Headlong: A Novel

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With its sumptuous surfaces and alluring sense of gravitas, classic Dutch painting has fascinated writers for centuries. It's easy to see why. Giant religious representations and gaudy classical scenes already have the weight of literature behind them. But an enigmatic portrait or dimly lit interior seems like a virtual incubator for narrative, and now Michael Frayn joins the Netherlandish fray in Headlong, which features a Bruegel canvas in the starring role.

The other star of the novel is youngish art historian Martin Clay (a Hugh Grant character gone to fat), who identifies the lost Bruegel in a tumbledown country home. The picture elicits an immediate shock of recognition:

Already, somewhere in those first few instants, something has begun to stir inside me. In my head, in the pit of my stomach. It's as if the sun's emerging from the clouds, and the world's changing in front of my eyes, from grey to golden. I can feel the warmth of the sunlight spreading over my skin, passing like a wave of beneficence through my entire body.

The sight of this masterwork glimmering through the "grimy pane of time" fires up Martin's customarily dilettantish intellect, and he decides to secure it for the nation--and make himself a fortune--without revealing its true value to the owner. Much double-dealing, bamboozling, and suppressed hysteria ensue as he and the owner try to outfox each other. Yet the heart of the novel is Martin's search for the meaning of the painting that has become his "triumph and torment and downfall." Bouncing from gallery to museum to library, he delivers an extended (and entertaining) lesson on iconography and landscape.

As Martin's obsession takes hold, the pace of the novel also accelerates into a breathless rush of action, comic anguish, and scholarly speculation. Not surprisingly, some of Martin's machinations go haywire, which leads to a certain amount of irritating slapstick--shady deals in underground parking lots, art treasures being tipped into the back of a filthy Land Rover, and so forth. But even if he makes his plot work overtime, Frayn is superb in the quest for the meaning of art, not to mention the lure of money and intellectual reputation. And for that alone, Headlong deserves to be called picture perfect. --Eithne Farry

Book Description

An unlikely con man wagers wife, wealth, and sanity in pursuit of an elusive Old Master.

Invited to dinner by the boorish local landowner, Martin Clay, an easily distracted philosopher, and his art-historian wife are asked to assess three dusty paintings blocking the draught from the chimney. But hiding beneath the soot is nothing less-Martin believes-than a lost work by Bruegel. So begins a hilarious trail of lies and concealments, desperate schemes and soaring hopes as Martin, betting all that he owns and much that he doesn't, embarks on a quest to prove his hunch, win his wife over, and separate the painting from its owner.

In Headlong, Michael Frayn, "the master of what is seriously funny" (Anthony Burgess), offers a procession of superbly realized characters, from the country squire gone to seed to his giddy, oversexed young wife. All are burdened by human muddle and human cravings; all are searching for a moral compass as they grapple with greed, folly, and desire. And at the heart of the clamor is Breugel's vision, its dark tones warning of the real risks of temptation and obsession.

With this new novel, Michael Frayn has given us entertainment of the highest order. Supremely wise and wickedly funny, Headlong elevates Frayn into the front rank of contemporary novelists.

Customer Reviews:

An effort to read, but well worth it.......2007-01-03

I think the negative reviews may have been given by those who were looking for a book to read on the beach. To enjoy the book, you have to remember (at least to some extent) the sketches of art history, the Spanish attempts to suppress the beginning of the Dutch rebellion against themselves and the Catholic church, the college-professor narrator's get-rich-quick scheme, etc.

I was willing to put in the effort, and felt richly rewarded for it. Within the author's intent, my only criticism would be that the narrator is generally portrayed as intelligent, but his actions sometimes seem imbecile, which stretched my credulity. Perhaps it should not have - I have known some fairly impractical college professors.

Enjoyable cover to cover .......2006-12-01

A fantastic book. Extremely funny and witty. I was not going to write a review until I read all of the unwarranted negative reviews. I would guess the criticism of this book stems from the increasingly short attention span of the average person. If you like to bury yourself in an interesting and funny story, this is the book.

Just couldn't stick with it.......2006-08-07

This had all the earmarks of something I'd love. I was an art-history major in college, am still a major museum-rat, and I especially love Dutch art. But the novel was sooooo boring that I gave up after about a hundred pages. The early dinner-party scene at the Churts' house was hilarious, but then the endless, dry art-historical and philosophical ruminations just put me to sleep. As other reviewers have said, it would have helped immensely if there had been illustrations of the works in question. But reading interminable descriptions of what various paintings look like, and how many different ways you can spell "Brueghel".... please.

Good writer, not a great book.......2006-06-03

I was looking forward to reading this book, yet turned out to be pretty dissapointed. He gets 2 stars for being a good writer, sadly this book just wasnt interesting. The story grew stagnant very quickly, and seemed like a bunch of filler that I wasnt interested in. The main character started getting to the point where it seemed like verything he though about was a repeat of something he had previously said. I think the story had potential, but just wasnt executed well.

Hilarious.......2006-05-17

Fantastic book! Fun, classic plot elements, with some great twists and turns. A very smart read, too. Bravo!

Average customer rating:

Early 19th-century satire at its most erudite and witty

Headlong Hall
Thomas Love Peacock
Manufacturer: Camden House
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Book Description

Headlong Hall was an instant success upon its anonymous first appearance in 1816. Like most of Peacock's novels, it assembles a group of characters - Mr Cranium, Miss Poppyseed, Mr Treacle and others - who, while eating and drinking to abandon, discuss topics which were then of interest to Peacock and his circle of intellectual friends. Some of the figures are thinly-disgused portraits of contemporaries (Mr Escot, for example, is widely thought to be modelled on Shelley); others embody current views of the age, and are held up to scorn. There is a minimum of plot, but much discussion in a unique and lively style, and with burlesque Rabelaisan humour; throughout, Peacock uses the work to parody contemporary thinking in a variety of disparate areas, including utilitarianism, vegetarianism, aesthetics, music, poetry, art criticism, and so on. In the meantime there is dancing and drinking and falling in love. This edition contains an introduction by America's master of science fantasy, RAY BRADBURY, who adds his own special touch to this feast of ideas and language.

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The place is quite a wilderness, said Squire Headlong: "for, during the latter part of my father's life, while I was finishing my education, he troubled himself about nothing but the cellar, and suffered everything else to go to rack and ruin. A mere wilderness, as you see, even now in December; but in summer a complete nursery of briers, a forest of thistles, a plantation of nettles, without any livestock but goats, that have eaten up all the bark of the trees. Here you see is the pedestal of a statue, with only half a leg and four toes remaining: there were many here once.

Customer Reviews:

Early 19th-century satire at its most erudite and witty.......2005-06-01

I daresay that no less a personage than Destiny herself foresaw to introduce me to the works of Thomas Love Peacock. While perusing the stacks of English Literature holdings at my library, I literally bumped into this book with my elbow, saw that it was misshelved, and also noticed the fact that Ray Bradbury had seen fit to write an introduction to it. How could I not examine this little book, given such circumstances? It proved to be a most fortuitous meeting, as I quite enjoyed my short adventure at Headlong Hall.

Peacock, it seems, was a venerable man of letters, a man of great wit and fancy who catered not to the popular imagination but principally produced works of prose and poetry for those of a scholarly, even antiquarian, mind. Headlong Hall, first published anonymously in 1816, is the first of Peacock's several novels; the book exists not so much to tell a story as to engage in discourses upon a myriad of subjects with something of a satirical air. Seeing as how Peacock wrote during the first half of the nineteenth century, some of his satirical passages relate to politics and social thinking I am wholly unfamiliar with in this day and age, but there remains plenty to delight those who love a good display of sagacity. Peacock could not only pontificate about all manner of subjects, he could land jibes from both directions upon the lot of them. There is a taste of Plato in his delineations of philosophical debates, yet the entire pageantry of pedantry found in Headlong Hall is always tempered by the affability of the host (Squire Headlong) and the liberal distribution of spirits among all parties. Don't expect to fall in love with any of the book's characters or engage your emotions to any significant degree (despite Peacock's insertion of a modicum of romance) with the story, for this is a book of ideas as represented by somewhat satirical characters.

What you have in Headlong Hall is a gathering of intellectuals by Squire Headlong, who has developed a desire to be seen as a man of taste. He seems to enjoy nothing better than a spirited debate among the learned - he doesn't really care what anyone has to say, though. Everyone gets to talk, and it doesn't really matter that no one actually listens because the parties involved consist predominantly of the types of men who enjoy hearing themselves talk in the first place. By way of example, you have Mr. Foster, a "perfectabilian" who extols the wonders of progress in the world, and Mr. Escot, a "deteriorationist" who lauds the goodness of the "natural" man, impugns progress at every turn, and basically consigns all of mankind to the compost heap of history. In between these two, there is Mr. Jenkinson, a "statu-quo-ite" who finds balance in everything. There are other parties joining in the fun, including a scattering of writers and critics, but those aforementioned afford one a good sense of the story's nature.

It's amazing to see a writer argue opposite sides of any given debate so effectively. Peacock has no trouble tolerating a fool, although he tends to poke a little fun while doing so. Peacock himself was seemingly no fan of popular ideas or the boastings of high-minded intellectuals, but it is hard to identify what he himself believes from the pages of this novel. I should also mention the prose itself, for it can be rough going at times. Peacock was a most educated man, and he uses more than his share of "big words" that mean nothing to me (who among you can readily define such words as philotheoparoptesism or osseocarnisanguineoviscericartilaginonervomedullary and use them in a sentence?). He also liberally sprinkles Latin and Greek quotations in the text, most of which (at least in the edition of the book I read) are not translated for the modern reader. Overall, though, Headlong Hall is a most extraordinary short novel that will appeal primarily to those with a scholarly bent and an appreciation for subtle humor and satire.

Headlong Hall and Gryll Grange (World's Classics)

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A perfect pleasure

Headlong Hall and Gryll Grange (World's Classics)
Thomas Love Peacock
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Customer Reviews:

A perfect pleasure.......2002-04-30

Peacock deserves a far wider readership. The modesty of a man whose books could have been dressed up as classics but were left as the iridescent sports they are is awesome. Wholly satisfying, these anticipate Joyce's and look back to Sterne's comprehensive neutrality. Gryll Grange: greatest novel of the nineteenth century? Certainly the subtlest intellectually.

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Headlong Hall and Nightmare Abbey
Thomas Love Peacock
Manufacturer: Adamant Media Corporation
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0543896420
Release Date: 2000-10-19

Headlong Into Hell: A Novel of Piratical Adventure

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Headlong Into Hell: A Novel of Piratical Adventure
Karl W Heffelfinger
Manufacturer: Outskirts Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1432700952

Book Description

A sea-borne adventure filled with cannon smoke, whistling musket shot and the ring of steel-on-steel.

When the young captain, Toby Heath, accepts a commission as a privateer, he finds that there is more to the appointment than chasing pirates. He encounters a den of smugglers, meets a head-strong girl and rediscovers a vengeful enemy still on his trail.

Mr. Heffelfinger shows a strong grasp of all things nautical and the vagaries of the sea. His descriptive powers are superb...

Jeanette Cottrell, eBook Reviews weekly

...masterful storytelling of darkly beautiful heroes and vile villians. The dialogue really stood out for me...I could almost hear the voices. Fantastic job!

Libby Cudmore, author of "Always the Bride"

I'm talking about richness of story, of raising the standard, of writing your absolute best...Don't think historical fiction can reach this richness? Try reading Karl Heffelfinger.

Michael LaRocca, EPPIE 2002 Award finalist.

The pleasures of Peacock,: Comprising in whole or in part the seven novels of Thomas Love Peacock: Headlong Hall, Melincourt, Nightmare Abbey, Maid Marian, ... of Elphin, Crotchet Castle, Gryll Grange

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The pleasures of Peacock,: Comprising in whole or in part the seven novels of Thomas Love Peacock: Headlong Hall, Melincourt, Nightmare Abbey, Maid Marian, ... of Elphin, Crotchet Castle, Gryll Grange
Thomas Love Peacock
Manufacturer: Farrar, Straus
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B0007DU6FO

Three Novels - Headlong Hall -Nightmare Abbey-Crotchet Castle

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Three Novels - Headlong Hall -Nightmare Abbey-Crotchet Castle
Thomas Love, Peacock
Manufacturer: Pomona Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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THREE NOVELS HEADLONG HALL, NIGHTMARE ABBEY, CROTCHET CASTLE
T. L. PEACOCK
Manufacturer: NELSON
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000SHQTQY

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Three Novels. Headlong Hall, Nightmare Abbey, Crotchet Castle
Thomas Love Peacock
Manufacturer: Nelson
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000ODNTKG

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Three Novels: Headlong Hall. Nightmare Abbey. Crotchet Castle.

Manufacturer: Thomas Nelson and Sons Ltd.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000GLWVF0

Amazon.com

Everyone in Just Before Sunrise is incredibly likable from Otto, the good-for-nothing rottweiler, to the ever versatile (and sexy) Garvin MacCrae to spunky Annie Payne who isn't afraid to move herself from Maine to San Francisco after her family's cottage has been washed to sea. Unafraid of natural disasters--Annie plunges into her new life--right up to her eyeballs in a five-year murder mystery. Luckily she has a "good eye" and sees her way clear of danger.

Book Description

Carla Neggers' sizzling novels are loved for their deliciously funny dialogue, electrifying suspense, and heart-stopping romance. Here, the New York Times bestselling author presents a fast-paced, scintillating tale of love, art, and danger....

JUST BEFORE SUNRISE

Annie Payne realizes her dream when she moves to San Francisco and opens an art gallery. But when she accepts a secret commission to bid for a painting going on the auction block, she finds herself thrown into a haunting swirl of events linked to a five-year-old unsolved murder. Who is this secret client?

Marina owner Garvin MacCrae was determined to have the portrait of his late wife, and knows of only one person who would want it enough to outbid him. Could the intriguing art dealer who represented the auction winner hold the key to the mystery of his wife's death? Working together to untangle a murderer's clues, Garvin and Annie strike so many sparks off each other that they could start another San Francisco fire -- a four-alarmer fueled by an explosive mix of suspicion, attraction, and love.

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"Carla Neggers' sizzling novels are loved for their deliciously funny dialogue, electrifying suspense, and heart-stopping romance. Here, the New York Times bestselling author presents a fast-paced, scintillating tale of love, art, and danger.... JUST BEFORE SUNRISE Annie Payne realizes her dream when she moves to San Francisco and opens an art gallery. But when she accepts a secret commission to bid for a painting going on the auction block, she finds herself thrown into a haunting swirl of events linked to a five-year-old unsolved murder. Who is this secret client? Marina owner Garvin MacCrae was determined to have the portrait of his late wife, and knows of only one person who would want it enough to outbid him. Could the intriguing art dealer who represented the auction winner hold the key to the mystery of his wife's death? Working together to untangle a murderer's clues, Garvin and Annie strike so many sparks off each other that they could start another San Francisco fire -- a four-alarmer fueled by an explosive mix of suspicion, attraction, and love. "

Customer Reviews:

Slow Story.......2005-11-05

I have to agree with the review just before me. This was so slow it actually stopped, just kept repeating itself. One of the unusual things I noticed was how the author used everyone's last names with their first in just about every instance. It was always Annie Payne like it was one name, and Thomas Linwood and Haley Linwood MacCrae like we would forget who she meant. There was only one character for each name involved. It was extremely slow reading to get to the unexciting confrontation of the killer 14 pages before the end. I have read two more recent works by Carla Neggers that were much better, but this was takes the booby prize.

I Am Not Impressed!.......2004-08-15

Annie Payne lost her father when she was just a baby, her mother when she was sixteen, and her beloved grandmother, an artist, the year before. But she had a wonderful job, as the director of a small maritime museum, the home she grew up in - a cottage on the beautiful Maine coast, her friends and her close companion, Otto, a friendly rottweiler, (not an oxymoron) - so she was happy. Then a nor'easter blew in and swept her home into the sea. That's when she packed her bags, and Otto, into her rusting station wagon and drove cross-country to begin her life anew in San Franciscio - and to realize her dream to open an art gallery.

Mission accomplished in a relatively short time, Annie accepted a commission from one of her gallery's first visitors, an eccentric older woman, who happens to be an extremely talented artist. She asked Annie to represent her at an auction and bid, to win, on a painting. Enthused at the idea of one day exhibiting this painter's work, Annie accepts and finds herself neck deep in a five year-old double murder mystery, involving San Francisco's society elite.

This is the first book I have read by Carla Neggers. I was attracted to the author when I saw one of her book titles on Amazon.com and read glowing reviews. I picked up this novel expecting to be wowed (!) and instead found myself disappointed. Now, "Just Before Sunrise" is not a bad book. I did find it boring, however - and I am rarely bored. I think the story, and the way it is told, is repetitous. Annie keeps going back and forth between her elderly patron, Sarah, the love interest and hero, Gavin, and to everyone else who is remotely involved with the auctioned painting. All the conversations are similar and they are all about the same subject. There's not much substance to the romance or to the mystery - which I figured out about 100 pages into the story. And the characters are not very exciting or original- except for Otto. So, I can't figure out what all the excitement is about. I will probably read another novel by Ms. Neggers someday. I don't give up easily, especially when it seems like she has such loyal fans.
JANA

My sentiments exactly.......2000-06-11

This is a great story. I will not go into my synopsis as the other two reviewers before me did a terrific job at it. I enjoyed the chemistry between Annie and Garvin. I was completely shocked to find out who the real killer was as usually I can figure it out before it's disclosed. My guesses were wrong. This was my second Carla Neggers book, my first was Kiss the Moon, another good story. I will definitely read more of her, a terrific writer.

Impossible to but down!.......1997-09-02

Very Highly Recommended - After the death of her beloved Grandmother, and a storm that swept her Maine home into the sea, Annie Payne packed her car with a few remaining possessions, Otto, a mild-mannered rottweiler, and headed for San Francisco. Using the last of the insurance money, she opens an art gallery in a converted Victorian. Carrying an eclectic mix of art and crafts, the shop reflects its owner: warm, inviting, and all together too trusting. It is precisely this attribute that embroils Annie in a five-year-old double murder when she agrees to bid on a painting at an auction. When the portrait turns-out to be that of the murdered woman, and the man who bids against her, the widower, Annie knows she's in way over her head. Yet loyalty to the old lady who hired her to buy the painting runs deep. Annie is not one to cut and run at the first signs of trouble, but trouble, named Gavin MacCrae, soon comes knocking at her door.Despite the brutal death of his wife, Gavin forged ahead with his life, leaving his former job to open a marina. If not happy, he is at least content -- until he meets Annie. Old memories begin to surface as do people from his past. Annie's fierce loyalty and tenacious determination to solve the double murder anger and intrigue him. She brings him back to life with her youthful exuberance, and awakens a seething passion only she can tame.The attraction between Annie and Gavin sizzles as they desperately attempt to find the murderer before he makes another attack. From the social art scene in San Francisco to the picturesque waterfront of Marin County, Just Before Sunrise weaves a classic mystery of romance and intrigue.Carla Neggers knows the secret to good writing. She introduces her characters with finesse and understandings, letting the reader discover their idiosyncrasies and quirks. Before we know it they worm their way into our hearts. Ms. Neggers masters the art of storytelling. Plotting is her specialty. A book with her name on the cover assures an excellent read.Kathee S. Car

Anni moves to California to start over and finds love&danger.......1997-02-12

When a coastal storm washed away Annie Payne's home, she is left with nothing but her grandmother's painting and her rottweiller. Deciding to start anew, Annie heads to San Francisco where she opens up an art gallery. Annie has no concept of what she has agreed to when she accepts a commission to bid on a painting by a reclusive artist named Sarah at the Linwood estate. When she arrives at the auction, she finds herself in a bidding war with Gavin McRae, the widower of the model in the portrait. Annie later learns that Gavin's wife and grandfather were both murdered in the same room only a day apart five years ago. The two people who may have the answers and the motivation for the crime, Sarah and her shady boy friend, Vic, vanished into thin air. Now Sarah and Vic have re-surfaced and Gavin is following Annie because he hopes to find the missing couple and because he cares for her. Annie is torn between her feelings towards Gavin and her need to protect Sarah. However, she cannot help but being thrust into a maelstrom of danger that could cost Annie her life. Carla Neggers' brand of New England charm and humor would normally be out of place in the Bay area, but the writer's talent manages to enhance the tale with its uniqueness and freshness. JUST BEFORE SUNRISE is an exciting romantic suspense that sizzles with passion and a complex story line that turns the novel into another Neggers' winner.

Customer Reviews:

Graphic SF Reader.......2007-09-04

This volume of Swamp Thing comics takes a bit of a different turn. Abby is basically brought up on obscenity charges for a relationship with a vegetable.

I think there would be quite a few people in trouble if this is actually a crime.

Batman, of all people, intervenes in the case.

My favorite volume so far!.......2005-11-29

I've been reading each collection of Alan Moore's run on this book and I have to say I found this to be the best yet. Story strands that have been building since the run began come together to spin the book in a totally unforseen and unpredictable direction. I'm anxious to see what comes next!

His Blue Heaven.......2003-05-10

If you've read the prior collections in this series and you thought things couldn't get any better, well you ain't seen nothing yet. This installment of the Swamp Thing graphic novel series contains just six issues from Alan Moore's run (#51-56), but that does include the double-sized blockbuster issue #53. In any case, quantity is meaningless here because Moore and his artistic team have reached the dizzying heights of their powers, unleashing the most mindboggling and gutwrenching stories in comic history. The basic subplot running through the series at this point is Abby's arrest for immoral conduct while Swamp Thing was off saving the universe, and her escape to Gotham City. As Swampy is searching for his true love, she is being held by the authorities in Gotham. In the overwhelming "Garden of Earthly Delights" (issue #53) Swamp Thing unleashes his full elemental powers on the uncaring city that imprisons his lover, and even temporarily defeats Batman in the process. Sadly, Swampy is supposedly assassinated by government agents, and finds his spirit floating in outer space. This is where Moore's imagination really goes into overdrive, giving us the highly unique and moving story "My Blue Heaven" (issue #56), a tremendous tale of loneliness and soul-searching, where Swamp Thing is blue in more ways than one. This episode is also another pinnacle for the artistic team, and much credit must go to colorist Tatjana Wood for her moody and unconventional work. By this point regular artists Stephen Bissette and John Totleben had mostly moved on - Bissette was only doing the covers and Totleben's only major contribution is "Garden of Earthly Delights." The artistic torch had been passed to the outstanding team of Rick Veitch and Alfredo Alcala, who barely miss a beat in keeping the series' haunting and lovely artwork rolling. The only sad thing about this edition of the Swamp Thing series is that fact that Moore's run would soon come to a close.

Not like the others.......2002-04-07

Ever since the Alan Moore's Swamp Thing Graphic Novels have been coming out I've been making sure to get every one. I like the EC horror feeling to them. Most of the time though something bad happens to ordinary mortels and Swamp Thing shows up and is the means to an end. This time things are different.

Abby Cable, after being accused of "hugging vegstibles" flees to Gotham City. There she is picked up again and put on trial. Swamp things returns from the "American Gothic" tour and looks everywhere for his beloved. When he finds out she's in jail in Gotham needless to say he's [angry] and rips Gotham a new one. Now Swamp Thing is the agressor terrorizing all those innocent mortals untill he gets his love back and not even Batman can stop him (Yeah, Batman can kick anyone ..., but swampy is now on a God level. He turns Gotham into a jungle on a whim)
Trying not to give too much away my favorite Swamp thing story in the book (Perhaps the whole series) is "My Blue Heaven". It's a beautiful, exotic, weird and engrossing tale. It's about the human condition set in a weird alien world. Jonathan Lethem would be impressed. He's the writer of "Girl in Landscape" and "Amnisia Moon". Check him out too.

Customer Reviews:

Evolution of Occidental Religious Thought as an Epic Dialogue Between Levantine and European Beliefs.......2007-08-08

Many other excellent longer reviews have been written for this book, so I'll just keep mine (relatively) short. I bought and read this volume first, and it inspired me to order the other three volumes of "The Masks of God". Although I'm not a specialist in comparative religion, I found this volume an excellent introduction: covering the entire history of religion west of and including Persia, but not neglecting to make connections between these and the Oriental religions. But Campbell's approach is more than presenting a hodge-podge of connections between world religions. He was trying to paint a picture of an epic tale of the dialogue and development of religious thought throughout history. For lots of details on particular religions, other sources are probably better, but for presenting the big picture and illuminating the main ideas and trends in Occidental religions, and showing how these threads of belief interacted with one another over time, I found the book very illuminating. Judeo-Christian faithful might be upset with his treatment of their religion as another among many world myths, but those who are open to seeing how their religion fits into the context of other world beliefs might find the comparisons enlightening. For example Jews and Christians might find it interesting to learn that some of their beliefs (afterlife, angels, heaven and hell) may have come from the influence of ancient Zoroastrianism on early Judaism.

I look forward to reading the other three volumes. (Volume 1 is on primitive mythology (e.g. aboriginal, Native American, etc.); Volume 2 is on oriental mythology; and Volume 4 is, I think, Campbell's take on the direction modernity has been going with religious belief. It was a little hard to find the other 3 volumes on Amazon, but they are all there, if you click on the links of the reviewers that point to the correct volumes.

Sign of a true genius.......2007-01-05

I learned a great deal from the Masks of God series.Joseph Campbell was a true innovator and one of a kind. I've continued to purchase all of his works. I highly recommend The Masks of God Volumes 1-4 to anyone.

A Review For the Series Entire (& a Brief Review of This Volume).......2006-12-25

A Myth is not a lie, but, like Art, a rendering of Truth. Subsequently, religion is the extension of myth through ritual. Despite the titles, these texts are as much about religion as myth, and the works are all the better for it. Campbell skillfully explores the Human experience, and what Man has made of it, over the course of these four seminal works. At times, one feels the influence of Toynbee, but Campbell has gone beyond the author of A Study of History and into a world all the more full of wonder.

Man is the most conscious participant in Nature, and, as the Image of God, the only creature capable of reshaping Nature according to his own interpretations of its meaning. These little shapings, which we call art, myth, religion, culture, and philosophy are the stuff a rich existence is made of.

Stated simply, this work dutifully charts the progress, derivations, and points of origin of these shapings. Campbell's prose is warm, friendly, compassionate, loving but stern, and creative. One could not ask for a better introduction to the Man's works.

Occidental Mythology is the third in the series, and deals principally with Indo-European (Hellenism, Zoroastrianism) and Semitic (Judaism, Christianity, Islam) traditions. Through the thick swaths of these mythological histories we can make out a wonderful tapestry that ties the two together in profound ways while clearly outlining their differences. This is an essential work, as for we Westerners it clearly outlines who we are and how we came to be.

For those not familiar with some of the artistic themes discussed in this and other works, Campbell's Mythic Image (Illustrated Edition) makes a strong companion.

The role of myth in the history of the Middle East and Europe.......2006-09-20

One topic from PRIMITIVE MYTHOLOGY, the first volume of the MASKS OF GOD, that is especially prominent in the beginning of this volume concerns the mythology of the Earth Goddess reaching back to the Bronze Age. Primitive agriculture spread within the broad equatorial zone but first developed in the Middle East, and the myths that come out of that time represent an endless cycle of life and death, growth and decay, in which everything is renewed as in the obvious phases of the moon, in the endless reappearance of the sun. The force of this growth and renewal is necessarily female, of the goddess, and the items that appear in the artifacts dating from this time concern the serpent, the tree, the moon, and include signs of both human and animal sacrifice for the purpose of ensuring fertility.

In contrast with the female element in primitive agriculture is the masculine emphasis of the tribesman and herdsman of the Iron Age. With weapons newly acquired, pastoral warriors sought to extend their power. The ascent of the Mesopotamian god Marduk, in his victory over the goddess-mother Tiamat, parallels the rise of the invader Hammurabi. The patriarchal society that now evolves includes such people as the Hebrews, wanderers of the desert.

As much as the Hebrews have been a center of attention, life did not originate with them and the Old Testament. First came a long history leading up to their arrival, in which civilization began in the Middle East, including a goddess centered mythology and, notably, the foundation of the written word. Scholarship reveals that there were multiple texts that first existed from which the Old Testament was constructed, and two mythologies can clearly be discerned that were blended together to form the creation myth in Genesis. The ancient symbols of the serpent and the tree appear, but here, instead of a divinity that encompasses the force that is in all nature, the divinity is seen as being totally separate and apart, transcendent and at the same time omniscient; and by man's deeds and woman's temptation, human kind is rendered into an alienated, sinful state, in which everything is either a blessing or a curse from God.

Contrary to the Old Testament, the goddess and nature were not reduced to insignificance by the Greeks and Romans. The forces of nature are clearly apparent in Greek myths, and the goddesses, though overshadowed by Zeus and the heroic male, played prominent roles. Rather than having the effect of denigrating nature as being corrupt, the Greek myths encouraged those with an inquiring mind to seek knowledge about the world and ask fundamental questions about life. As a result, at the time of the Greeks, there was a flowering of philosophic inquiry and great strides made in mathematics and science, some of which would not be resumed for almost another two millennium.

With the advent of Christianity, the theology of immanence, as evident in the Roman pantheon or Gnosticism or the mystery cults, falls by the wayside. The author explains three major views that contended for the orthodoxy of the early Christian church: the view of the Jewish Christians that the Messiah meant a restoration and glorification of Israel; the view of the Gnostics that took an entirely different line from the Jewish tradition and emphasized knowledge; and the Marcion view that held that the Old Testament God had created evil and Jesus was the saviour sent by a higher God. What won out as set down by the powers of the early Church made the New Testament a fulfillment of the Old, and stirred in among other elements the Zoroastrian idea of the final judgement day. Rather than incorporating many different views, the early Church, starting with Paul, took a narrow view of rigid consensus and eventually everything else was considered a heresy.

All the elements of Islam, according to the author, continue in the Zoroastrian-Jewish-Christian legacy. His statement - "The mask of God named Allah is a product of the same desert from which the mask Yahweh had come centuries before" - is very interesting in light of the ongoing turmoil in the Mideast. Both Jewish law and Islamic law derive from the same place and both come from a transcendent God of the same forebears. In Islam, the consensus of the clergy in determining laws was derived from the Word of God and became rigid doctrine that had no basis for dissent or change. There were three principle derivations of law: Sunni, Shi'a and Sufi.

The goal in this study (in my reading and in what I see as Joseph Campbell's pursuit) is to gain a sober assessment of the origins of religious and philosophic views of the Occident; to see its mythology for the metaphor that it is and not to grasp it tightly as if it were simply factual. The myths of the ancient world never seem so transparent; they open up a study of surprising depth. Reading them is like being confronted with a puzzle in which the solution is never unarguable or definite. The comparative part of mythology helps in this regard. In this book the author draws heavily and enlarges on material from the previous two volumes. There is much to consider in comparing the Occident with the Orient.

A Fundamentally Flawed, Misleading Work.......2005-01-22

Campbell gets way too much credit for being intelligent. In this book, he severely mocks the Book of Genesis, a very stupid thing to do. Even if one does not believe the narratives of Genesis, its antiquity and terse language (in the original Hebrew) demand respect. Campbell's analysis of Greek myth (more like a pointless exercise in free association) is devoid of understanding. He never grasped that Greek "myth" is not myth at all but rather the history of the human race told from the Greeks' unique religious standpoint. For real understanding, I recommend THE PARTHENON CODE: MANKIND'S HISTORY IN MARBLE.

Occidental Mythology (The Masks of God, Volume III)

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A Review For the Series Entire (& a Brief Review of This Volume)
A Very Inspiring Read
Weaving of many golden threads
Peering into the ancient past for the myths of mankind

Occidental Mythology (The Masks of God, Volume III)
Joseph Campbell
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Other Books.......2007-09-03

Part of Joseph Campbell's whole mythology series, he traces the myths and religions of the West and details how they change from small groups such as in Greece worshipping various gods, goddesses and other beings, up to the much more narrow and borrowing monotheistic stuff that is dominant in most of Western culture more recently.

A Review For the Series Entire (& a Brief Review of This Volume).......2006-12-25

A Myth is not a lie, but, like Art, a rendering of Truth. Subsequently, religion is the extension of myth through ritual. Despite the titles, these texts are as much about religion as myth, and the works are all the better for it. Campbell skillfully explores the Human experience, and what Man has made of it, over the course of these four seminal works. At times, one feels the influence of Toynbee, but Campbell has gone beyond the author of A Study of History and into a world all the more full of wonder.

Man is the most conscious participant in Nature, and, as the Image of God, the only creature capable of reshaping Nature according to his own interpretations of its meaning. These little shapings, which we call art, myth, religion, culture, and philosophy are the stuff a rich existence is made of.

Stated simply, this work dutifully charts the progress, derivations, and points of origin of these shapings. Campbell's prose is warm, friendly, compassionate, loving but stern, and creative. One could not ask for a better introduction to the Man's works.

Primitive Mythology is the first in the series, and deals principally with pre-civilization and those cultures only recently adopting modern fetters (such as Micronesia, Polynesia, and other communities of the Pacific.) Campbell gives an apt alliteration of those first experiences universal to all (dark, womb, birth, youth, middle age, old age, and death) and those factors that thus contribute to all mythologies. In doing so he sets the stage for what he will later present as a tour through the localized fragments of a universal language.

For those not familiar with some of the artistic themes discussed in this and other works, Campbell's Mythic Image (Illustrated Edition) makes a strong companion.

A Very Inspiring Read.......2006-08-30

Well, it took some years, but I finally finished reading Campbell's, "Masks of God" series and I must say I agree with another reviewer as Campbell has indeed saved the best for last.

What set this one ("Vol. IV: Creative Mythology") apart from the other three to me, is that Campbell presents ideas which can be directly applied to your everyday life and looks towards the future of mythology (which we are all a part of!) rather than strictly recounting a history of the world's mythological past. There is plenty of mythological history in, "Creative Mythology," but it is all presented as background for looking towards the future...

As far as Campbell's own written work is concerned, to date I've read his other three, "Masks of God" books and of course his, "Hero with a Thousand Faces." I've actually read, "Hero..." a few times over and it remains my favorite of his books so far, but, "Creative Mythology" is now a close second.

The entire, "Masks of God" series is well worth reading, but unlike, "Hero...," they are all big, dense books that take quite sometime to get through. If you're only going to pick one in the series, my recomendation would be to make it, "Vol. IV: Creative Mythology." It's exciting and inpiring and a real tour-de-force.

Unfortunately, I suspect that many people start with the high ambition of reading the entire series and then never finish it. Hence, they miss out on reading this great book which is a shame. Don't let that be you!

Weaving of many golden threads.......2006-08-14

I've used Campbells' works and derivatives thereof as source material before; however, this is the first time I've sat down and read it cover to cover, instead of a chapter here, a section there.

The thing I love about his work is that he weaves in anthropology and psychology with mythology to create a multilayered piece of writing that is nothing short of adventurous. Not only does he give thorough explanations for why he makes his theories, but his style evokes the settings for these myths, both the gods themselves and the humans who worshipped them.

"Primitive Mythology" is an absolute must-read for anyone wanting to get past Neopaganism 101. His history of the various rites that came out of hunter/gatherer and agrarian societies will pretty much put to death any of the "Wicca is as old as the cave paintings!" arguments, but also offer ample material for creating one's own primitve belief system.

In short, Campbell was a master at what he did, and this book is proof positive of that. Read it, enjoy it, learn from it.

Now, on to the rest of the series...

Peering into the ancient past for the myths of mankind.......2006-03-20

[Amazon's link to reviews of PRIMITIVE MYTHOLOGY is the same as CREATIVE MYTHOLOGY]
PRIMITIVE MYTHOLOGY is the first book of four MASKS OF GOD, which surveys the "power of myth" from the beginning of mankind's known history. It is not the easiest of reading. There are frequent breaks in the form of long quoted passages. In the latter part of the book Campbell catalogues the diffusion, or spread, of mythic themes from the Paleolithic to the Neolithic, which I found tedious, in part because I have no previous background. But beyond a little tedium and some dense prose, this book is immensely rewarding.

The ancient myths, reflective of either hunting or planting cultures, lay a foundation for an understanding of how the major religions evolved. Certainly, the major religions, human-assembled as they are, did not grow out of nothing. There were certainly traditions, ancient beliefs, ways of coping and explaining the thresholds of experience - that became a part of later belief systems. Some of the myths, especially those that involve sacrifice, even human sacrifice, even the sacrifice of kings, challenge the understanding. The book traces the common, worldwide themes that occurred either out of diffusion or as common origination.

The writing is like a booming symphony, with far-flung associations and big leaps from very many specific references to abstract generalization. There are several particularly fascinating milestones in primitive myth. One occurred in Mesopotamia between 3500-2500 BC when it dawned on the priests of the time that there was a heavenly order that not only included the sun and the moon but also the prominant planets; and that that heavenly order was, or could be, extended to earth. That insight or vision inspired the first know written word, music, the development of numerical systems, mathematics, geometry, a calendar system. Another milestone involves the amazing Paleolithic caves in France and Spain, which mark as Campbell states "the first precisely pin-pointed mythogenetic zone", and also the first instance of a human articulated sacred space as in a temple, antecedent to the great cathedrels of Europe.

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The Masks of God (Occidental Mythology)
Joseph Campbell
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The Masks Of God - Occidental Mythology
Joseph Campbell
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Masks of God Occidental Mythology 1ST Edition

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Masks of God Occidental Mythology 1ST Edition
Joseph Campbell
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The Masks of God Occidental Mythology, Vol. III

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The Masks of God Occidental Mythology, Vol. III
Joseph Campbell
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The Masks of God, Occidental Mythology
Joseph Campbell
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THE MASKS OF GOD: OCCIDENTAL MYTHOLOGY

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The Masks of God: Occidental Mythology

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Masks of God: Occidental Mythology
Joseph Campbell
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