This is a book of myths that contains many of Jacobsen's own translations. He writes the myths in modern English with a little verse here and there. He also has access to myths that a lot of people don't. He uses the Chicago collection rather than the Oxford collection giving him access to myths that you don’t always come in contact with.
This is Jacobsen’s book on Sumerian religion and culture. It is similar to Kramer’s Sumerians, but you need to keep in mind that Jacobsen had his own moral bias.
This is a book of myths translated from Akkadian into verse. As the contemporary Akkadians worshiped largely as the Sumerians did, this can be a valuable resource for the beginning Sumerian. These are myths that Sumerians would have been familiar with in most instances. Each myth has a helpful section explaining each myth in simple English.
On the down side it does not have an index and so is a little difficult to use once you have already read the material. The book also has a broad outlook on the myths of Mesopotamia rather than just those myths from Sumerian times, so it is dotted with a number of Babylonian myths written in Akkadian.
This book is like S.N. Kramer’s book the "Sumerians", and T. Jacobsen’s "Treasures of Darkness" in that it gives a cultural over view of Mesopotamian beliefs with a strong emphasis on Sumer. The main problems that I have with it is that it seems to take Mesopotamia as though it were a single uniform entity, and it doesn't have a proper index.
This book does however have a number of valuable entries on death that many other authors shy away from. It mentions the rare instances of human sacrifice, and gives insight into the Sumerian views on the afterlife.
This is a survey of Mesopotamia city by city. It shows some of the highlights of a select few important cities in Mesopotamia. It is a good book, but not one I would recommend for the beginning Sumerian as it presents only snippets of the myths and the beliefs of the Sumerians.
This book seems to be the first archeology book that every Sumerian gets their hands on. As far as that goes it isn’t a bad book, but it is a bit out of date. Some of Kramers theories have held true, but others have been greatly improved upon as new information has been made available.
This contains several of Kramer’s translations of the Sumerian myths. It is good but rather short. I should also add that his translations here are actually better than many later translations. The book is a quick read, but packed with good information. Moreover the book can be read for free on line at sacred texts dot com under the section on the Ancient Near East.
This book is oddly by a journalist, and yet has a better survey of Mesopotamia from place to place and time to time than many Assyriologists do. The book is a collection of articles about the Sumerians and their culture and beliefs. It is great for anyone interested in culture in Mesopotamia in general rather than just Sumer. The down side for the modern Sumerian Reconstructionist is that it doesn't concentrate on the religion.
This is a good source for myths written in the Sumerian language from Sumer and Babylon. The myths are presented in verse as direct translations rather than in modern English, but they are still relatively easy to understand. There are relatively few translation difficulties, but Daley is apparently a bit prudish in her outlook. This only ever comes up once or twice in her edits and more reflects the Oxford outlook on sex than any personal bias.
Every Sumerian should have this book. It is a dictionary of Mesopotamian gods demons symbols and practices. There are interesting entries on the subject of altars, offerings, and magic that are useful to the modern Sumerian. I can't stress enough how great this book is.
I still need to review “Babylonian magic and Sorcery” by king, “Myths and Legends of the Ancient Near East”, “The Epic of Gilgamesh” translated by Andrew Geoge, “Life in the Ancient Near East” by Snell, and “The Idea of History in the Ancient Near East” by Robert C. Denton. I should also put publication dates.
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