Storytelling is an ancient practice known in all civilizations throughout history. Characters, tales, techniques, oral traditions, motifs, and tale types transcend individual cultures – elements and names change, but the stories are remarkably similar with each rendition, highlighting the values and concerns of the host culture. Examining the stories and the oral traditions associated with different cultures offers a unique view of practices and traditions.”Storytelling: An Encyclopedia of Mythology and Folklore” brings past and present cultures of the world to life through their stories, oral traditions, and performance styles. It combines folklore and mythology, traditional arts, history, literature, and festivals to present an overview of world cultures through their liveliest and most fascinating mode of expression. This appealing resource includes specific storytelling techniques as well as retellings of stories from various cultures and traditions.

The world of storytelling is a vast one. Itcovers the entire world and everything in
it, and every century in which there is a record of storytelling having taken place. In the early days of putting this encyclopedia together, it was soon apparent that the central dilemma was not so much what to include, but what to exclude. After all, almost every subject can be used by an enterprising storyteller, and, if every potential subject was to be included, this would have turned into an endless series of volumes.
It seemed important to include examples of world tale types, from which storytellers could spin off their own versions, basic world myths, and folktales.

Also included have been some of the major characters in mythology, folklore, and popular culture, and discussions of how they are related to one another. Another inclusion has been short biographies of major figures in the realm of storytelling, such as Hans Christian Andersen and J.R.R. Tolkien.
Where data was available—wars, other major events, and cultural changes invariably
got in the way—basic national storytelling styles have been included. Also included in this work are subjects more peripherally related to storytelling, such as role playing games and the connections of superheroes to folktales.
The general format of this encyclopedia is a collection of informative entries, organized in alphabetical order. This section is followed by a carefully chosen selection of appropriate retellings of many of the stories discussed in the entries. Appendices include a list of educational programs and courses focused on storytelling and a list of storytelling festivals. A selected bibliography and a comprehensive index are also provided for more in-depth research. Taken as a whole, you will find this three volume reference set to be a most definitive and fascinating study of the wide world of storytelling. Read here