From Herodotus to Freya Stark, writers have been inspired by Turkey, a varied country at the crossroads of history, for millennia. Here, Richard Stoneman describes in lively detail the remarkable literature they produced. At a time when Turkey’s position on the fringe may be set to change to a deeper involvement in Europe, the need to understand the country is even more compelling. The range of travel writing represented in this book shows how, while political circumstances may change, the lure of Turkey remains constant.

ACROSS THE HELLESPONT: A Literary Guide to Turkey

Stoneman, Richard

Literature & Fiction

Hutchinson

As familiar to most people as the characters in the Bible, the great legendary heroes and stories of classical Greece are a unique leagacy, their traditions having influenced the art, literature and culture of Western Europe like no other. However it is difficult to piece together a coherent picture of the genuine uncorrupted tradition of Greek mythology. The book deliberately excludes Roman myths which blur the true image of the Greek heritage. In dictionary form it covers all the major figures of Greek mythology and provides a handy but comprehensive guide. It has gods, heroes, men, places, mythical creatures and religious terminology as well as some illustrations. Some post classical folklore and legends are also included: Alexander the Great, vampires and the terrible kallikantzaroni for example...

Greek Mythology (An Encyclopedia Of Myth And Legend)

Reference

Encyclopedias & Subject Guides

Diamond Books, London, England

Alexander the Great: A Life in Legend

Alexander the Great (356-323 B.C.) precipitated immense historical change in the Mediterranean and Near Eastern worlds. But the resonance his legend achieved over the next two millennia stretched even farther—across foreign cultures, religious traditions, and distant nations.
This engaging and handsomely illustrated book for the first time gathers together hundreds of the colorful Alexander legends that have been told and retold around the globe. Richard Stoneman, a foremost expert on the Alexander myths, introduces us first to the historical Alexander and then to the Alexander of legend, an unparalleled mythic icon who came to represent the heroic ideal in cultures from Egypt to Iceland, from Britain to Malaya.
Alexander came to embody the concerns of Hellenistic man; he fueled Roman ideas on tyranny and kingship; he was a talisman for fourth-century pagans and a hero of chivalry in the early Middle Ages. He appears in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic writings, frequently as a prophet of God. Whether battling winged foxes or meeting with the Amazons, descending to the underworld or inventing the world’s first diving bell, Alexander inspired as a hero, even a god. Stoneman traces Alexander’s influence in ancient literature and folklore and in later literatures of east and west. His book provides the definitive account of the legends of Alexander the Great—a powerful leader in life and an even more powerful figure in the history of literature and ideas.

Biographies & Memoirs

Historical

Yale University Press

For more than a thousand years, Greeks from all walks of life consulted oracles for guidance received directly from the gods. This colorful and wide-ranging survey encompasses the entire history of Greek oracles and focuses fresh attention on philosophical, psychological, and anthropological aspects of oracular consultation. It also examines how Greek oracles' practices were distinctive compared to those of their neighbors, especially in Egypt, Babylon, and Israel. Richard Stoneman weaves a fascinating historical tapestry, taking into account the different kinds of oracles (healers, advisors, prophets, and others), their most important sanctuaries, debates about them among ancient thinkers, and Christian attacks on them. Delving into the reasons behind the oracles' enduring position at the heart of Greek culture, Stoneman offers fresh insights into pagan religious practice and the history of Greek intellectual and spiritual life.

The Ancient Oracles: Making the Gods Speak

History

Ancient Civilizations

In his brief life, Alexander the Great gained fame as the military genius who conquered the known world. After death, his legend only increased. Alexander the Great (356-323 B.C.) precipitated immense historical change in the Mediterranean and Near Eastern worlds. But the resonance his legend achieved over the next two millennia stretched even farther—across foreign cultures, religious traditions, and distant nations.
This engaging and handsomely illustrated book for the first time gathers together hundreds of the colorful Alexander legends that have been told and retold around the globe. Richard Stoneman, a foremost expert on the Alexander myths, introduces us first to the historical Alexander and then to the Alexander of legend, an unparalleled mythic icon who came to represent the heroic ideal in cultures from Egypt to Iceland, from Britain to Malaya.
Alexander came to embody the concerns of Hellenistic man; he fueled Roman ideas on tyranny and kingship; he was a talisman for fourth-century pagans and a hero of chivalry in the early Middle Ages. He appears in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic writings, frequently as a prophet of God. Whether battling winged foxes or meeting with the Amazons, descending to the underworld or inventing the world’s first diving bell, Alexander inspired as a hero, even a god. Stoneman traces Alexander’s influence in ancient literature and folklore and in later literatures of east and west. His book provides the definitive account of the legends of Alexander the Great—a powerful leader in life and an even more powerful figure in the history of literature and ideas.

The first full-scale account of a Persian king vilified by history Xerxes, Great King of the Persian Empire from 486–465 B.C., has gone down in history as an angry tyrant full of insane ambition. The stand of Leonidas and the 300 against his army at Thermopylae is a byword for courage, while the failure of Xerxes’ expedition has overshadowed all the other achievements of his twenty-two-year reign. In this lively and comprehensive new biography, Richard Stoneman shows how Xerxes, despite sympathetic treatment by the contemporary Greek writers Aeschylus and Herodotus, had his reputation destroyed by later Greek writers and by the propaganda of Alexander the Great. Stoneman draws on the latest research in Achaemenid studies and archaeology to present the ruler from the Persian perspective. This illuminating volume does not whitewash Xerxes’ failings but sets against them such triumphs as the architectural splendor of Persepolis and a consideration of Xerxes’ religious commitments. What emerges is a nuanced portrait of a man who ruled a vast and multicultural empire which the Greek communities of the West saw as the antithesis of their own values.

Xerxes: A Persian Life

In his brief life, Alexander the Great gained fame as the military genius who conquered the known world. After death, his legend only increased. &nbsp; Alexander the Great (356-323 B.C.) precipitated immense historical change in the Mediterranean and Near Eastern worlds. But the resonance his legend achieved over the next two millennia stretched even farther--across foreign cultures, religious traditions, and distant nations. &nbsp; This engaging and handsomely illustrated book for the first time gathers together hundreds of the colorful Alexander legends that have been told and retold around the globe. Richard Stoneman, a foremost expert on the Alexander myths, introduces us first to the historical Alexander and then to the Alexander of legend, an unparalleled mythic icon who came to represent the heroic ideal in cultures from Egypt to Iceland, from Britain to Malaya. &nbsp; Alexander came to embody the concerns of Hellenistic man; he fueled Roman ideas on tyranny and kingship; he was a talisman for fourth-century pagans and a hero of chivalry in the early Middle Ages. He appears in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic writings, frequently as a prophet of God. Whether battling winged foxes or meeting with the Amazons, descending to the underworld or inventing the world's first diving bell, Alexander inspired as a hero, even a god. Stoneman traces Alexander's influence in ancient literature and folklore and in later literatures of east and west. His book provides the definitive account of the legends of Alexander the Great--a powerful leader in life and an even more powerful figure in the history of literature and ideas.

This book provides a new translation of all the surviving portions of the description of India written by Megasthenes in about 310 BCE, the fullest account of Indian geography, history and customs available to the classical world. The Indica was a pioneering work of ethnography that exemplified a new direction in Hellenistic writing; India was little-known to the Greeks before the expedition of Alexander the Great in 326–325 BCE, and Megasthenes, who resided as an ambassador in the Maurya capital Pataliputra for some time, provided the classical world with most of what it knew about India. 
Megasthenes’ book, which became a classic in antiquity, now survives only in fragments preserved in other Greek and Latin authors. Stoneman’s work offers a reliable and accessible version of all the writings that can plausibly be ascribed to Megasthenes. His subject ranges from detailed accounts of social structure and the royal household, to descriptions of elephant hunting and Indian philosophical ideas. His book is the only written source contemporary with the Maurya kingdom of Candragupta, since writing was not in use in India at this date. This translation provides a path to clearer understanding of Greek ethnography and a valuable resource on Indian history. 
The book will be of value not only to classical scholars with an interest in Hellenistic history and cultural attitudes, and to their students, but also to scholars working on the early history of India, who have had to rely (unless they are also Greek scholars) on scattered and dated collections of evidence.

Megasthenes' Indica (Routledge Classical Translations)

Routledge

Examines Greek fictional writing in the widest possible context, including texts that are not normally treated as novels, such as various kinds of sacred or quasi-historical texts.

Greek Fiction: The Greek Novel in Context

Morgan, J. R.

History & Criticism

Alexander the Great provides an introduction both to the history of the most renowned conqueror of antiquity and the main themes of his reign. Alexander is among the most difficult of rulers to research, as almost no direct evidence has survived the ravages of time. In response to the scarcity of evidence, Richard Stoneman includes an in-depth examination of written and other sources, revealing the problems of interpreting them. A thorough discussion of archaeological and numismatic evidence, combined with an outline of the Macedonian background, lends insight into Alexander's education, environment and ideas. Drawing on earlier biographies as well as incorporating newly unearthed evidence, Stoneman reveals Alexander as a brilliant and ruthless commander who came to believe in his own myth. An exploration of Alexander's claim to divinity, and an assessment of his short and long-term achievements are also included in this volume.

Alexander the Great (Lancaster Pamphlets in Ancient History)

Health, Fitness & Dieting

Exercise & Fitness

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Stoneman, Richard. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Stoneman, Richard

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Stoneman, Richard. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

ACROSS THE HELLESPONT: A Literary Guide to Turkey

Greek Mythology (An Encyclopedia Of Myth And Legend)

Alexander the Great: A Life in Legend

The Ancient Oracles: Making the Gods Speak

Alexander the Great: A Life in Legend

Xerxes: A Persian Life

Alexander the Great: A Life in Legend

Megasthenes' Indica (Routledge Classical Translations)

Greek Fiction: The Greek Novel in Context

Alexander the Great (Lancaster Pamphlets in Ancient History)