Book 24
The Poetic Edda: Stories of the Norse Gods and Heroes by Unknown
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I've heard/read bits of this over the years, especially when I was working on the Norse myths but I had never sat down to read them. (this was not the edition I read, just the first that came up. I downloaded mine from Gutenberg). My translation was rough to read because it still has very archaic English (lots of thees and thous) and to be honest this was bordering on dull.
It was interesting in context however. These were the stories of a people and I'm sure in an oral tradition they would have been more rousing. (in fact I know they are. I have listened to them in the original language which no, I don't speak but was fascinated by the cadence) Much of it was one territorial battle after the other. The one that did stick with me was of a king and his children. He was defeated in battle and his son was left for dead in the wilderness. His sister nursed him back to health and then slept with him because she wanted a son that was related to her king father on BOTH sides so he'd be a super warrior for their line and it worked. Thanks for that Poetic Edda. Shudders.
If you're interested in Norse heritage, it would be a good read for you (especially for authors trying to capture the flavor of these people) but they can be slow if you're not into battle scenes.
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