Book Review: A Short History of Myth

Karen Armstrong's concise yet compelling investigation into the history of myth takes us from the Palaeolithic period and the mythology of the hunters right up to the 'Great Western Transformation' of the last 500 years. She shows us that the history of myth is the history of humanity, and our stories and beliefs, our curiosity and attempts to understand the world, link us to our ancestors and each other.

A crisp and meticulously referenced work. But, as the title suggests, all-too-brief. It tracks the development of Palaeolithic myths to their modern counterparts. But it feels like the reader is already expected to know the details of each one.

It left me hungry for more - which I guess is the point. But at times I felt I was reading the Wikipedia excerpts of major works.