NORSE MYTHOLOGY by Neil Gaiman

3 Stars

Gaiman put together a compilation of favorite tales from Norse mythology and retold them in his own voice. Stories die out if they're not told, and this collection pays homage to the bards of old by reweaving the tales for a new audience. This gives an overview of Norse mythology following key events from the beginning to Ragnarok.

I had a few favorites:

Sleipnir's origins--LOL Loki.

Freya's wedding--LOL Thor.

Loki's children--I have a soft spot for Fenrir.

Poor Freya. The gods are always ready to throw her under the bus by marrying her off.

Again, Loki. The whole deal with the billy goat took some serious cojones.

Finally, it ends as it should with Ragnarok:

This will be the age of cruel winds, the age of people who become as wolves, who prey upon each other, who are no different than wild beasts. Twilight will come to the world, and the places that humans live will fall into ruins, flaming briefly, then crashing down and crumbling into ash and devastation. 

So, some readers are probably going, 'why did he bother?" Well, for one, I've had a few sagas on my to be read list for quite sometime and while I really enjoy reading them: The Táin: From the Irish epic Táin Bó Cúailnge, Y Gododdin, Beowulf, etc., they were not easily accessible to read. Frankly, this was painless and fun because you could laugh at the stories without decoding them. So, for an introduction to readers of all ages--okay maybe not young children because the gods were not PC creatures and there's some funny stories here that a teen to adult would be better situated to understand.

I am now ready for Ragnarok!