This brilliant, readable synthesis of the history of mythology and the function it serves to humanity is the launch title of the groundbreaking publishing event, "The Myths." "Human beings have always been mythmakers." So begins Karen Armstrong's concise yet compelling investigation into myth: what it is, how it has evolved, and why we still so desperately need it. She takes us from the Paleolithic period and the myths of the hunters right up to the "Great Western Transformation" of the last five hundred years and the discrediting of myth by science. The history of myth is the history of humanity, our stories and beliefs, our curiosity and attempts to understand the world, which link us to our ancestors and each other. Myths help us make sense of the universe. Heralding a major series of retellings of international myths by authors from around the world, Armstrong's characteristically insightful and eloquent book serves as a brilliant and thought-provoking introduction to myth in the broadest sense -- and explains why if we dismiss it, we do so at our peril.

凯伦·阿姆斯特朗，英国著名作家。1981年出版了处女作《穿过窄门》，记录了自己在罗马天主教修道院的严酷制度下所亲历的七年修女生活。这本书出版后立即风靡一时。随后，她创作一系列的畅销书，如《神话的历史》、《耶路撒冷》、《万物初始：重读<创世记 >》、《伊斯兰简史》、《佛陀》等。其中《神的历史》被译成三十多种语言，在《纽约时报》畅销书榜上久居不下，创造了一个热销奇迹。而《佛陀》一书也成为全球最畅销的图书这一。销售超过三百万册。自1982后起，她便成为自由作家和电台节目主持人。凯伦·阿姆斯特朗现居伦敦。