Brahma Dreaming

Gr 7 Up—This anthology of Indian mythology focuses on the lives, loves, and struggles of the Mahadevas, the Great Gods of Hindusim. Jackson divides his stories into tales of creation, destruction, and preservation, giving readers an overview of the more famous stories surrounding Brahma the Creator and his fellow gods, Vishnu the Preserver and Shiva the Destroyer. The arrangement lends itself to some jumps in narrative, but the tales are told in a clear, easy-to-follow voice. Striking black-and-white illustrations add drama to the text in some places but seem incongruous in others. Illustrations of women come across as more Western in appearance, as compared to many of the men, children, and deities depicted. The nature of some of the illustrations, one of which features a semi-nude woman, may limit the title to older audiences. Readers who have exhausted collections of Greek and Roman mythology may find these tales engaging.—Elisabeth Gattullo Marrocolla, Darien Library, CT