Kenneth Davis’s Don’t Know Much About Mythology is an engaging, funny read. I learned a lot about world myths, as well as learning a fair bit about the European myths with which I was already familiar. I enjoyed his cheeky, sometimes breezy pop references. I loved some of his wordplay. (Inanna’s withering gaze she learned from her sister was a favorite.)
The chapter on African myths turned out to be interesting, although as the chapter began I was struck by how much it was written for Euro-Americans (like the whole book). The structure of the book reflects the largely Western European point of view of mainstream America, as well as the European bias of academia.
This is the first “Don’t Know Much” book I’ve read, and as an introductory overview, I thought it did well. If I become curious about what I don’t know about US history or world geography, I’ll certainly think about turning to Davis’s other books.