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A review by jon_o88
Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman
5.0
Re-read (16/12/20) - 5 ⭐
Initial Read (19/5/19) - 4 ⭐
I’ve fallen for Norse Mythology as unequivocally and as whole-heartedly as Frey, Brother of Freya, fell for the beautiful Giantess, Gerd. Gaiman’s ‘Norse Mythology’ is the closest thing I’ve found, thus far, to literary comfort food and I can see myself coming back time and time again to these stories that range from Humorous and Whimsical to Tragic and Epic, but always peculiar. Very peculiar. If you’re a lover of Greek or Egyptian Mythology but haven’t delved into Scandinavian, or if your knowledge of Norse Mythology is limited to the Marvel Universe, you really must do yourself the kindness of picking up this wonderful little book.
Given that this re-read was my first-ever audiobook experience, I suppose I should make comment on that. Firstly, thank you to my friend Aoife who suggested the audiobook when I mentioned I was eager to re-read it. It was a masterclass in story-telling, narrated by Neil Gaiman himself. His enthusiasm and passion for the source material is apparent as early as the introduction in which he all but confesses his favouritism of Norse Mythology over others. He voices all characters superbly, with oddities specific to each individual, apparent. Thor is Mr.Bombastic himself, Loki sounds sly and mischievous, Odin sounds wise and all-knowing, it’s all spot on. I don’t drink warm cocoa or have a fire to sit by but I would imagine that’s the ideal means by which to settle in and listen to this veritable dessert platter of curious tales.
I will mention that I had to go back to the paperback for 2 very short chapters, ‘Before the Beginning, and After’ and ‘Yggdrasil and the Nine Worlds’ due to the shear number of obscure names of people and places spat out in a brief account of the beginning of everything. But they are exceptions, once you get to the more story-driven chapters, the audio medium is perfect.
”That was the thing about Loki. You resented him even when you were at your most grateful, and you were grateful to him even when you hated him the most”.
Ultimately, like everything, these tales are a result of cause and effect. With Loki invariably being the cause, and the effects ranging from the birth of Sleipnir the eight-legged horse, the result of inter-species intercourse between God and Horse, to the creation of the legendary weapons Mjollnir (Thor’s hammer) and Gungnir (Odin’s spear), and finally to Ragnarok, both the beginning and the violent end of the world as it is and as it will be. Everything that the Gods own must have a name! Megingjord (Thor’s belt of strength), Naglfar (a boat made entirely of the fingernails and toenails of the dead) and many of these names were familiar to me as I’ve seen them used, time and time again, in Movies, TV and comic books but never more copiously than in video games where RPG’s like Elder Scrolls or Final Fantasy make endless references to these legendary Gods and their treasures. ‘God of War’ is another recent example of a game that brought these tales to life in extraordinary detail. The influence is widespread.
As Neil makes clear in the introduction there are a few inconsistencies and contradictions from myth to myth. One such example is the generous palming-out of the title “Wisest of the Gods”. Mimir who is just a head and whose well Odin drinks from to gain wisdom and clarity, is the wisest of all the Gods. But Kvasir, who was born of the saliva of the Aesir and the Vanir is THE wisest of the Gods. At the Same time, Odin The All father is the WISEST of the Gods…. Hmm, at times you could be forgiven for thinking Trump may have written the first manuscripts of Norse Mythology, which he would claim, and for once I might agree, are “The greatest! The likes of which the World has never seen before”. There are a number of these quirks but these are ancient tales, it is what it is. Make a game of picking out the inconsistencies, I did, it doesn’t hurt the experience.
The only thing that disappointed me about this collection of myths is that it is not more substantial but this is no fault of Gaimans. It’s largely due to the fact that “record-keeping” wasn’t at the top of the priorities list for the Scandinavian people of the early middle-ages. Storytelling was very much an oral tradition for the Icelanders and the stories were only collected into manuscripts beginning in the 13th Century. These early texts include the Prose Edda and the Poetic Edda, The former composed by Snorri Sturluson (Great name!), the latter anonymously composed. I’ll definitely be needing to read them both to satiate my new North Germanic addiction!
Happy reading! :)
“There is no end. It is simply the end of the old times, Loki, and the beginning of the new times. Rebirth always follows death.”
Initial Read (19/5/19) - 4 ⭐
I’ve fallen for Norse Mythology as unequivocally and as whole-heartedly as Frey, Brother of Freya, fell for the beautiful Giantess, Gerd. Gaiman’s ‘Norse Mythology’ is the closest thing I’ve found, thus far, to literary comfort food and I can see myself coming back time and time again to these stories that range from Humorous and Whimsical to Tragic and Epic, but always peculiar. Very peculiar. If you’re a lover of Greek or Egyptian Mythology but haven’t delved into Scandinavian, or if your knowledge of Norse Mythology is limited to the Marvel Universe, you really must do yourself the kindness of picking up this wonderful little book.
Given that this re-read was my first-ever audiobook experience, I suppose I should make comment on that. Firstly, thank you to my friend Aoife who suggested the audiobook when I mentioned I was eager to re-read it. It was a masterclass in story-telling, narrated by Neil Gaiman himself. His enthusiasm and passion for the source material is apparent as early as the introduction in which he all but confesses his favouritism of Norse Mythology over others. He voices all characters superbly, with oddities specific to each individual, apparent. Thor is Mr.Bombastic himself, Loki sounds sly and mischievous, Odin sounds wise and all-knowing, it’s all spot on. I don’t drink warm cocoa or have a fire to sit by but I would imagine that’s the ideal means by which to settle in and listen to this veritable dessert platter of curious tales.
I will mention that I had to go back to the paperback for 2 very short chapters, ‘Before the Beginning, and After’ and ‘Yggdrasil and the Nine Worlds’ due to the shear number of obscure names of people and places spat out in a brief account of the beginning of everything. But they are exceptions, once you get to the more story-driven chapters, the audio medium is perfect.
”That was the thing about Loki. You resented him even when you were at your most grateful, and you were grateful to him even when you hated him the most”.
Ultimately, like everything, these tales are a result of cause and effect. With Loki invariably being the cause, and the effects ranging from the birth of Sleipnir the eight-legged horse, the result of inter-species intercourse between God and Horse, to the creation of the legendary weapons Mjollnir (Thor’s hammer) and Gungnir (Odin’s spear), and finally to Ragnarok, both the beginning and the violent end of the world as it is and as it will be. Everything that the Gods own must have a name! Megingjord (Thor’s belt of strength), Naglfar (a boat made entirely of the fingernails and toenails of the dead) and many of these names were familiar to me as I’ve seen them used, time and time again, in Movies, TV and comic books but never more copiously than in video games where RPG’s like Elder Scrolls or Final Fantasy make endless references to these legendary Gods and their treasures. ‘God of War’ is another recent example of a game that brought these tales to life in extraordinary detail. The influence is widespread.
As Neil makes clear in the introduction there are a few inconsistencies and contradictions from myth to myth. One such example is the generous palming-out of the title “Wisest of the Gods”. Mimir who is just a head and whose well Odin drinks from to gain wisdom and clarity, is the wisest of all the Gods. But Kvasir, who was born of the saliva of the Aesir and the Vanir is THE wisest of the Gods. At the Same time, Odin The All father is the WISEST of the Gods…. Hmm, at times you could be forgiven for thinking Trump may have written the first manuscripts of Norse Mythology, which he would claim, and for once I might agree, are “The greatest! The likes of which the World has never seen before”. There are a number of these quirks but these are ancient tales, it is what it is. Make a game of picking out the inconsistencies, I did, it doesn’t hurt the experience.
The only thing that disappointed me about this collection of myths is that it is not more substantial but this is no fault of Gaimans. It’s largely due to the fact that “record-keeping” wasn’t at the top of the priorities list for the Scandinavian people of the early middle-ages. Storytelling was very much an oral tradition for the Icelanders and the stories were only collected into manuscripts beginning in the 13th Century. These early texts include the Prose Edda and the Poetic Edda, The former composed by Snorri Sturluson (Great name!), the latter anonymously composed. I’ll definitely be needing to read them both to satiate my new North Germanic addiction!
Happy reading! :)
“There is no end. It is simply the end of the old times, Loki, and the beginning of the new times. Rebirth always follows death.”