Changing Woman and Her Sisters : Stories of Goddesses from Around the… (edition 2006)

A compilation of myths about women goddesses or heroes from a variety of cultures. Each woman is beautifully illustrated at the beginning of the story.

This is a fantastic collection of goddesses and their stories. Changing Woman in particular is a creation myth that teaches us that the world is about change, rebirth, and renewal. In each tale of the collection we learn about what the culture surrounding the tale cares about. For Changing Woman, there is an emphasis on respecting the awesome power of nature, living in peace with others, and being ready to adapt when necessary.

The mixed-media illustrations by Hyman are very creative. In the artist's afterword she explains how she tried in earnest to elicit the goddesses' energy through her work.

This collection would be useful to have for reading to students in class. It could be used as a cultural reference for lessons that touch on the cultures within, or it could be read from more randomly. In either case, the class might be prompted to begin a meaningful discussion on the values conveyed. ( )

Changing Woman and her sisters has ten stories, each about diffrent women in different cultures who are goddesses.

"Sedna, Woman of the Sea" is my focus. This Inuit folklore tells the story of the goddess Sedna who lives in the depths of the ocean as the mistress of all sea creatures. Through her moods, she controls the sea animals. When she is happy and content, she sends sea animals to the surface to be hunted for food, but when she is angry or displeased, she keeps her animals with her, causing starvation and hunger for humans. Other notable stories that I read: "Isis, Mistress of Life and Death," "Ix Chel, The Moon Goddess," and "Inanna, Queen of Heaven and Earth."

I love the gorgeous collage portraits that accompany each story. The paragraphs that precede the story are very informative about the origin of the story and the time period.