Browse for Books
Book Content
Services
- Discount Days
- Book Vouchers
- Bulk Orders
- Magazine Subscriptions
- Out of Print Books
- Book Industry Directory
- Book Calendar
- Monthly Book Giveaway
BB Facebook Group- For Authors and Publishers
Customer Info
Urthona: Issue 25.' Celtic Connections'I must declare an interest from the start. I was recently contacted by one of the editors of Urthona, a magazine which I had not previously come across, with a request to use an essay of mine in a forthcoming issue.Published 15 June, 2008 TITLE: Urthona: Issue 25.' Celtic Connections' UK: Central Books, 99 Wallis Rd,. London, E9 5LN. Reviewed by Ann Skea (ann@skea.com). I must declare an interest from the start. I was recently contacted by one of the editors of Urthona, a magazine which I had not previously come across, with a request to use an essay of mine in a forthcoming issue. Contributors do not receive any payment, so I have no vested interest in promoting this magazine. However, I have found Urthona to be a beautifully produced journal full of a wide range of interesting articles, art work, photography, opinions and discussion. Urthona was founded in 1997 by members of the Western Buddhist Order. Yet, its focus is not wholly Buddhist and the most recent issue explores the myths and cultural traditions associated with the Celtic peoples. Ratnagarbha, one of the editors, introduces this issue with a personal anecdote about a university lecturer who issued a dire warning to his students about the dangers of mythology. According to this lecturer, mythology was used by unscrupulous people to deprive others of their reason. This suggests a certain paranoia about the powers of the imagination, and certainly, myths are powerful stimulants to that. The continued existence of myth in every culture attests to the attraction of mythological stories and suggests that there is some common, deeply felt satisfaction in them. Psychologists like Jung see myths as reflecting valuable truths about human nature and about the sorts of worlds we create for ourselves. Poets, too, have always known the power of myth, which is perhaps why Plato sought to ban poets from his ideal republic. In our own times, Seamus Heaney, as Ratnagarbha notes, has likened myth to the genetic code of the human spirit, and myths, as Heaney knows well, were the basis of much of the mystery and power of Celtic tradition,. To lose this wonderful Celtic treasury of stories, history, mystery and magic would be tragic. But this Celtic issue of Urthona is steeped in Celtic myth. Maybe, to satisfy the likes of Ratnagarbha's lecturer, it should carry a warning on its cover. But it doesn't. Instead, it demonstrates very well the beauty and inspiration which myths can bring us. Included in this issue are the story of Tristan and Iseult and its origins; a tracing of the footprints of Brigit, goddess of poetry, smithcraft and healing; a personal reflection on the White Goddess by the most recent editor of Robert Graves' book of that name; plus a variety of fine poems, reviews, photographs. More information about the contents of this issue of Urthona can be found at http://www.urthona.com/, together with an editorial, articles from earlier issues, and other information. The stated aim of Urthona is to explore ways of envisioning a sacred element to the arts by linking the contemporary and the traditional. This issue shows very well how Spirit survives and is transmitted through the arts, even in our own machine-dominated, science-worshipping age. Ann Skea More from Non-Fiction Book Reviews
This is a clever idea; a book that troubleshoots on any issue or problem to do with food and cooking.15 November, 2008 
Brian Fletcher is emeritus professor of history at the University of Sydney and the author of several books on colonial Australia.15 November, 2008 
This well-researched, mini-reference book is aimed primarily at women and geared to assist with informed choice.15 November, 2008 
I’m not a parent, but if I had an adolescent in the house I would be racing out the door to buy Teenagers, Alcohol and Drugs: What Your Kids Really Want and Need to Know about Alcohol and Drugs.15 November, 2008 
Brian Thacker is no newcomer to the writing of a great travel narrative, having previously penned such greats as Rule No. 5: No Sex on the Bus, Where’s Wallis? and I’m not Eating any of that Foreign Muck.15 November, 2008 
Featuring an impressive line-up--including Tim Winton, David Malouf, Patrick White, Les Murray and Judith Wright--Literary Activists explores the role of literary writers in Australian public life.15 November, 2008 
Robert Reid’s book about the biggest, boldest, baddest crocodiles in North Queensland is something of a tragedy; not because it’s brimming over with the corpses of a terrifying number of one of the world’s most feared predators, or because of the small(er) number of people meeting their end in this predator’s jaws, because it is dull.15 November, 2008 
Every so often a book comes along that illuminates a topic without being a dryly factual history or a loosely constructed popular narrative built around a few key points.15 November, 2008 
Humour is, as the editors note, ‘in the eye of the beholder’.15 November, 2008 
Whether he is pushing an out-of-petrol Rolls Royce along a London backstreet after having attended the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, or defending a complex education policy argument, the humanity of Kim E Beazley is strongly evident.15 November, 2008 |
BB Info Bank Sections
|
Book Reviews |
Search News & Reviews |
Add a Comment
Please be civil.