Viking Blood: A Viking Warrior, 1008 AD

My Story: Boys

by Andrew Donkin

It's 1008 AD, and after being injured in a raid that goes horribly wrong, Tor Scaldbane is devastated at losing his chance to be a legendary warrior. But then he remembers the sagas of his ancestors; glorious, bloody battles, ancient heroes, powerful gods ...realizes that all might not be lost after all.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Middle Grade, Diary, Childrens, School, Fiction, Historical

176 pages, Paperback

First published November 3, 2008

Reviews

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everyone in my elementary school class read this series of books. I remember starting a few and never finishing them since I was far too distracted playing on my Wii, adventuring my neighbourhood, and riding my bike to read any books. This is my first “My Story: Boys” book finished… 14 years late.

[Suad Shamma · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can't say I'm a huge fan of Viking history and their era, and that in itself might have influenced my rating and experience of this book.

I found the story tedious and slow. The beginning, and first entry you read, definitely grips you as it is filled with intensity and suspense, however going back to the beginning and getting to that point was a lot less exciting than I thought it would be.

The story follows the path of Tor into manhood as he finds himself always being compared and competing with his adopted brother Ragnar. Tor can't help but be jealous of the attention Ragnar gets from the men surrounding him, and he is quite known for his bravery and strength. Unlike Tor who seems to be the exact opposite (in terms of physical strength) and always finds himself stuck in awkward situations and unable to assist himself.

This firsthand account is in parallel with Thor and Loki's stories, which seem to be a reflection of what Tor is feeling or experiencing in general. I found it did not all go together cohesively, and the overall account of events was lacking. I did not find it as informative as other reviewers seemed to think, and again, I want to reiterate that the age of the Vikings is definitely not my favourite in general, so I wasn't as engrossed.

Overall, it's OK. But it starts out way better than it ends.

[Kristal Fleming · Rating 5 out of 5]

Viking Blood
Thoughts: such a good start with suspense and innocence. I like the tone so far. I am new to this writer and interested to see where he will take this.

Synopsis:
Tor is confronted by a wolf called old one ear. He looks like he might die. The story jumps back in time to 13 months earlier. He is watching out for his father, hears the creation story from Magnus The Old and helps carry a sheep killed by the wolf down to the village. He is sick from the smell and Magnus warns him there is worse on the battlefield.

Tor’s mother send him to get a bread pan fixed at Olaf’s Blacksmith shop and gets stuck there. Where he sees a rare sword that Olaf is making for his father and he tells him the story of how Thor had his sword stolen, how he got it back and it was never stolen again.

His mother is not happy with him when he returns home and he forgot the bread pan.

The next day he climbs the cliffs to collect eggs with his friend and he thinks of the story of how Asgard had its wall rebuilt due to a bet. Where he struggles and almost dies. He spots his fathers boat and races down to help. There he uses Olaf’s poles to help the men in the summer storm even if they lost the ship, one man and the pier.

Ragnar and Tor notice that his father nor the men are telling stories like they usually do. Tor and Ragnar go to ask Tyrnal to mentor them in fighting. During his stay they hear his parents fighting one night.

Tyrnal tells a sad story about going on a raid for a rival warlord, after several months away he comes back to find his children and wife killed.

Tor and Ragnar help with the final push to build the longship. They also work hard to impress there father. They get to learn to row and that’s how they learn they are to join the raids.

Tor and Ragnar go out to see where they see all the ships passing by. Tyral warns of war and soon they watch hundreds of ships leaving to raid together. Preparations are being done around the village. Tor and Ragnar practice only for Ragnar to humiliate Tor with a dirty move.

His father is angry and sends Tor to get a package from Olaf who he is rude too. He returns thinking the sword is for Ragnar and ends up in a fight with him. Where he tells him that he is not his fathers real son. He is shouted at by his father and dragged inside. Just seconds before the door slams shut he sees the sword on Tyral’s belt.

They leave the village for the raid, nether Tor’s father or brother Ragnar talks to him before they leave. A sense of homesickness washes over Tor as they sail. The cook only leaving to cook meals or collect fresh water.

At night with blistered hands Tor lays awake so Tyral tells him the story of “Loki’s Monstrous children.” Tor falls asleep where he dreams of monsters and adventure.

Ragnar and Tor make up. They go into battle where Tor tells of his hand being cut off despite his brother trying to keep him safe. How they saved him and tried to help him.

Tyral carries Tor back to the ship and takes care of him to the Islands, back to the village before he leaves. He comes round where he learns his sword hand is gone and his brother is sorry.

They give him the sword he loves and all in the village treat him like a man. He can no longer fight though. He starts to live a quiet happy life.

When Tor and Ragnar go hunting one day for the Winter Solstice. They catch rabbits and return with Tor knowing why Harald had refused to return home. His wife had an affair with the man who tended the cattle.

Tor saves Magnus from the Wolf who gets away. He goes hunting again with Ragnar and he ends up facing the Wolf down. His brother kills it and they discover Tyral has returned to the village on his ship.

The end

[Arthur · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book because I learned a lot about viking culture and mythology. I also like the way some characters are developed without you realizing it, like what happened to Tor, after he lost his right hand he wold keep passing out, and during them he wold practice storytelling by telling stories to himself in his mind and to the reader. you only realize that he became a storyteller when his brother kills a wolf and he says he will tell the story to the village of how he killed the wolf. I also learned a lot about vikings in general, like the areas they explored, why their ships were so good, and other things.

[Meghan Taht · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about Tor Scaldbane, a 16-year-old male living in Scandinavia in 1008 AD, the title is self-explanatory. The story starts off with Tor on a cliff, fending off a vicious wolf that is known for ruining the life of his village. Then he begins to tell us how he ended up in his situation, which started off with him helping his father off of a ship during a deadly storm. Throughout the story there a plenty of stories about Norse mythology, most of which surrounding a trouble caused by the god of mischief, Loki. Overall, the story isn't too complicated or long, and is fairly enjoyable.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story to read to primary age children when studying Vikings. authentic and interspersed with sagas. There aren't many good Viking primary school fiction books out there so this was a great find.

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this when I was a kid and really loved it, this book was one of the things that got me into mythology in the first place. I loved the formatting in this book, format is a huge thing for me, so I enjoyed that it could switch between myths and story seamlessly

[Fin · Rating 3 out of 5]

The mythology part is interesting and I will not hide that it is the only reason I read it. The main story did not spark up my fascination.

[Michael Kitazaki · Rating 4 out of 5]

The main story was decent but may bore those looking for more "action" . The Norse myths that accompanied Tor on his journey really added to the story.

[Kirsten Fleetwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this to my 7yo son who we call Tor.
It's a bit more graphic in parts than I might have expected, but we enjoyed it.

[Meghan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Because the story is written in a way that emulates Norse mythology, the plot is cyclical and there is a lot of repetition. I also noticed a few typos in the text.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this in mind to use for my Year 3 class (aged 7-8) to use as part of our Anglo-Saxon and Viking topic.

This us a good, solid account of Viking life. It shows that they were not all killers, all year round. That they had farms and families to keep and that raiding was seen as a 'summer job.' This story follows Tor going on his first raid, but also shows what jobs he had to do back home as well.

Throughout the story there are tales about the Viking gods, which are interesting and really present them in a clear way so children can understand.

The character of Tor is a good one, that I think a lot of children will like. He wants to fight, but it also shows his worries about it, which I think is good to show Vikings as humans. Also the relationship he has with his brother is very sweet.

I decided that this was not the right book to use as a class text, but I will be recommending this book to some of my more able students to read to themselves.

[August · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the better My Story books I've read. The blurb on the back is misleading, because that stuff doesn't happen until 3/4 of the way through the book, but I still found it to be an interesting read. If you're interested in Vikings, or just don't know much about them and are looking to learn, this is a good book for you. The writing style was a little clunky in parts, and repetitive (there's three or four pages that repeat the prologue word for word), but for the age range it's written for, it's pretty solid writing.

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This entire series is a wonderful way to learn history or teach it to adolescents. I find today's generations seem to recall more when they learn through other people (pop songs, celebrity gossip, etc.), so what better way to teach history than through someone else's perspective? Yes, "authentic" diaries would be "better", but would the language really hold the modern student's attention? Did the diary writer know what WOULD be important in the context of history? Probably not.

[Greg Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Part of the My Story series, historical fiction. Meant for boys grades 6-8.
Seemed realistic for the most part a fair amount of action and violence.
Not a lot of gore, but clearly not for those who like unicorns and rainbows.
I read the back cover to a grade 6 class and it went as did a few others in the series.

[Rylan]

I read Viking Blood AD by Andrew Donkin. If you like violent Viking battle tales then you’ll love this book. Viking Blood starts off in 1000 years ago in Scandinavia. “And before battle they worked themselves into a killing frenzy that sent them wild as they slaughtered the enemy”. I would give it a 5/5. It is awesome.

[Liv · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's not the best book I've ever laid eyes on, but it was readable. My favourite parts were the stories about the gods. See I prefer fantasy rather than reality so the god stories were right up my street.

[Matilda Rose · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tor is a young Viking boy who is terribly injured on his first raid, losing his right hand. He is devastated at losing his chance to become a warrior. He manages to find happiness at home with his kind brother Ragnar.

[Brayden]

Not much action. but reallly good for info about Vikings

[Helen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another 'My Story' novel - an historical action story based on the vikings. well written and researched.

[James · Rating 2 out of 5]

Slow paced rather pedestrian story there are better attempts coving the same ground.