Canongate Myth Series
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Canongate Myth Series is a series of short novels in which ancient myths from myriad cultures are reimagined and rewritten by contemporary authors. The project was conceived in 1999 by Jamie Byng, owner of the independent Scottish publishing firm Canongate Books, and the first three titles in the series were published on October 21, 2005.[1] Though the initial novellas received mixed-to-positive reviews,[2][3][4] the project was heralded by many in the press as "bold" and "ambitious,"[4][5][6] with Metro calling it "one of the most ambitious acts of mass storytelling in recent years."[7]
The series is intended to have an international focus, with contributing authors that have included Russian writer Victor Pelevin and Israeli author David Grossman. Also, the first title in the series, Karen Armstrong's A Short History of Myth, was published the same day in 33 countries and 28 languages, in what the Washington Post called "the biggest simultaneous publication ever."[6] As of 2008, nine books have been published in the series, with Byng hoping to eventually publish 100.[7]
The three latest titles were published in the United Kingdom on November 1, 2007: Binu and the Great Wall by Su Tong, Girl Meets Boy by Ali Smith, and Where Three Roads Meet by Salley Vickers. Instalments in the series are also forthcoming from the authors Donna Tartt (writing about Daedalus and Icarus),[8] A. S. Byatt,[1] Chinua Achebe, Milton Hatoum, and Natsuo Kirino.[9]
[edit] List of titles
| Title | Author | Mythological Characters | Publication date |
|---|---|---|---|
| A Short History of Myth | Karen Armstrong |   October 21, 2005 |
|
| The Penelopiad | Margaret Atwood | Penelope, Odysseus | October 21, 2005 |
| Weight | Jeanette Winterson | Atlas, Heracles | October 21, 2005 |
| The Helmet of Horror | Victor Pelevin (trans. Andrew Bromfield) |
Theseus, the Minotaur |  2005March 2, 2006 |
| Lion's Honey | David Grossman (trans. Stuart Schoffman) |
Samson |  2005March 23, 2006June 1, 2006 |
| Dream Angus | Alexander McCall Smith | Aengus | September 12, 2006October 5, 2006 |
| Girl Meets Boy | Ali Smith | Iphis | November 1, 2007December 21, 2007 |
| Binu and the Great Wall | Su Tong (trans. Howard Goldblatt) |
Meng Jiang |  2006November 1, 2007February 18, 2008 |
| Where Three Roads Meet | Salley Vickers | Oedipus, Tiresias | November 1, 2007August 10, 2008 |
| The Fire Gospel | Michel Faber | Prometheus | November,2008 |
| The Myth of Izanagi and Izanami | Natsuo Kirino | Izanagi, Izanami | March 10, 2009 |
[edit] References
- ^ a b "World's top writers recruited to rewrite ancient tales", CBC.ca, 2005-10-21.
- ^ "Weight", Metacritic. Retrieved on 2007-06-29.
- ^ "The Penelopiad", Metacritic. Retrieved on 2007-06-29.
- ^ a b Alexander, Caroline. "Myths Made Modern", The New York Times, 2005-12-11.
- ^ "'Free will is like falling off a roof'", The Telegraph, 2006-03-19.
- ^ a b Hand, Elizabeth. "The New Muses: A highly anticipated series of classic myths re-imagined by modern authors", Washington Post, 2005-12-25.
- ^ a b Canongate.net: Myths official site
- ^ Donna Tartt
- ^ FT.com / Arts & weekend / Books - Myth understood
[edit] External links
- [1] http://www.themyths.co.uk/ Canongate Myths official site
