A Book of Giants: Tales of Very Tall Men of Myth, Legend, History, and Science

In Short

This book serves as a comprehensive anthology of the giant in global folklore and history. It moves fluidly from the cosmic battles of Greek mythology and Norse sagas to the chivalric romances of the Middle Ages, eventually settling into domestic nursery tales and the medical realities of modern science. By organizing these disparate accounts, the text reveals how giants have functioned as physical manifestations of the "other"—be it an external threat to be overcome or a measure of a hero's true strength—ultimately documenting how our obsession with size has evolved over time.

The Story

The narrative arc begins in the chaotic "morning of the world," where giants represent primal, untamed forces that threaten the order of the gods. We see the terrifying Typhon, who nearly unseats Zeus, and the Cyclops Polyphemus, whose isolation and violence set the stage for the cleverness of Odysseus. These early tales establish a pattern: the giant is a force of nature or a symbol of hubris, and the human or divine hero must rely on wit, divine aid, or superior strategy to dismantle them.

As the book transitions into the age of chivalry, the nature of the giant shifts. They become defined by their role as obstacles for knights-errant like Launcelot and Gawain. In these medieval romances, the giant acts as a standard of measurement; defeating a monster of impossible scale is the only way a hero can prove his worthiness. The giants here are often grotesque—supping on children or wearing cloaks made of kings' beards—yet they possess a strange, tragic inevitability. Their existence is a duty to be performed by the knight, a necessary evil that must be purged to restore social and moral order.

Moving into nursery tales, the tone softens into the realm of the familiar. Here, the giant becomes a staple of the household imagination, moving from epic battlefield enemies to figures of local myth. The "bites" of the giant, once apocalyptic, become the stuff of cautionary bedtime stories, linking disparate cultures through shared motifs like the "Giant Hand" or the "Demon King." This section highlights the persistence of the giant as a psychological archetype; even as the world grows more sophisticated and faith in the literal monster wanes, the figure remains firmly planted in the landscape of childhood.

The final act of the book brings a sobering shift toward the clinical. The romanticized monsters of antiquity are replaced by the "real" giants of history and science. By examining the biological reality of gigantism, the narrative strips away the mythic veil, revealing that these figures of awe were often suffering from glandular disorders and physical infirmities. The book concludes with a philosophical reflection on the human scale. While our physical forms have remained constrained by biology, the text argues that the human mind remains boundless, capable of reaching heights that no ancient Titan or mythic brute could ever achieve. The giant, once an external menace, is finally internalized as a measure of our own intellectual and moral potential.

How It Unfolds

The dawn of conflict The book opens with the tumultuous struggles between the Olympians and the Titans, establishing the giant as a cosmic disruptor of order. Zeus must utilize both his lightning and cunning to subdue the earth-born monsters who seek to topple the heavens.

The heroic standard In the chivalric section, the giant evolves into a foil for the knight’s prowess. Sir Launcelot and Sir Gawain encounter various monsters, where the act of killing a giant serves as a prerequisite for social and martial prestige.

The nursery tradition The narrative moves into global folklore, exploring how diverse cultures—from Ireland to Japan—explain the presence of giants through domestic tales. These stories emphasize the victory of the clever over the merely large, cementing the giant’s place in the cultural subconscious.

The reality check The final movement examines the medical and historical evidence of human gigantism. It shifts the perspective from the supernatural to the scientific, framing the giant as a biological curiosity rather than a mythological force.

The People

The giants themselves, from the monstrous Typhon to the greedy Goliath, serve as the book’s central antagonists. They are defined by their appetites and their physical dominance. Typhon acts as the archetype of raw, volcanic chaos, while Goliath represents the arrogance of secular power that falls to the faithful, humble strategist. In the chivalric tales, figures like Tarquin and Famongomadan serve as direct challenges to the virtues of the Round Table; their defeat is necessary for the knights to confirm their standing as the pinnacle of civilization. Conversely, St. Christopher provides a singular, transformative counterpoint, representing the "good giant" whose massive size is repurposed for service and devotion. The human protagonists—Odysseus, Thor, David, and Momotaro—each represent different approaches to the giant: the strategist, the brawler, the believer, and the folk hero. They are all changed by their encounters, usually emerging as leaders or protectors who have proven their right to rule by overcoming the greatest physical threats of their respective worlds.

In Its Own Voice

Hurling clusters of rocks up at heaven, he ran with hisses and screams, while a red mass of flame bubbled from his mouth.

(Describing the fury of the monster Typhon in his attempt to overthrow the gods.)

Down crashed that giant bulk to earth.

(The outcome of the iconic confrontation between David and the Philistine champion.)

The dissolution of the two old, weak, and feeble giants, gave birth to the two present substantial and majestic giants; who, by order, and at the City charge, were formed and fashioned.

(On the transition from the ancient legendary figures of Gog and Magog to their modern wooden incarnations in London.)

What It's Really About

At its core, this book is an inquiry into the relationship between power and scale. It argues that the "giant" is an essential construct used by societies to define their own limits. By constantly framing the giant as something to be conquered, the text illustrates a fundamental human anxiety: the fear that the natural world is stronger than we are. Yet, by moving from the mythic to the medical, the book eventually argues that our obsession with these figures is really an obsession with our own perceived smallness. The "giant" is not a creature of biology but a tool of narrative, used to test our courage, organize our history, and eventually, to humble us when we see that we are all, in the end, subject to the same physical laws.

Why Read It Today

Readers who enjoy the intersection of mythology and history will find this a fascinating, if sometimes uneven, exploration of the human psyche. The text reads like a curated cabinet of curiosities; it is brisk and informal, clearly written for an audience that enjoys the flavor of old tales without wanting to be bogged down in overly dense academic analysis. It captures the wonder of a time when the world felt larger and more mysterious, yet it is refreshingly unsentimental about the "real" giants of the medical world.

There are challenges for the modern reader: the book reflects early 20th-century sensibilities, and some of the period-specific attitudes toward "savages" or "primitive" cultures are jarring by today’s standards. Additionally, the shift from the high-drama of Greek and Norse epics to the clinical discussion of the pituitary gland is abrupt. However, for those interested in why we still tell stories about monsters, the book offers a satisfying, wide-ranging survey. It leaves the reader with a lingering sense of perspective—that while we have outgrown the literal belief in giants, we have not outgrown the need to imagine them, as they remain the most effective tool we have for measuring our own capacity for greatness.