Beorn The Proud

by Madeleine A. Polland, William Stobbs (Illustrator)

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, School, Young Adult, Historical, Childrens, Christian

176 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1961

About the author

Madeleine Polland (who also wrote as Frances Adrian) was born in Kinsale, County Cork, Ireland, on May 31, 1918.

Madeleine was educated at Hitchin Girls' Grammar School, Herfordshire, from 1929 to 1937.

After leaving school, she served in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force, and shortly after leaving married Arthur Joseph Polland in 1946.

Madeleine Polland has written several books for children and many novels for adults. Her first book for young readers, CHILDREN OF THE RED KING, was published in the UK by Constable in 1960.

Reviews

[Luisa Knight · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great historical fiction with Christianity proving to be the way of life over the Old Norse religion!

Ness is a young Irish girl who is the only captive taken when her village in ransacked by Vikings.

Beorn, is the young Viking boy who finds her and claims her for himself. He is proud, sure of himself and his religion.

Returning to Denmark with the fleet, a friendship of sorts starts to kindle between Ness and Beorn, and Ness has opportunity to share of her faith. Beorn mocks her at first but after various adventures, trials and failures, he has a change of heart and he learns that pride can never win over humility.

A well told story with great action scenes, character development and moral lessons! Definitely read this one!

Ages: 10+

#Ireland #Denmark #Vikings

Cleanliness: many references to Thor and aspects of the Viking’s religion.

**Like my reviews? Then you should follow me! Because I have hundreds more just like this one. With each review, I provide a Cleanliness Report, mentioning any objectionable content I come across so that parents and/or conscientious readers (like me) can determine beforehand whether they want to read a book or not. Content surprises are super annoying, especially when you’re 100+ pages in, so here’s my attempt to help you avoid that!

So Follow or Friend me here on GoodReads! And be sure to check out my bio page to learn a little about me and the Picture Book/Chapter Book Calendars I sell on Etsy!

[Michael Fitzgerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Young listeners liked this a lot. It does a nice job of showing the lives of both Vikings and Irish, and it helps make it clear that these two cultures existed at the same time, what their beliefs were, and how they interacted. There is a good deal of character development, showing how the two main figures grow and mature. And it has a happy ending (especially so for those who know).

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm wavering between a 4 and a 5 for this one, actually, because I loved it so much when I read it as a young teen. I reread it fairly recently, after purchasing it for our library. It's a solid, character-based adventure about a young Irish girl who is taken captive by a Viking boy her age and brought to Denmark. On rereading it as an adult, I enjoyed it almost as much as I had as a teenager. Ness is a wonderful character, and she and Beorn strike sparks off each other in a very believable way. As I said to my sister, it's really a romance - but a proto-romance between a couple of thirteen-year-olds. Beorn's stubborn pridefulness also rings true, and Polland handles the politics of the little Danish kingdoms quite well. There are plots and counterplots and battles - also an attempted murder or two. But always, the two youngsters and their relationships take center stage. Not quite on the level of Sutcliff or Whalen Turner, but readers who enjoy those books would like this one, as well. Ness's sincere Catholicism will be a plus for some readers, too.

[Allison Tebo · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF.

[Katja Labonté · Rating 5 out of 5]

5+ stars (7/10 hearts). If I had read this as a kid, I would have ADORED it. As it is, I still realllllly loved it. It was totally up my alley, basically the perfect Viking book. I LOVED Beorn and everyone else (can't list them all....). I loved the plot, it was so cool and stirring and interesting and viking-y! The excitement and intrigue were really good. I loved the writing style and setting, too. I didn't agree with all the theology nor all the religion, but Ness had some great points and good messages. I thoroughly enjoyed this and will be looking out for more books by this author.

Content: There were a few parts that were a bit more violent/gory; didn't bother me and I don't think it would have as a kid, but I'm just not sensitive to that, so for others I would recommend it for 16+ unless edited (so edit it, because kids 10+ would probably love it!).

[Carol Bakker · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a solid but not spectacular read-aloud to my grandkids. The book garnered peaks and troughs of attention and failed to produce explosions of speculation on the kids' part. I judge my boys' response to a book on whether they ask me to stop for a bathroom break or if tell me to keep reading while they leave for a few minutes.

I enjoy interacting with a text. For example, if I read she gave him a weak smile I ask: show me what a weak smile looks like. If a character hisses, we practice hissing. The kids often interject their own thoughts and responses.

Beorn would be a good companion book to a study of the Celts and Vikings.

[Reese Bordelon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I finished this book a long time ago, but the ending disappoints me and still haunts me to this day.
Seriously. Every time it catches my eye on my book shelf I just feel the biggest surge of anger.
I understand they were kids, but they were obviously in love and the author should’ve written an epilogue where it’s 10 years later and they get married. Like, are you kidding me? Was it so hard to at least hint they had a future like that together? The last thing I wanted was for them to become adopted siblings🤮
It was such a good book but knowing that these two never kiss even ONCE disgusts me.
Wattpad, here I come to write a better ending to this piece of work✋🏻🙄

[Courtney · Rating 5 out of 5]

So well written, poignant, and exciting. I read it to my 7 year old son, and it was a little bit of a stretch for him, but he stayed engaged and was disappointed there wasn't an epilogue. (I also may have teared up at the ending.)

[Molly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this awhile ago but I remember that it was a great story. Paganism was squashed like a bug by the girl who was Catholic. Beautiful story.

[Inspiration · Rating 4 out of 5]

Favorite quotes:

-"Sometimes it is stronger to be gentle." p. 27

-"There he goes," he cried. "Now where is his powerful God to save him, for he will surely die with no one to help him. I thought your God was to care for him?" Sick with sadness, Ness closed her fingers round her Cross and groped for the faith that now seemed to be all she had left in the world. This time it was her mother's words that came to her, offered so often in comfort for childish disappointments. "We must not question His way of doing things," she said painfully. "Sometimes we do not understand, but if we wait a little maybe we shall see." p. 51-52

-She told him of the first Christmas and the coming of the Baby in the stable, while the star blazed in the East and the angels sang above the cowering shepherds on the frosty hill...She told him of the first Easter, when the Romans raised the Cross outside Jerusalem and crucified our Lord; and the darkness fell across the earth. This was language he could understand; blood and death and sacrifice. But the reason for it he could never follow. "Why? Why? Why did He do it? Why should so great a King humble himself? It makes no sense. When I am chieftain, I will be proud, proud. I will hold my people by my pride and strength of arms as I grow to be a man. These are the things! Your God is too gentle! I hold still to ours, they are the gods of a man!" p. 81

-"That is why--haste and thoughtlessness nearly always bring disaster. It is not enough to be brave, it is necessary to be wise also. Let us wait and watch a little longer and perhaps we may find out more." p. 89

-"He is good," she thought. "Good and brave, no matter what his silly pride, and I have always known it really. Did not he in the beginning give me back my mother's chain of gold. Now I am his friend and not his thrall and he is willing to care for me with his life. And this is for me, not just to protect me from Helge because I am his." p. 114

-"We pray for him, do we not Macha? Maybe our prayers are being answered, maybe he has listened to what I have been telling him of gentleness and the teaching of our Lord. Although," her face puckered, "even when he does listen, he usually laughs."...A slow flush crept up Ness's cheeks, and her fingers plucked at the fur around her face. "I don't know. I only know he was good to me in the forest. And brave. So he cannot be quite wicked. Only too proud and rather silly. And it would please you well, Macha," she added shrewdly, "if I could get him to listen long enough to know our Faith. But," her eyes were thoughtful, "I could never make Beorn do anything. Something would have to happen to bring him to us of his own accord." p.119-120

-"What is it, Beorn?" "Ness," he said suddenly, "did you see that?" "Of course," Ness answered gently. "Did I not tell you they would listen?" "Not only that. For the first time I have spoken to my people humbly. Humbly, Ness, as you have always told me. And never have they been so much my people, never have they looked at me like that before. I have learned many hard lessons in these last hours and it seems to me this is another. Maybe I have been wrong to laugh always at your gentle God. Pride has led me nowhere, nor have my gods who sustained me in it."..."Think you Ness that is new Beorn who is to find himself in your country, could find himself a new God there also? I think your God may be more suited to the new Beorn." p.165-166

-"Ness!" he said at last, shaking her gently by the arms. "Ness--my little niece, my brother's child--look round." Something in his voice and look stopped her at once and for a moment she stared up at him, searching his warm loving eyes. Then she turned around. The wide doors of the Hall were open to the bright spring day, and between her and the light stood a tall woman in a blue gown, her hair the same dark red as Ness's own. Beside her ranged five children, from the tall fair son down to the staggering baby who clutched the hand of the smallest girl. As Ness turned her arms were already out and, without a sound, the child flew to them. Then she was crying and laughing, clutching, feeling her hair, struggling for belief. "My mother! My mother! My mother!" was all she could say as the happy tears poured down her radiant face. At last she pulled herself away to be kissed and hugged and almost torn apart by her delighted brothers and sisters." p.171-172

-"This is Beorn, son of Anlaf. He is the chieftan of these people of whom I told you. It is he who will become a Christian with the help of my uncle's priests. There is much I have not told you as to why we left Denmark in such haste, but these things he would prefer to tell you himself. He is good and he is kind and he is brave, and I owe him my life not once but several times, once when it could easily have cost his own. He is my special and most precious friend, mother, and the best place of all must be for him." p. 175

-"There," she said gently, "I think he fits perfectly. There is his place for as long as he wishes." p.175

-"Oh," she cried, "thank God for this happy day!" Beorn spoke beside her and she turned on him wide-eyed. His grin broke clear and merry. "Yes," he said, "I said thank God, not thank the gods!" p.176

[Phoebe Chartowich · Rating 2 out of 5]

Conclusion/opinion piece from my school essay on Beorn:

Beorn the Proud remains second-rate in some aspects and well done in others. To begin with,
the middle proved to be a drudgery to read, with no real action. It's mostly set up for the climax, which isn't a good way to go about writing a story. In addition, the way the words are written is not particularly or inspiring, though a few beautiful metaphors and similes are the exception. Despite all this, this book was powerfully realistic with everything from the emotions to the character choices. Even the rather predictable ending was surprising due to the realistic plot and emotions. Therefore Beorn captures attention with some facets but ends up a mediocre read anyway.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Giuli: Ness an Irish girl tries to bring Beorn a Viking to Christianity. Read this book to find out how Ness deals with an arrogant boy! ( I feel kinship with Ness, I am irish, a girl, and Christian!) I would have written more (and I did) but Safari quit and did not save my huge review (waaah). Even that did not capture the awesomeNESS (haha) of it, so I guess you will just have to get this book and read it! :)

[Cambria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story, but obviously written for a 4th or 5th grader...

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Normally I try not to read any of the history read alouds before we reach the unit I've chosen them for and we get to experience it together. However, I am really glad I read this one before starting it with my 11 year old as we will not be using it.

I found myself confused by this one. It is not for sensitive readers, the 9th century Vikings are portrayed as murdering for sport, and they describe 12 yr old Beorn watching in excitement as his father and kinsmen murder defenseless monks (pgs 23-24). I did not feel it explained well why Ness came to care for her captors like family and it came across to me much more like Stockholm Syndrome.

The overall message I got from the book was pride can cost us a great deal. The conversion to Christianity was also not believable after so much pointed ridicule by Beorn throughout the book. Suddenly in the last few pages, after being a fool and essentially causing the exile of his people, Beorn chooses Christianity. The few illustrations throughout were oddly chosen in my opinion and most portray hate and anger. I ended this book with a feeling of horror and distaste for Vikings, not one of Christianity prevailing or carrying you through a difficult time as a captured slave.

[Colin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book about a young Viking whose predominant personality trait is pride - Beorn - who captures a young Irish girl named Ness when his father's Vikings raid her village on the coast of Ireland. Beorn's father said no prisoners, but allows an exception for his son to take Ness as his thrall. She is carried away back to their home, evolving a sort of odd almost-friendship along the way (red flags!!!!), and later Beorn risks his life to save Ness. Later, after becoming involved in struggles for the very crown of Denmark, Beorn and his people are exiled from Denmark, and seek a place in Ireland among Ness' people (!!!!), and Beorn decides in the end to convert to Christianity, finally relinquishing his vain pride (!!!!). It is a disturbing story in many ways, but fairly typical of accounts from that period in history, so not necessarily unrealistic. I give it 4/5.

[Momschooled · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book takes you along on a youthful adventure during the time of the Vikings. A viking prince and his Catholic Irish slave girl teach the reader not only of their historical context but also of pride and humility.

I could have done without the Catholic references about praying to saints, but otherwise I enjoyed reading this to my children. I will pull this out again when my youngest children study Vikings.

[Dominika · Rating 5 out of 5]

A gem. I was looking for a fun historical fiction book to end our year of vikings with, but this unexpectedly served up Christian virtue ethics for the elementary crowd. And it was also just a great adventure story that had my kids gasping in shock or shrieking with joy throughout. When we got to the end my five year old hugged me and asked if I would buy a copy so she can read it by herself one day.

[Jenny Hartfelder · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was interesting enough and gave some insight into Viking culture, but it seemed more fictional than historical, but without an intimate knowledge of that time period, I couldn't necessarily discern which was which. I read it to determine if we would make it our next read aloud for school and I've decided it wouldn't be the best use of our read aloud time.

[Ruthie Planamenta · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am so impressed by this book!!! What a compelling tale of the conflict between Christian and Viking cultures, and all in an accesible way for my third graders! The ending was super predictable, of course, but I still appreciated it when we got there. I’d highly recommend this book to anyone’s upper elementary schooler looking for historical fiction, adventure, or challenging chapter books!

[Angel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my second or third reread of Beorn the Proud. It's always an enjoyable read! This is not just a great historical fiction story. The story is full of great underlying lessons as well as Viking adventure. Beorn's character development is well done, as is Ness's faithfulness. A perfect read if you are studying Vikings with your kids! I will have to add Kaspar's review later.

[Kelly Bailey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed reading this to my boys as part of our historical fiction for the year. Beautiful story about an Irish girl captured by Vikings and her journey to return to her homeland. It had me tearing up at times. Highly recommend for students young and older alike. The language may be a bit over their head but my kids followed along fine and are learning to appreciate beautiful literature.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was pretty good. I liked the story a lot. One of the only problems I have with it is there was almost romance but during the story but (SPOILER) the two main characters ended up being adopted siblings.
.....WHY?!?!?!
Anyway, the story was cute and I like their friendship and everything, so it was cool.

[Helen · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75 stars really

An enjoyable little read, about the time when the Vikings were raiding Ireland and northern England. There were some good images — on the ships at sea, on the land in the snow and ice – – and it also gave a good look at various types of Vikings. It wasn’t a totally surface, stereotype book, and I enjoyed it!

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Had to read this with my kids for school. They all enjoyed both female and male.

A pagan Viking boy, Beorn, takes a Catholic Irish girl, Ness, as a slave after a raid on her village. They come from different backgrounds and different religious values and that creates for many clashes between the two. Ness is a strong-willed girl and is a good match against Beorn's prideful attitude.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great read for your middle graders (although my 15 year old and I enjoyed it) if there are interested in or studying Vikings. A great story of courage and loss and restoration with a strong Christian thread. I highly recommend this book!

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story!!! Beautiful writing! Deep and rich and shows a beautiful picture of that time in history. Also, really insightful into the psychology of men vs women and a beautiful story of conversion.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read to kids for a history unit. They really liked it. I felt like the ending needed some more added to it...not necessarily a sequel, but a bit more detail. I can’t put my finger on it, but it was harder for me to get into the book.

[Mariah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was alright. It had a good storyline, but it seemed quite rushed in some parts, especially at the end. Nevertheless, it had a good moral of the story. I would recommend this for a young reader.

[Jennifer Bandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book for our 7 and 9 year old boys as a family read aloud. Due to some references to pagan rituals, I would wait before letting them read it by themselves. Since we are Protestant, the Catholicism represented also gives opportunity to discuss things and a family.

[Jaema · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a good book for kids between 4th and 7th grade. It has a happy ending and is full of interesting events but it's definitely not my favorite book ever.