Review: The Hero with a Thousand Faces

The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Hooter: Leveraging many mythological sources, A psychoanalysis on the hero journey that binds all epic stories we have heard or seen.

A must read recommendation and also in film school curriculums especially in the US, this book goes down to the core of storytelling leveraging epics that have survived centuries and breaking it down to the fundamentals and commonalities across the globe. Whether Assirian, Greek, Indian or Oriental, he does a comparative analysis across these to come up with his archetype of the "hero's adventure".

Whilst extremely academic in its nature, the examples make for a vivid reading session as he breaks up the common hero goes for a departure, hits near magical obstacles , overcomes them and returns to a reward above his/her station and how this has been relatable to cultures around the world and across centuries. An interesting thought he leaves behind is Symbols are vehicles of communication and shouldn't be considered as the literal end product. This thought should be enough to ruffle a lot of feathers in the broader world.

View all my reviews

Review: Midwinter Murder: Fireside Mysteries from the Queen of Crime

Midwinter Murder: Fireside Mysteries from the Queen of Crime by Agatha Christie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Hooter: A collection of short stories across the various Agatha Christie's crafted characters.

The stories in this collection are from around 1920-23 , hence celebrating 100+ years since the first print but still got the thrills in play showcasing the mastery Agatha Christie has had in this genre of mysteries - murder or not. The short stories make for a quick read without you having to pull your hair out whilst capturing multiple skills at play as her star cast of Hercule , Mrs Marple use their distinct styles to solve mysteries. From the case that Hercule states as his only failure to Mrs Marple solving a random murder sitting at home. For a bit of Agatha nostalgia or if you want someone started in this , a good read.

View all my reviews