Do you ever wonder if there's some sort of subconscious thread that links the narratives we form for our lives, the greek mythos you love so much, and why a straight man cries when he watches Jose Mourinho win the treble with Inter Milan? Well this book answers that question.

The hero with a thousand faces is truly one of my favorite non-fiction books I've read. It does drag a bit in places, but it's not a big deal. It tries to answer questions that everyone wondered at some point: Why does this story move me? Why do I wish to relate to this story? Why do I cheer for this protagonist? Why do I get chills when Odysseus threads the 12 axe heads? Why do myths follow a similar blueprint that escape into thin air as soon as I try to define it? How could disparate cultures form the same narrative structure? Is it universal to the human condition?

It's understandable why Joseph Campbell's colleagues thought he was batshit insane when he tried to publish this book. To stuffy Columbia academics, this book must have been a sacrilege. No fundamental underpinning of his theories except observations and theories. But this is exactly what makes this book great.

Because we'll never truly know the answer to the question Campbell poses in this book. How would we ever know why the hero's journey arc is so universal in mythos? It's an impossible question to answer. Sure, I'm sure there's some theories. But at the end of the day, the best conclusion you can draw is that the human condition craves a certain narrative. The stories we tell ourselves and others, that's who we are. We are attracted to hyper-prominent archetypical characters. Universal craving of personal transformation, the human desire to experience the sublime through stories and art.