Generally the thread is what it says on the tin. I’m looking for a good, comprehensive text on Chinese mythology. Accessibility to someone not overly familiar with Chinese culture would be a plus, but not completely necessary.
Whatcha got?
Generally the thread is what it says on the tin. I’m looking for a good, comprehensive text on Chinese mythology. Accessibility to someone not overly familiar with Chinese culture would be a plus, but not completely necessary.
Whatcha got?
It’s not comprehensive, but , at least as an introduction, there’s Anthony Christie’s Chinese Mythology:
Profusely illustrated (it’s like a trip through a museum), but clearly just an introduction, like the other books in the Paul Hamlyn series of “_________Mythology”. But there’s a set of references in the back.
There’s the old standby, the circa 1930 (reprinted in 1964) series Mythology of All Races, of which Volume VIII is “Chinese and Japanese Mythology”. This is a more serious look at the topic, with much more detailed notes.
http://www.worldcat.org/title/chinese-mythology-japanese-mythology/oclc/710957
A lot of big city libraries and university libraries have copies of this set.
And I’m not familiar with these books, but they’re listed on the Wikipedia page on “Chinese Mythology” (which is probably a good starting point)
Paper, Jordan D. (1995). The Spirits are Drunk: Comparative Approaches to Chinese Religion. Albany, New York: State University of New York Press. ISBN 0-7914-2315-8.
Yang, Lihui, et al. (2005). Handbook of Chinese Mythology. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-533263-6
I have other references at home, but can’t think of them offhand