Close on the heels of The Big Book of Urban Legends comes a companion volume of comic-strip biographies of a motley assortment of 67 crackpots, visionaries, despots, prophets, performers, and others whose peculiarities supposedly elevate them above mere eccentricity into the realm of the truly bizarre. It is not as successful as its predecessor, in which the urban legends theme allowed the cartoonists to develop succinct little narratives. It's not as easy to encapsulate the life of, say, Ivan the Terrible, in 35 panels.
"The Big Book of Death," the second in Paradox Press's "Big Book of" series, is a fascinating, disturbing treatment of the subject we simultaneously fear and can't get enough of: death. With sections on pointless deaths, capital punishment, famous cemeteries, and lots of other aspects of the big D, it's an interesting and informative book. The artwork, by a multitude of comic artists, is also excellent. It may be a comic, but this book is definitely not for kids. If you're a grownup with a fascination for death and a slightly morbid sense of humor, though, check it out!
Freaks is a fascinating yet ultimately touching work that emphasizes the humanity of the "freaks" over their oddities--at least, when the stories warrant it. Some of the individuals were treated very badly by their exhibitors (e.g., Julia Pastrana, the "ugliest woman in the world," and her equally hideous baby were mummified and displayed after they died); however, many took advantage of their condition to become international stars and make a lot of money (e.g., Zip the "What-Is-It").
Level 3 — 150-160 Headwords The Miller’s daughter is in trouble. A strange little man with a funny hat offers her his help, but he wants a lot in return… see what happens next in this classic story and share the quest for the little man’s strange name.
This is a full-color, beautifully illustrated book with plenty of fun activities for students. A CD / CD-ROM with the full text of the story and a song is available as well
Volume 1: Africa, The Middle East, Australia and Oceania Volume 2: Asia Volume 3: Europe Volume 4: North and South America. The tales are accompanied by explanatory headnotes, and the set provides regional bibliographies as well as a selected, general bibliography.
![The Greenwood Library of World Folktales [4 Volumes]: Stories from the Great Collections](http://englishtips.org/uploads/posts/2010-07/2010071210224128346.jpg "The Greenwood Library of World Folktales [4 Volumes]: Stories from the Great Collections")
