Skip to main content

Book Review: Norse Mythology, Neil Gaiman

Norse Mythology

Title: Norse Mythology
Author: Neil Gaiman
Published: 07/02/2017, Bloomsbury Publishing
Pages: 256
Source: Goodreads Giveaway
Format: ARC - Paperback
Rating: 3.5/5
Neil Gaiman has long been inspired by ancient mythology in creating the fantastical realms of his fiction. Now he turns his attention back to the source, presenting a bravura rendition of the great northern tales. In Norse Mythology, Gaiman fashions primeval stories into a novelistic arc that begins with the genesis of the legendary nine worlds; delves into the exploits of the deities, dwarves, and giants; and culminates in Ragnarok, the twilight of the gods and the rebirth of a new time and people. Gaiman stays true to the myths while vividly reincarnating Odin, the highest of the high, wise, daring, and cunning; Thor, Odin's son, incredibly strong yet not the wisest of gods; and Loki, the son of giants, a trickster and unsurpassable manipulator. From Gaiman's deft and witty prose emerges the gods with their fiercely competitive natures, their susceptibility to being duped and to dupe others, and their tendency to let passion ignite their actions, making these long-ago myths breathe pungent life again.

Well... I finally read my very first Gaiman and, I can definitely tell you know, I will be reading more! Norse Mythology is a fantastic, simple and fairly easy read centred on the Norse Gods. Prior to reading Norse Mythology, my knowledge of the Norse Gods was, it's safe to say, very limited. In fact, I think I was only aware of a few of their names. But this book was just so enjoyable that I can't wait to read more about them.

I really enjoyed the characters and Gaiman has a wonderful way of bringing them to life. I particularly liked Loki, though I don't think I would ever want to meet him! Haha! He's just so mischievous and conniving.

Norse Mythology is told via various short stories from a variety of characters. Though they are mainly centred on Odin, Thor and Loki. For someone with next-to-no prior knowledge, I found their stories so unique. Some are quite sad and some are more on the funny side.

I found Norse Mythology a very fast read - I would have probably read it in a day if I'd had the time! I also liked how all the stories sort of linked together - I may be wrong but I think there was a bit of a chronological order to them.

I really enjoyed Norse Mythology and would definitely recommend it those who want to learn or read more about the Norse Gods. I think those who haven't ever read Gaiman before, like me, can also appreciate this collection of stories. I honestly can't wait to read more Gaiman now!




Follow me via Goodreads, Twitter, Bloglovin, and Pinterest.

Feel free to leave a comment.
Labels:

Comments

  1. Greg24 January 2017 at 09:43

    Ooh this is the first review I've seen of this. I haven't read Gaiman before and this might be a good place to start. Love the Norse stuff- and a nice cover too!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lauren25 January 2017 at 08:17

      I thought it was a great start to reading Gaiman and since this I've also read another of his. I definitely learnt a lot reading this one.

      Delete
  2. Rebecca24 January 2017 at 14:57

    I. Am. So. Jealous. I want this book so bad. I hate having to wait!
    Rebecca @ The Portsmouth Review
    Follow me on Bloglovin'

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lauren25 January 2017 at 08:20

      Aww! I hope you get your hands on it as soon as possible. Not long to go now until the publish date.

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Feature and Follow (21 August)

The Feature & Follow is hosted by TWO hosts, Parajunkee of  Parajunkee’s View  and Alison of  Alison Can Read . Each host will have their own Feature Blog and this way it’ll allow us to show off more new blogs!
12 comments
Read more

Book Beginnnings, The Friday 56 and Feature and Follow (15 May)

Book Beginnings is a meme hosted every Friday by  Rose City Reader  where you share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the opener inspires.  Please remember to include the title of the book and the author’s name.
22 comments
Read more

Discussion: The Problem With My Local Library

I used to use my local library all the time when I was in school.  Source I even spent every lunchtime in my school's library. My friends and I were pupil librarians and we practically had the run of the whole library. And then, when I started University, the only library I had time for was the University library. And that wasn't an enjoyable experience. However, last summer I started going to my local library again. (I then had to stop again when I got my job.) And unfortunately, I was pretty disappointed.  Source The availability sucks. I can deal with books I want that are already out on loan. It's the complete lack of decent books the library has on its system that gets to me. All those months I went to the library last year and I never left with a book that was already on my TBR. I walked around that place looking at my Goodreads trying to find any book on that list. And I couldn't find any at all (except for the Classics). To be honest, I ...
20 comments
Read more