Ancient Skies

Constellation Mythology of the Greeks

By: David Weston Marshall

Narrated by: Keith Sellon-Wright

The stars and constellations are among the few remaining objects that appear to us just as they appeared to our distant ancestors. From anywhere on Earth, a person may view the celestial panorama simply by stepping outside at night and gazing upward.

This nonfiction narrative presents the tales of the 48 classical constellations, compiled from literature spanning a thousand years from Homer (c. 800 BC) to Claudius Ptolemy (c. AD 150). These age-old tales have captured the human imagination from ancient times to the present, and through them we can examine the early practical astronomy, philosophical speculation on the cosmos, and fundamental moral beliefs of much of Western civilization.

Through Marshall's research and storytelling, Ancient Skies brings the belief systems of the classical world to shining life.

©2018 David Weston Marshall (P)2018 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books

Great Stories- but heavily edited in current form

I really enjoyed this book until I started looking up some of the names to see how they were spelled, and uncovered that it seems to me that the author is taking a large role in telling the stories and stitching them together. I asked a friend of mine who is a PHD student in history and he found the book in the library and told me the citations were not great. We also could not find any academic peer reviews of the book, and the publisher isn't an academic publisher. Thus, for now, I think the stories are taking substantial artistic license with the ancient Greek sources.

The writing is great, the narration is great, and I think children would love the book. I have to set it down though, as I can't trust it to teach me exactly what the ancient Greeks really thought, which is why I was reading. As far as a collection of stories about the constellations inspired by Greek mythology though, it is great. if Professor Marshall was had written in ancient Greece, we would all know these stories since they so memorable.

Nailed it

Concise and clear to follow. Thank you. Exactly what I was looking for to understand constellations and their ties to astronomy, mathematics and philosophy.

Fascinating Mythology

As somebody who loves stargazing, I found this book to be a brilliant reference for the mythology behind the constellations that I often look and wonder upon.

great info o constellation mythology

so glad to finally learn constellation mythology and this audiobook was the best way to do it!