Review: Celtic Mythology: Tales of Gods, Goddesses, and Heroes

Celtic Mythology: Tales of Gods, Goddesses, and Heroes by Philip Freeman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

It is frankly too much to believe I'll remember the names and actions of even half of these myths. However, for the most part they were still entertaining, especially the Welsh myths. 

But so many problems could have been averted if the kings, warriors and rulers (all men) didn't have their misplaced machismo and didn't constantly want to prove how tough/manly they were. Then again, I guess this is true for myths of all cultures. 

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Review: The Celts: A History

The Celts: A History by Peter Berresford Ellis
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is a history, and somewhat of a hagiography, of the Celts. Much of the book is spent on negating misconceptions about the Celts which have presumably been accepted as truth. I don't doubt what the book states (I'm certainly not qualified to), but it just seems like it doth protest too much.

I also found it odd that the author links the Celts to Ancient Indian practices so much, but hardly ever mentions Ancient Greek or Roman ones (except to show how the Celts influenced them). After all, those two cultures are also Indo-European, so there should be just as much in common with them.

Regardless, I found this very eye-opening. Much of the book focuses on words and etymology, and it is certainly interesting to see how many of our words have Celtic roots (including Brazil!). It is also always interesting to remember that the Celts were spread throughout Europe and how much of their influence remains (including with place names).

I found his hinting that the holy trinity has a celtic origin to be a bit of a stretch though.

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Review: Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue: The Untold History of English

Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue: The Untold History of English by John McWhorter
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was worried this would be a rehash of McWhorter's other book, or of other books on the English language (I'm thinking mainly Melvin Bragg's "The Story of English"), but actually it had some very refreshing material.

I like his discussions on the useless "do" in English. ('Did you see that?' 'I don't like that' Etc.) and how it probably derives from the celtic.

I'm not sure i'm convinced of one of his examples of English uniqueness, stating how "I read" isn't really present tense because, when asked what they're doing, no one would reply "I read". I mean, that's true, but it doesn't seem unique to English, as he says it is. In Italian you would answer with the gerund (like with English) "sto leggendo", and in Chinese you would probably say something like ”我正在看書“ (so basically the gerund as well). Unless I understood it incorrectly.

Fascinating how "Going to" became a future tense. I also enjoyed his takedown of prescriptive grammarians and Sapir-Whorf adherents (although I imagine no linguists take that hypothesis seriously anymore, so it was probably directed to all the lay readers).

I'm also not sure I'm convinced about the semitic influence on Proto-Germanic, although it reminded me of one of the Sherlock Holmes stories (I can't remember which one) where he was trying to figure out whether Cornish had Chaldean roots.

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