The Norse Myths: A Guide to the Gods and Heroes

by Carolyne Larrington

Захватывающее знакомство с ярким, жестоким и шумным миром скандинавских мифов и их наследием — от Толкина до «Игры престолов».

В скандинавских мифах представлены печально известные боги викингов — от могущественного Асира во главе с Эинном и таинственного Ванира до Тора и мифологического космоса, в котором они обитают. Отрывки из легенд оживляют этот мир мифов — от сотворения мира до Рагнарока, предсказанного конца света от армии монстров и Локи, и всего, что находится между ними: полные проблем отношения между богами и великанами, неудачные приключения человеческих героев и героинь, их семейные распри, месть, браки и убийства, взаимодействие между богами и смертными.

Фотографии и рисунки показывают ряд норвежских мест, объектов и персонажей — от захоронений кораблей викингов до драконов на камнях с руками.

Профессор Кэролин Ларрингтон рассказывает о происхождении скандинавских мифов в дохристианской Скандинавии и Исландии и их выживании в археологических артефактах и ​​письменных источниках — от древнескандинавских саг и стихов до менее одобряющих описаний средневековых христианских писателей. Она прослеживает их влияние в творчестве Вагнера, Уильяма Морриса и Дж. Р. Р. Толкина, и даже в «Игре престолов» в воскресении «Фимбулветра», или «Могучей зиме».

Genres: Mythology, Nonfiction, History, Folklore, Religion, Medieval, Historical

208 pages, Hardcover

First published February 14, 2017

About the author

Carolyne Larrington is a Tutorial Fellow in English at St. John's College, Oxford.

Dr. Carolyne Larrington teaches medieval English literature in the college, ranging from the earliest Old English to the beginning of the Renaissance period.

Dr Larrington's research interests are in Old Icelandic literature, medieval women's writing, European Arthurian literature, and, most recently, medieval emotion. She has published on Old English and Old Icelandic wisdom poetry, compiled Women and Writing in Medieval Europe: A Sourcebook and edited two collections of essays on the Old Norse Poetic Edda. Her revised and expanded translation of the Poetic Edda, just published, is the standard. Her most recent monograph is King Arthur's Enchantresses: Morgan and Her Sisters in Arthurian Tradition which appeared from IB Tauris in June 2006. Her book on sibling relations in European medieval literature, and a new popular book on British folklore, The Land of the Green Man will be published in 2015; a BBC Radio 4 series based on the folklore book has also been commissioned. She is currently editing a collection of essays on emotion in Arthurian literature, and a Handbook to Eddic Poetry. She has been until recently editor-in-chief of the journal Viking and Medieval Scandinavia, and the President of the Viking Society for Northern Research, the British scholarly society for Old Norse study.

(from https://www.sjc.ox.ac.uk/945-714/Dr-C...)

Reviews

[Knjigoholičarka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ukoliko ste već imali prilike da čitate Eddu, Sagu o Volsunzima i razne druge materijale vezane za nordijsku mitologiju - ova knjiga nije za vas, jer ste verovatno "prekvalifikovani". Ali za osobe kojima je potrebna neka polazna tačka u daljem proučavanju iste, knjiga je solidan materijal.

Kao uvod, prikazan je kratak istorijski pregled zapisivanja/objavljivanja nordijskih mitova i saga, zajedno sa kratkim sinopsisima najznačajnijih dela, kao što su spomenute Edda, Saga o Volsunzima, zatim Lokasenna, Beowulf, Saga o Nibelunzima i slično. Čitalac se upoznaje sa istorijatom severne Evrope, kao i sa preplitanjem hrišćanstva i nordijskih mitova, što je naročito zanimljivo, budući da su svi nordijski mitovi zapravo zapisani tek nakon što su Skandinavci prešli na hrišćanstvo.

Zatim, izložen je sistematski prikaz osnovnih koncepata nordijske mitologije, kao što su božanstva, "nadležnosti" svakog od bogova, njihovi međusobni odnosi, ukratko su ispričane i neke priče o njima, preuzete iz Lokasenne, Edde, itd. Slede kosmogonijske priče koje analiziraju različite verzije nastanka sveta nordijskih bogova, a nakon toga i najzanimljivije priče o herojima i njihovim avanturama, Odinovoj potrazi za znanjem kako bi zaustavio točak sudbine, Lokijevoj čudnoj dualnoj i misterioznoj prirodi, priče o divovima, zabranjenoj magiji, jagmi za Frejom, čojstvu, junaštvu i naravno - osveti.

Ukratko, veoma zanimljiva i lepo ilustrovana knjižica sa mnoštvom referenci, kao i dobra odskočna daska za dalje istraživanje i učenje na ovu temu, ukoliko vam se dosadašnje znanje svodilo na napabirčene informacije sa interneta ili sličnih izvora.

[Tom · Rating 5 out of 5]

This review covers both Carolyn Larrington's The Norse Myths: A Guide to Viking and Scandinavian Gods and Heroes and Neil Gaiman's Norse Mythology

Unlike their Greek counterparts with whom most readers are far more familiar, the Norse gods impose little order upon the world. The best they seem able to do is withstand a greater chaos, for a time. Of course, they are rather chaotic themselves, as well as violent, willful, lusty, sometimes ridiculous and quite often treacherous. Only Odin seems to spend much time thinking about the future or the role of humans in this world, but that concern for humans is self-serving, as he seeks, favors, and betrays warriors in order to swell the ranks of his forces for the final battle at the world’s ending.

Now both Carolyne Larrington, the eminent and accomplished scholar of Old Norse, and Neil Gaiman, who surely needs no introduction, have published volumes on Norse Mythology within days of each other. It’s all so convenient the Norns might have had a hand in it. Each of these books is interesting and entertaining, but in quite different ways.

Gaiman, as one might expect, opts for a more dramatic treatment of his subject, retelling a selection of important myths at varying lengths, all building towards the climax of ragnarök. His tales are at times touching, at times quite funny. There’s a moment near the end, for example, where Kvasir, the wisest of the gods, guides Thor, not the wisest of the gods, to understanding the importance of a net Loki had created and destroyed, a moment which strongly reminds me of the scene in Monty Python and the Holy Grail in which Sir Bedivere explains to the peasants how one determines who is and who is not a witch. Yet the fine and frequent humor of Gaiman’s treatment obscured for me, as it also did in his earlier American Gods, the overwhelming sense of loss now and disaster to come that haunts the world of gods and men in Norse mythology. In the end it seems reduced to a joke and a game, as a dying Heimdall gleefully informs a dying Loki that the last laugh is on him. The book’s last words 'And the game begins anew' only reinforce this impression.

Larrington, like Kvasir with his recreation of Loki’s clever net, captures more of what she seeks. By not focusing narrowly on the drama of the tales she captures more of their tragedy, and suggests more of their meaning for Norse and more broadly for Teutonic culture in general, since these tales were told from Vinland to the Volga and across the centuries before and after the North became Christian. Her inclusion of the part humans play in Norse Mythology -- of Sigmund and Sigurd and all their bloody-minded, bloody-handed kin, more accursed than the House of Atreus, more trapped by the needs of the gods but without the least final justice, doomed in every sense – gives the world of gods and men a fuller, rounder shape. For the tales involve us. The twilight of the gods is also our own. By including humans, the unwilling and often unwitting players in the doom of the gods, Larrington allows us to understand better the world which told these tales, because through them, as Lewis put it in Surprised By Joy, ‘pure “Northernness” engulf[s us]: a vision of huge, clear spaces hanging above the Atlantic in the endless twilight of Northern summer, remoteness, severity….’

I did not laugh as often reading Larrington’s book as I did Gaiman's, but I nodded more and learned more. I would suggest, however, that they are most profitably enjoyed together.

[Kara Jorgensen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I hate giving bad reviews for books, but this one managed to take an interesting subject and make it more chaotic and confusing.
The major issues:
-There isn't a whole lot of context for the characters, major figures, where people are going, coming, relationships, etc. The basics are so basic they aren't useful. I think this comes from Larrington being an academic who knows so much about her subject that she wasn't able to parse out in 200 pages what would be useful to someone new to Norse myths and this book is marketed to those new to this mythology.
-The interruptions and asides in the text with boxes of info are incredibly annoying. They break mid-story, so you need to either stop reading the story to read the text box of additional info or read four pages ahead to the end and go back. Neither way works particularly well. There are also times in the first half of the book where the sections about the various main players aren't broken up properly. Subheadings would have been useful for clean breaks between stories/players.
-Larrington's writing style leaves a lot to be desired. It is very, very dry. There are a lot of academics who are equally good storytellers. She is not one of them and manages to take interesting stories about gods, monsters, and revenge and make them incredibly dry and tedious. Wikipedia articles (not to knock Wikipedia) are far more engaging. She fritters away 200 pages of stories without truly giving a foundational overview of the Norse myths or leaving me wanting more. She may have done better with 400 pages, but in 200 it's too much minutiae where it doesn't matter and not enough flavor and storytelling to capture the spirit of these stories. Part of my problem comes from being an academic and creative writer and having recently read some really good creative nonfiction. It just highlights the major stylistic flaws that suck the life out of an interesting subject.
Overall, this sucked the fun out of the Norse myths and made it feel like homework. I definitely wouldn't recommend this to someone starting at the beginning, and I think this book needs to figure out who it is marketed for because it certainly isn't beginners, but I'd imagine those who had read the myths would already know most of the information provided.

[Manybooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

REVIEW OF THE KINDLE EDITION

If a potential reader is basically just or even mostly wanting to encounter and peruse an anthology (a collection) of Norse mythology type tales, like for example either Snorri Sturluson’s Prose Edda in English (or in any) translation or reimagined stories based on the former and other extant sources (such as Neil Gaiman’s not always totally authentic seeming but very engaging and textually enjoyable Norse Mythology), then I would definitely not at all be recommending Carolynne Larrington’s 2017 The Norse Myths: A Guide to the Gods and Heroes.

For yes, even the book title of The Norse Myths: A Guide to the Gods and Heroes totally and obviously points out that Larrington’s text is going to be primarily featuring a general introduction to Norse mythology and also Viking culture in general, a guide to Norse gods, goddesses, monstrous adversaries, supernatural and human heroes and indeed the general scope and set-up of Norse mythology. In other words, The Norse Myths: A Guide to the Gods and Heroes is a book about, is a tome where Carolynne Larrington describes what Norse mythology is and what it is not (although both personally and academically, I really would want considerably more details on parallel mythology, on how Norse mythology compares to other Indo-European myths and how Snorri Sturloson likely incorporated elements of Mediaeval Christianity into his Edda), who the major supernatural and also many non supernatural players are (or were), and yes, that while the stories of Norse mythology of course do show up as examples in The Norse Myths: A Guide to the Gods and Heroes, these are usually just in point form and not actually conceptualised and written as actual tales, something that in my humble opinion is actually pretty well crystal clear. But I guess some reviewers have rather totally missed what Carolynne Larrington’s purpose with The Norse Myths: A Guide to the Gods and Heroes is meant to be, and while I do understand someone being a bit disappointed with the lack of actual and complete Norse mythology tales making an appearance, I also rather majorly resent having both the author and also me being labelled a silly mythology nerd simply because The Norse Myths: A Guide to the Gods and Heroes is more for academic reference purposes and not so much for story reading or telling.

And for me, The Norse Myths: A Guide to the Gods and Heroes has therefore both been enlightening, educational and in fact for the most part also exactly what I was looking for, with the only reason for me not rating The Norse Myths: A Guide to the Gods and Heroes with five stars being for one Carolynne Larrington’s (already mentioned above) lack of comparative mythology information and for two that the Kindle edition of The Norse Myths: A Guide to the Gods and Heroes I read and own is in my humble opinion a bit user-unfriendly for specific, for targeted research (as when I click on a piece of interesting seeming supplemental information that is highlighted in blue, there is then no easy way of turning back, of returning to the page I was reading, and that yes, it does get more than a trifle tedious and frustrating having to backtrack page by page).

[Abhishek Kona · Rating 1 out of 5]

The book may as well have been a research paper with weird symbols and the whole shebang. It is a very poor book, with no story or even common themes of chapters. The author knows a lot about Norse Mythology and she wants to tell us all. Its a book perhaps for the nerds of norse mythology.

But it definitely not the book for a regular joe who wants to read a book and learn more about Thor and his buddies. There is no structure to the book. The chapters have a very weak theme. The prose is boring. It as if nobody read the book after the first draft. I don't know what the editor of the book was doing?

[Justyna [regałzikei] · Rating 2 out of 5]

RESPECTFULLY ale nie wierzę, jak można było tak ciekawy temat przedstawić tak nużąco. To nie jest książka dla laików, to nie jest przewodnik, to nie jest angażujące. A byłam OGROMNIE CIEKAWA TEJ KSIĄŻKI. Przyjmę polecenia pozycji w tym temacie KTÓRE SIĘ PISZE DLA INNYCH LUDZI, a nie, żeby w niewielkiej książce upchać wszystkie dzieła, nawiązania i całą wiedzę autorki w mega chaotyczny sposób. Ogromny zawód!

[Shane Findlay · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*. Story 3. Illustrations 4.

[Edward Dunn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good introduction to Norse Mythology, but sometimes the sections on humans can get confusing due to the many characters and the need to keep the sections brief.

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting look at the Norse Gods and heroes by leading academic in the field, Carolyne Larrington.

Something there even for those of us who know the stories pretty well.

An invaluable handbook for anyone interested in the myths.

[wercia · Rating 3 out of 5]

niby sie calkiem ciekawie czytalo ale strasznie duzo info dumpingu i wsm to mało co zapamietam z tego xd

[Sean DeLauder · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolutely necessary primer you must read before reading Snorri Sturleson's Prose Edda, which I, an idiot, did not.

Larrington breaks down the structure of the Norse cosmos, the gods, their purposes (and fates), the myths surrounding them, the reason the Aesir are both Gods and extremely durable people (in which case Sturleson implements, and Larrington introduces me to the term, euhemerism), the giants, humans of legend and the gods' influence upon them, and, ultimately, Ragnarok and the rebirth of the world.

Sprinkled in amongst these explanations are copious amounts of images of woodcuts, stone carvings, drawings, and sidebars addressing myths in brief, as well as a few contemporary interpretations of the myths, including obvious ones, such as Wagner's Ring Cycle, Tolkien's use of the myths, and more recent works, such as Melvin Burgess' Blood series and Francesca Simon's Mortal Gods series.

On occasion, the book is subtly comical. It doesn't make an effort to draw attention to the humor, but dryly describes events you can't read and suppress laughter.

In one instance, Larrington describes the somber details surrounding the funeral of Baldr, the most beautiful and powerful of the gods, tragically killed by a missile cast by a blind god made from the one thing in the world Odinn/Frigga had neglected to secure a promise not to do him harm (mistletoe). Baldr's wife, Nenna, is so stricken by the loss she also dies of grief. Odinn is mortified because not only has he lost a son, but Baldr's death is considered a harbinger of Ragnarok--such signs indicate the end is unavoidable, despite Odinn's efforts to subvert them. All manner of creatures have assembled at the pyre piled onto a longship where the bodies of Baldr and Nenna lie, to be set on fire and pushed into the sea. It's a profoundly mournful scene.

One observer is the dwarf, Litr, whose purpose is not revealed in this book. Nevertheless, Litr is there, mourning as well. Litr's only significance in this tale is the misfortune of finding himself between the ship and Thor, whose job it is to consecrate the ship. As Thor approaches the boat, he crosses paths with Litr and inadvertently boots the dwarf onto the ship, where he burns up with the bodies of Baldr and Nenna. It's a completely out-of-nowhere, Looney Tunes moment that isn't explained in detail, it's just THERE.

Is this supposed to explain some natural phenomenon? Is there some moral here? Is this a vehicle for a skaldic metaphor (don't get caught between Thor and a funeral ship or he'll bend you like Beckham)? We don't know.

A similar instance occurs soon after in a description of Viking longship funerals. An Arabic observer noted a long and detailed service for a recently deceased chieftain, culminating in the igniting of the longship where his body lay, which was then circled by a naked man, walking backwards, with one hand covering his anus.

There is no explanation for this, it's just an image left hanging in your mind to ponder. It's also one that demanded clarification, so I asked Larrington herself if there was a reason for this very specific form of self-protection.

Professor Larrington kindly replied with the following, satisfyingly mischievous answer:

"My guess is that while the ship is burning, the spirit of the dead man is somewhere in the vicinity, and could enter any unguarded orifice of a body, so best to be careful. You’d see it’s coming for your mouth, but sneaking up behind is something else."

The whole book is a very economical 200 pages and establishes a foundation for any explorations into Norse Mythology, regardless if the barrier is low, as with Gaiman's Norse Mythology, or higher, as with Sturleson's Edda.

If there is a drawback, it might be the use of the original Norse names for many characters, sometimes using Norse runes as part of the spelling. It's an interesting touch that can be distracting initially, but one I acclimated to quickly. If you see "Thor"'s name spelled with the P-looking rune with an -orr at the end enough times, you'll figure it out soon enough. Even if not, every individual has such specific and familiar characteristics you can determine who the story is about without reading the name.

It's the only quibble I had, and it's a blatantly tedious and minor one, which should emphasize what a spectacular book Larrington has assembled.

[Weinlachgummi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ich bin ein großer Fan der nordischen Mythologie und da mir Winter is Coming von Carolyne Larrington schon sehr gefallen hat, wollte ich auch Fit für Walhalla lesen.

Vom Aufbau her ist das Buch gut strukturiert, so gibt es zu Beginn ein Inhaltsverzeichnis in dem die 6 Kapitel genannt werden. Danach findet man eine Karte, die ich auch praktisch finde und eine Anmerkung zu der Aussprache. Und dann geht es auch schon los mit dem ersten Kapitel, Götter und Göttinnen. Dieses fand ich besonders Interessant, habe aber trotz einiges an Vorwissen auch noch neues Erfahren.

Allgemein würde ich sagen, dass man auch noch neues erfährt, wenn man sich schon mehr mit der nordischen Mythologie, Wikingern und so weiter beschäftigt hat. Und ich bin mir nicht sicher, ob man sich nicht etwas erschlagen fühlt, falls man sich noch gar nicht mit dem Thema beschäftigt hat. So würde ich für den absoluten Einstieg eher ein leichteres Werk empfehlen.

Aber für alle nordischen Fans, die sich gerne mehr Wissen an eigenen möchten ist das Buch auf jeden Fall etwas. Vom Schreibstil her fand ich es angenehm zu lesen. Besonders wenn man bedenkt, dass hier viele Informationen vermittelt werden. So konnte ich das Buch zwar nicht am Stück lesen, aber ich fand es nicht trocken oder anstrengend zu lesen.

Im Buch befinden sich viele Zeichnungen, Abbildungen und auch Fotos, alles in schwarzweiß. Die Abbildungen untermalen den Text gut und waren interessant anzusehen. Manche hätte ich mir in Farbe gewünscht, aber ich verstehe, wieso man darauf verzichtet hat um den Preis untern zuhalten.

Ich finde alles rund um die nordische Mythologie, Wikinger etc. sehr interessant und so hatte ich meine Freude an dem Buch. Es wird auf so viel eingegangen und man lernt wirklich einiges dazu. Und es ist einfach faszinierend zu lesen, was die Menschen damals dachten bzw. was zum Beispiel hinter Runen steckt.

Fazit:
Ein großartiges Werk über die alten Götter.
Wer sich für nordische Mythologie, die alten Götter und Wikinger interessiert ist hier gut aufgehoben.
Ich habe einiges neues gelernt und bin immer noch fasziniert von dieser Welt.

[Noah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the second Norse mythology book I have read now. The first was purely told through the lens of stories, this one jumped between a few different styles. At times it was purely stories, sometimes there were interjections from the author about interpretations of the myths. The flow of this one didn't work anywhere near as well for me as the other book. When I came across stories I had read before, I immediately remembered them, and at the conclusion almost always liked the story I had read before more. Still learned a bit from the book, and it's always great to read some Norse mythology, overall glad I read it.
I wish the book would've leaned more into either pure stories, or putting a more academic spin on them (parallels to other civilizations' stories at the time, impacts of these myths on the civilization that followed them, etc.).

[Adrian Buck · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is largely brief descriptions of the main myths. Most often I was left confused about the plots. Perhaps this is because she introduces regional and historical variations in medias res rather than providing a central account, and then discussing the variations. She might also have been too brief.

The discussion of the significance of the myths is much more cogent. Especially forwards, where she describes what Wagner and Tolkein - among others - borrowed for their own creative visions. Sideways, her observations on Beowulf also made if it difficult to see what is especially 'English' about that work apart from the language in which it has come down to us.

The backwards perspective was a little disappointing. In her introduction she points out that Snorri - our chief source for the Norse myths - played down the divinity of the Aesir. She explains this this was to avoid heresy while writing in a now Christian society. I'm not convinced. As film makers have recently discovered the heroes and villans of the Norse myths have more in common with comic book superheroes than with Greek pagan deities. Odin in particular is more Odysseus than Zeus.

I would have liked to have seen a etymological discussion of how good a translation 'god' is for the Norse gods. The Greek gods at least seem to represent core categories of human experience. The Norse 'gods' are not immortal, not omniscient and not omnipotent. I wondered how much that was a result of the philosophical sophistication of cultures that created them.

There is a good collection of illustrations that point out the inspiration the Norse myths have provided especially to late 19th and early 20th century artists. I was left with the suspicion that that inspiration indicated a troubling lack of cultural self confidence. In comparision, the Norse quickly gave up their pagan identities when they came into prolonged contact with Christian societies.

[Thomas Ray · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Norse Myths: A Guide to the Gods and Heroes, Carolyne Larrington, 2017, 208 pages, Dewey 293.13, ISBN 9780500251966

A synopsis of Norse legends. Many illustrations of old Norse picture-stones.

The beasts of battle are the raven, the eagle, and the wolf, greedily anticipating gobbling up the carrion. There's no higher praise in Old Norse poetry than to say of a king that he frequently gave the wolf breakfast. p. 134.

Attila the Hun (c. 406-453) is the brother of valkyrie Brynhildr, in Norse myth. p. 148.

Signs of the last times: First comes the Great Winter, the /fimbulvetr/. Three winters run into one another, with no intervening summers. No man will spare another. p. 191. The Seeress's Prophecy, v. 45. Wolves swallow the sun and moon. p. 192. (A wolf-shaped, sky-covering cloud, in Alan Garner's 1960 novel, /The Weirdstone of Brisingamen/. p. 193.) [Larrington seems not to know that this multi-year winter with no intervening summers happened in Scandinavia in the 540s CE, a result of volcanic eruptions, including at least one in Central America. This precipitated the halving of the Scandinavian population, the beginning of 200 years of endemic civil war among petty chieftains, followed by the 300-year Viking Age. See /Children of Ash and Elm/, Neil Price, 2020: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... ]

Larrington tells us that the best of the retellings for children is Kevin Crossley-Holland, /The Penguin Book of Norse Myths: Gods of the Vikings/, 1996. Also Roger Lancelyn Green and Barbara Leonine Picard.

And, Rick Riordan's Magnus Chase series is excellent. https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...

[mariuszowelektury · Rating 4 out of 5]

Z mitologii nordyckiej zwykle kojarzymy to co osadziło się w popkulturze: Thor z błyskawicą, Loki, Odyn, Walhala. Jednak skandynawskie mity to coś więcej - zbiór wartości, opowieści - światopogląd. I o tym właśnie jest ta książka.

Tematyczny układ rozdziałów: o bogach, boginiach, królach i bohaterach pozwala ją czytać we fragmentach interesujących nas. Autorka dzieli się swoją naukową wiedzą w przystępny sposób, udowadniając, że można zachować balans między naukowością a popularyzatorskim stylem.
Całość wzbogacona jest ilustracjami, mapami, cytatami, które pozwalają głębiej zanurzyć się w ten świat.

Pozycja obowiązkowa dla miłośników Skandynawii, mitologii i historii nordyckiej. Może też być świetnym uzupełnieniem wiedzy o średniowieczu, wierzeniach ludów północy bądź jako kompendium wiedzy dla miłośników literatury fantasy wywodzącej się z tego kręgu.

[Dominik · Rating 2 out of 5]

Jak tak fascynujący temat można opisać w tak nużący sposób?
Nie jestem pewien, na czym właściwie ta książka ma się skupiać. Jeśli miało to być kompendium wiedzy o Skandynawii, to niestety wyszło bardzo słabo. Autorka próbuje na niewielkiej liczbie stron upchnąć całą swoją wiedzę, przez co całość wypada chaotycznie i męcząco.
Styl jest suchy jak wiór, a przecież taka książka powinna zachęcać do poznawania skandynawskiej kultury i mitologii. Gdybym sięgnął po nią jako kompletny laik, licząc na wciągające przedstawienie tematu, poczułbym spore rozczarowanie.
Za dużo tu zbędnych informacji, za wiele skakania z wątku na wątek i ciągłego powtarzania tych samych treści. Zamiast pobudzać ciekawość ta książka tylko zniechęca.

[Iga Banulska · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5; miałam bardzo wysokie oczekiwania co do tej książki, jednak trochę się rozczarowałam. napisana bardzo chaotycznie, pomimo że pozornie rozdziały są uporządkowane. niektóre informacje pojawiają się 3 razy w 3 różnych miejscach, do tego tekst ciągły przerywany jest ramkami z anegdotkami, albo nawet powtórzeniem tego co przed chwilą przeczytaliśmy, co bardzo mnie dekoncentrowało. na plus zdjęcia i obrazy oraz ostatni rozdział o ragnaröku, który był najciekawszy ze wszystkich. jeśli ktoś sięga po tę książke jako pierwszą pozycję o mitologii nordyckiej informacji może być na raz trochę za dużo.

[Bjorn Bakker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fairly decent summary of Norse mythology, but lacks the detail and magic of works such as the Prose and Poetic Eddas. Also, the chronology is all over the place, with references to events or people in chapters yet to come. This makes for at times confusing reading, particularly if this book is meant as an "Introduction" to Norse mythology as its cover suggests.

[Carrie (The Butterfly Reader) · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great source of info on Norse Mythology.

[natasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

anyways i’m going through something if you can’t tell

[Prathamesh Sharma · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was intrigued about norse mythology after i played God of war(2018). The game portrayed these heroes and Gods in a very malevolent manner which made me more curious as to why people would actually worship such creatures!
This book just about quenches my curiousity to the brim.
Its a prefect guide to the norse myth. It doesnt dwell into the hows and whys, the book gives you the folklore in all its glory.
Its fun to read given the efforts taken by the author to actually add pictures of icelandic and germanic runes and other norse related historic monuments.
The cover is attractive, giving it one of those fairytale like feels which is only complimenting the content, which is entertaining as hell!

[Bernard · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author knew the material, no doubt about it.

The problem with the book is the problem with Nose Myths, they are scattered all over the place and have to truly unified theme. Is that the author's fault? No it is not. The book is just as scattered and lacking in a stable approach. Is that the author's fault? Yes, yes it is.

The stories are not badly told, but I don't see a love of those stories in this book. Basically, I appears that the author chose a few representative stories and went with it. Maybe a little more thought into the basic outline would have helped?

I just don't think this book did the stories justice.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolute gold mind of infortmation, history and legend lore!
Thoroughly loved reading it. I learnt a lot from it and I was pleased to see how Carolyn also nodded to the various modern forms and features of norse myths in new fiction and tv series...
Highly recommend for anyone who wants to know more about the norse gods and heroes and heroines and trolls and giants and dragons and cursed gold/weapons... there is so much to learn about than Marvel inaccurately portrays

[Britta · Rating 5 out of 5]

I knew very little about Norse mythology beforehand, and I thought this book was an excellent introduction. It gave me a good overview of the characters and myths, and it left me intrigued enough to go looking for more.
The book is gorgeous with nice illustrative pictures, and very readable. Maybe the only issue is that there are a lot of names to keep track of, especially in the sections about heroes. Otherwise I thought it was solid.

[Tanya · Rating 1 out of 5]

Кажется, это самая слабая книга из этой серии. Так скучно рассказать о скандинавской мифологии, это, конечно, достижение, правда, такое себе)
Плюс, автор невообразимо бесила своими комментариями и осуждением действий богов и богинь: так и хотелось громко напомнить ей в ухо, что она не у людях пишет, и что, сексуализация зада богини Фрейи, вполне, обоснована, как и токсичная маскулинность богов. Нечего со своими "прогрессивными" взглядами писать книги о мифологии древних народов.

[Daria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short, nicely put together and concise. Especially nice one to go back to when I forget, once again, who's who in Norse mythology. And yet, it's a bit too dry to be truly enjoyable as non-fiction. It refreshed some things I already knew about the subject, but I feel like the things which were new to me were not memorable at all. So, in the end it was not completely pointless, but pretty close.

[Artem Huletski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ясень — дерево. Орёл — птица. Асгард —
наше отечество. Рагнарёк неизбежен.

[Anya Agaltsova · Rating 3 out of 5]

Очень хаотичный пересказ. Практически нет анализа. Грустная разочаровавшая книга

[Stronisko · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thor, Odyn czy Loki to chyba najczęściej pojawiające się imiona, kiedy wspomina się o mitologii skandynawskiej. Ta jednak to dużo więcej niż wspomniani bogowie, a szczegółowych informacji dowiedzieć się można z tytułu “Skandynawia. Przewodnik po bogach, władcach i olbrzymach” Carolyne Larrington. 😍

Nas mitologie od zawsze fascynowały. W szkołach poznajemy najczęściej jedynie grecką i rzymską, kompletnie zapominając o innych fascynujących mitach i boskich postaciach. Z serii Mitologie świata mieliśmy niedawno okazję poznać mitologię japońską, tym razem udało się lepiej odkryć tę skandynawską. 💚

Książka podzielona jest na kilka głównych części. Przygodę rozpoczynamy od poznania źródeł, jak i opisu miejsc czy przedmiotów, dzięki którym zachowały się konkretne informacje na temat wierzeń. Bliżej mamy okazję poznać peozję staronordyjską, jak i opowieści prosto z Islandii. Następnie zgłębiamy postaci bogów i bogiń, od wspomnianych już wcześniej Thora, Odyna i Lokiego, przez Walkirie, Heimdalla, Baldra, Freja i Freję. Mamy okazję dowiedzieć się również jak powstał świat, a także jak wyglądały losy jego rozwoju. 🤩

Najciekawszym rozdziałem jest chyba dla nas ten, w którym odkrywamy historie czy przypowieści związane z bogami, ale i olbrzymami czy innymi kreaturami. Trzeba też pamiętać, że mitologia to także wiele innych ciekawych postaci, również z rodu ludzkiego - tych poznajemy poprzez ich styczność z boskim światem. Wisienką na torcie są wspominki o roli wikingów oraz obszerne wyjaśnienie, czym jest ragnarok, czyli kres świata bogów. 😮

Sporo się dowiedzieliśmy, trochę pośmialiśmy (niektóre opowiadania rozkładają na łopatki), a trochę popodziwialiśmy (sporo tu rycin, manuskryptów czy run!). 🧾

“Skandynawia. Przewodnik po bogach, władcach i olbrzymach” to świetne kompendium wiedzy o mitologii skandynawskiej. Dla fanów tego typu tytułów jest to na pewno pozycja obowiązkowa!

A my już teraz czekamy na kolejną książkę z serii, czyli “Chiny. Przewodnik po bogach i legendach”. ❤️