Gilgamesh: New & Ancient Mesopotamian Tales

An awesome new title featuring the archetypal hero Gilgamesh, with new stories exploring identity, mythology and fresh paths. The ancient hero from Mesopotamian mythology and legendary king of Uruk in Sumer, Gilgamesh is a hugely influential figure, not least on Homer's famous tales, the Iliad and the Odyssey, but also on modern culture. His stories, and later Babylonian interwoven narrative, have it all: quests to the underworld, epic journeys, ghosts, giants and beasts, a great flood, love and death. Together with the goddess Inanna (aka Ishtar) and his beloved companion Enkidu, Gilgamesh experiences adventure and self-discovery as gripping as any Hellenistic hero. This exciting book includes new stories that explore this character and all his virtues, flaws, adventures and relationships. Whether as told in the ancient tablets or extrapolated in the authors' imaginations, whether set 2000 years BCE or 2150 CE the tales are fresh with insight and inventiveness. Also accompanied by an introductory section covering the original tales and background to the character, by Emily H. Wilson, author of The Sumerians Trilogy of novels: Inanna, Gilgamesh and Ninshubar, the reader will truly discover the gripping story of this archetypal hero. Deluxe edition, foiled and embossed, with gilded edges