heard or thought of. The man in the moon, the woman in the moon, the frog in the moon, the rabbit in the moon, etc. Plus, the author compares each aspect from culture to culture, pointing out the many times similarities are seen between the mythology of peoples at opposite ends of the earth. The question of how these disparate peoples could have the same mythology is aptly posed. No answer, of course, is forthcoming.

Then come the unicorns. Ah, the unicorns. I never gave them much thought, but herein you will find much thought given to this mythical beast, comparing varieties of description in body parts, colors, etc. In some instances, explanations of how another creature could have been mis-seen instead are given. As with the moon, it is all so very interesting and comprehensive. With all the information given, I'm sure even the most educated listener will learn something new!

Now to our illustrious narrator, Mr. Markert. I do love his voice. As I said, he has an excellent story-telling style. When we move into the more detail-oriented books of the moon and unicorn, he is able to switch styles and narrate this information in a way that makes it engaging and easy to understand. I am also quite impressed with his ability to properly pronounce foreign words from a variety of languages. I was impressed long ago when hearing him pronounce Hawaiin and Asian language words, but now hearing him pronounce Germanic words with just as much ease shows his immense talent.

Learning more then enjoying

I really got bored has I didn’t expect the stories to be mixed load of content that came off has a thesis on the historical aspect of the few stories you did. In all this audiobook is for adults not children has they’ll just become bored with all the big talk.