One of my first tasks as an academic librarian was to create a LibGuide on Mythology to coincide with a course being offered this fall. As I was in the middle of reading Nancy Farmer's The Sea of Trolls when my supervisor asked me to create the guide, I was quite excited to be asked to put it together.
In creating the Guide itself I tried to make it an overview or introduction instead of trying to offer the students a Spark Notes version of their class. It literally is a guide on how to search for books on mythology with a list of some of the reference works that our library holds and a few websites that could be used to find reputable information on the subject. As there are several mythology pantheons to choose from, I wanted to have something to show from a few different ones because in my experience while most people have at least heard of Greek mythology, many people don't realize that Egyptian, Native American, and African theologies are considered mythology as well. I used amazon.com to link a photo of the covers of the reference books I featured so they would be more eye-catching. My library's head of Public Services has helpfully setup a template of database search boxes so that I can embed those directly onto the Guide as well, making it more likely that students will actually do the recommended searches since the input field is right there. Lastly, I added a page with a list of modern novels inspired by mythology to (hopefully) get the students more interested in the subject, and give them a place to go if they find they really enjoy the subject and want to read more mythology-centric things (you can find the list of titles at the end of this blog post).
In searching the internet for good web sites to feature on the Guide, one of the most exciting things I found is a blog about Norse mythology. Simply titled The Norse Mythology Blog, it is written by Dr. Karl E. H. Seigfried, a professor of Norse myth at Loyola University Chicago. The blog consists of descriptions of major Norse gods and stories, interviews with artists and authors whose work is heavily inspired by Norse mythology, and interviews with the heads of religious orders that practice the old Norse religious rites. Among other things. It also features historical articles about the Nordic religion's clash with Christianity, articles on current scholarship, and interviews with Swedish metal bands. I was delighted to find it, because it covers such a broad range of topics, and integrates so much of modern art, music, and Norse culture into the study of Norse mythology. I'm hoping that someone will be led there from the mythology guide and find it as intriguing as I do.
All of this reading and researching in the mythology subject area made me curious what types of mythology-themed items are out there. Here are a few things that I found:
A little sweeter than Bellerophon's old pony, and perfect on a cell phone.
Made by *MoonYen on deviantArt, this amigurumi mixes bunnies with Norse mythology. Check out her gallery to see other Moon Buns.
Crafted out of felt, and one of many Greek mythology-themed plush by ~deridolls on deviantArt.
Artists are turning My Little Pony figures into just about anything, including characters from mythology.
My tastes, of course, run toward the cute side, but Zazzle, Etsy, and CafePress have hundreds of mythology-themed items for every taste and style. Try a What Would Loki Do? t-shirt, or an I ♥ My Kerberos mug.
List of novels inspired by mythology:
American Gods by Neil Gaiman
The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
The Sea of Trolls by Nancy Farmer
Forests of the Heart by Charles de Lint
Nine Gates by Jane Lindskold
The Summoning by Lynne Ewing
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