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Sagas of Warrior-poets
By Leifur Eiricksson. 1997
Kormak's Saga, The Saga of Hallfred Troublesome-Poet, The Saga of Gunnlaug Serpent-Tongue, The Saga of Bjorn, Champion of the Hitardal…
People, Viglund's Saga Set in the farmsteads of Viking age Iceland at a time when the old ethos of honour and heroic adventure merged with new ideas of romantic infatuation, each of these sagas features poet heroes, complex love triangles, and travels to foreign lands.In Iceland, the age of the Vikings is also known as the Saga Age. A unique body of medieval literature,…
the Sagas rank with the world’s great literary treasures – as epic as Homer, as deep in tragedy as Sophocles, as engagingly human as Shakespeare. Set around the turn of the last millennium, these stories depict with an astonishingly modern realism the lives and deeds of the Norse men and women who first settled in Iceland and of their descendants, who ventured farther west to Greenland and, ultimately, North America. Sailing as far from the archetypal heroic adventure as the long ships did from home, the Sagas are written with psychological intensity, peopled by characters with depth, and explore perennial human issues like love, hate, fate and freedom.Sagas and Myths of the Northmen
By Jesse Byock. 2006
In a land of ice, great warriors search for glory...When a dragon threatens the people of the north, only one…
man can destroy the fearsome beast. Elsewhere, a mighty leader gathers a court of champions, including a noble warrior under a terrible curse. The Earth's creation is described; tales of the gods and evil Frost Giants are related; and the dark days of Ragnarok foretold.Journey into a realm of legend, where heroes from an ancient age do battle with savage monsters, and every man must live or die by the sword ...The Saga of the Volsungs: The Norse Epic of Sigurd the Dragon Slayer
By Jesse Byock. 1990
The epic Viking Age stories that inspired J. R. R. Tolkien and Wagner's Ring cycleWritten in thirteenth-century Iceland but based…
on ancient Norse poetry cycles, The Saga of the Volsungs combines mythology, legend and sheer human drama. It tells of the cursed treasure of the Rhine, a sword reforged and a magic ring of power, and at its heart are the heroic deeds of Sigurd the dragon slayer, who acquires magical knowledge from one of Odin's Valkyries. One of the great books of world literature, the saga is an unforgettable tale of princely jealousy, unrequited love, greed, vengeance and the downfall of a dynasty. Translated with an Introduction by Jesse L. ByockPart of a new series Legends from the Ancient North, Beowulf is one of the classic books that influenced JRR…
Tolkien's The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings'So the company of men led a careless life,All was well with them: until One beganTo encompass evil, an enemy from hell.Grendel they called this cruel spirit...'J.R.R. Tolkien spent much of his life studying, translating and teaching the great epic stories of northern Europe, filled with heroes, dragons, trolls, dwarves and magic. He was hugely influential for his advocacy of Beowulf as a great work of literature and, even if he had never written The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, would be recognised today as a significant figure in the rediscovery of these extraordinary tales.Legends from the Ancient North brings together from Penguin Classics five of the key works behind Tolkien's fiction.They are startling, brutal, strange pieces of writing, with an elemental power brilliantly preserved in these translations.They plunge the reader into a world of treachery, quests, chivalry, trials of strength.They are the most ancient narratives that exist from northern Europe and bring us as near as we will ever get to the origins of the magical landscape of Middle-earth (Midgard) which Tolkien remade in the 20th century.The Saga of the People of Laxardal and Bolli Bollason's Tale
By Leifur Eiricksson. 1997
The action of the saga takes place at the end of the tenth century, at about the time Scandinavia was…
converting from worship of Norse gods to Christianity. A masterpiece of medieval literature, the story focuses on two families — that of Hoskuld, a prominent farmer with several sons, and that of Gudrun, the most beautiful woman ever born in Iceland.The Saga of King Hrolf Kraki
By Jesse Byock. 1998
Composed in medieval Iceland, Hrolf's Saga is one of the greatest of all mythic-legendary sagas, relating half-fantastical events that were…
said to have occurred in fifth-century Denmark. It tells of the exploits of King Hrolf and of his famous champions, including Bodvar Bjarki, the 'bear-warrior': a powerful figure whose might and bear-like nature are inspired by the same legendary heritage as Beowulf. Depicting a world of wizards, sorceresses and 'berserker' fighters - originally members of a cult of Odin - this is a compelling tale of ancient magic. A work of timeless power and beauty, it offers both a treasury of Icelandic prose and a masterful gathering of epic, cultic memory, traditional folk tale and myths from the Viking age and far earlier.The Saga of Grettir the Strong
By Örnólfur Thorsson. 2005
Composed at the end of the fourteenth century by an unknown author, The Saga of Grettir the Strong is one…
of the last great Icelandic sagas. It relates the tale of Grettir, an eleventh-century warrior struggling to hold on to the values of a heroic age becoming eclipsed by Christianity and a more pastoral lifestyle. Unable to settle into a community of farmers, Grettir becomes the aggressive scourge of both honest men and evil monsters - until, following a battle with the sinister ghost Glam, he is cursed to endure a life of tortured loneliness away from civilisation, fighting giants, trolls and berserks. A mesmerising combination of pagan ideals and Christian faith, this is a profoundly moving conclusion to the Golden Age of the saga writing.Russian Magic Tales from Pushkin to Platonov
By Robert Chandler, Elizabeth Chandler, Sibelan Forrester, Anna Gunin and Olga Meerson, Olga Meerson. 2012
'She turned into a frog, into a lizard, into all kinds of other reptiles and then into a spindle'In these…
tales, young women go on long and difficult quests, wicked stepmothers turn children into geese and tsars ask dangerous riddles, with help or hindrance from magical dolls, cannibal witches, talking skulls, stolen wives, and brothers disguised as wise birds. Half the tales here are true oral tales, collected by folklorists during the last two centuries, while the others are reworkings of oral tales by four great Russian writers: Alexander Pushkin, Nadezhda Teffi, Pavel Bazhov and Andrey Platonov. In his introduction to these new translations, Robert Chandler writes about the primitive magic inherent in these tales and the taboos around them, while in the afterword, Sibelan Forrester discusses the witch Baba Yaga. This edition also includes an appendix, bibliography and notes. Translated by Robert Chandler and Elizabeth ChandlerWith Sibelan Forrester, Anna Gunin and Olga MeersonRomantic Fairy Tales
By Carol Tully. 2000
The four works collected in this volume reveal the fascinating preoccupations of the German Romantic movement, which revelled in the…
inexplicable, the uncanny and the unknown and, especially, the mysterious world of the fairy tale. Goethe's richly imaginative Fairy Tale (1795) depicts an ethereal underground realm and the marriage of a beautiful man and woman, whose union heralds a new age. In Tieck's Eckbert the Fair (1797) two outsiders seek refuge in the solitude of dark woods to conceal their incestuous passion from the world, while in Fouque's Undine (1811) a water nymph falls in love and acquires a soul, and so discovers the reality of human suffering. And Brentano's Tale of Honest Casper and Fair Annie (1817) portrays the tragedy of a young couple, destroyed by a false sense of honour and pride.The Romance of Tristan: The Tale of Tristan's Madness
By Beroul. 1970
One of the earliest extant versions of the Tristan and Yseut story, Beroul's French manuscript of The Romance of Tristan…
dates back to the middle of the twelfth century. It recounts the legend of Tristan, nephew of King Mark of Cornwall, and the king's Irish wife Yseut, who fall passionately in love after mistakenly drinking a potion. Their illicit romance remains secret for many years, but the relentless suspicion of the king's barons and the fading effects of the magic draught eventually lead to tragedy for the lovers. While Beroul's work emphasizes the impulsive and often brutal behaviour of the characters, its sympathetic depiction of two people struggling against their destiny is one of the most powerful versions of this enduringly popular legend.Robinson Crusoe
By Daniel Defoe. 2010
Discover the legendary story of a marine adventurer shipwrecked on a desert island. Robinson Crusoe runs away from home to…
join the navy. After a series of adventures at sea, he is shipwrecked in a devastating storm, and finds himself alone on a remote desert island. He remains there many years, building a life for himself in solitude, until the day he discovers another man's footprint in the sand... ‘Robinson Crusoe has a universal appeal, a story that goes right to the core of existence’ GuardianReturn of the Magi: A heartwarming Christmas story
By P. J. Tracy. 2017
Warm your heart this Christmas with this wonderful festive tale from bestselling author P.J. Tracy - perfect for fans of…
It's a Wonderful Life or Miracle on 34th Street.Emil Rice has a silver tongue and sticky fingers, the only problem is that his charm always gets him into trouble and he's never been very good at not getting arrested. Twenty-two times he's been caught and twenty-two times he's sworn never to steal again, but it's on his twenty-third arrest when Emil realises he may have picked up more than he bargained for. Sentenced to community service at a secure mental health facility, Emil is unwillingly befriended by two elderly female patients who believe he is the final part of a big cosmic plan that will change their lives forever... This heartwarming Christmas tale of kindness, friendship and redemption will be perfect for the cold winter nights!Readers of Clive Cussler, Bernard Cornwell and Wilbur Smith will love this gripping, spell-binding and unputdownable WW2 historical adventure full…
of vivid battle scenes and masterful characterisation from multi-million copy bestselling author Douglas Reeman. Guaranteed to have you hooked from page one...'One of our foremost writers of naval fiction' -- Sunday Times'A wonderfully entertaining book' -- ***** Reader review'Another brilliant story from the master of sea battles, I thoroughly enjoyed this book from start to finish' -- ***** Reader review'Well-paced & difficult to put down' -- ***** Reader review'Highly rated indeed. Excellent!' -- ***** Reader review*****************************************************************************1941: the S.S. Benbecula is already old when she is turned into an armed merchant cruiser,.Yet even she is needed to protect the vital Atlantic sea lanes.Commander Lindsay, her new captain, has to work desperately to mould the ship's company - raw recruits and old timers - into a fighting force.And better than anyone, Lindsay knows this could be his last command, his last chance...Rama the Steadfast: An Early Form of the Ramayana
By M Valmiki. 2006
Warrior-prince Rama is about to be crowned Young King, when he hears the devastating news that his father, King of…
Ayodhya, has been tricked into banishing him to the forest. His devoted wife Sita insists on accompanying him in exile, but the evil ten-headed lord Ravana has fallen deeply in love with the beautiful princess and steals her away. Aided by Hanuman, mighty captain of the monkeys, Rama sets out across the world to find her and destroy Ravana in a deadly battle. Rama the Steadfast was composed in the oral tradition in about the fifth century BC and has been retold over the generations ever since. With its fantastical characters ranging from monsters to apes, a very human hero and its profound moral purpose, it is one of the greatest of all Indian tales.The Prose Edda: Also Called Snorre's Edda Or The Prose Edda
By Jesse Byock. 2005
The Prose Edda is the most renowned of all works of Scandinavian literature and our most extensive source for Norse…
mythology. Written in Iceland a century after the close of the Viking Age, it tells ancient stories of the Norse creation epic and recounts the battles that follow as gods, giants, dwarves and elves struggle for survival. It also preserves the oral memory of heroes, warrior kings and queens. In clear prose interspersed with powerful verse, the Edda provides unparalleled insight into the gods' tragic realization that the future holds one final cataclysmic battle, Ragnarok, when the world will be destroyed. These tales from the pagan era have proved to be among the most influential of all myths and legends, inspiring modern works as diverse as Wagner's Ring Cycle and Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings.Forget the bunny trail.…In this addition to the groundbreaking series from the legendary William Joyce, Guardian E. Astor Bunnymund is…
on the warpath.Pitch, the Nightmare King, and his Fearlings had been soundly driven back by Nicholas St. North and company in the first Guardians’ adventure. But now Pitch has disappeared completely—and out of sight does NOT make for out of mind. It seems certain that he’s plotting a particularly nefarious revenge, and the Guardians suspect he might have gone underground. But how can they find him there? Enter E. Aster Bunnymund, the only emissary of the fabled brotherhood of the Pookas—the league of philosophical warrior rabbits of imposing intellect and size. Highly skilled in martial arts (many of which he invented himself), Bunnymund is brilliant, logical, and a tunnel-digger extraordinaire. If the Guardians need paths near the Earth’s core, he’s their Pooka. He’s also armed with magnificent weapons of an oval-sort, and might just be able to help in the quest for the second piece of the Moonclipper.This second book in The Guardians series is about much more than fixing a few rotten eggs—it brings the Guardians one step closer to defeating Pitch!Zeus and the Thunderbolt of Doom (Heroes in Training #1)
By Joan Holub, Suzanne Williams. 2012
After pulling a magical thunderbolt from a stone, ten-year-old Zeus goes on the adventure of a lifetime in this thrilling…
start to a brand-new series!The terrible Titans—merciless giants who enjoy snacking on humans—have dominated the earth and put the world into chaos. But their rule is about to be put to the test as a group of young Olympians discover their powers and prepare to righteously rule the universe....Ten-year-old Zeus is mystified (and super-annoyed) by the fact that he keeps getting hit by lightening. Every. Single. Year. He also longs for adventure, as he has never been far from the cave where he grew up.Zeus gets his wish—and a lot more than he bargained for—when he is kidnapped by dangerous, giant Titans! In self-defense, Zeus grabs the first thing he sees—an actual thunderbolt he pulls from a stone that is covered in mysterious markings. Zeus is the only one who can decipher the markings, and sets off on a quest to rescue his fellow Olympians from the evil Cronus. Armed with his trusty thunderbolt (named Bolt, of course), Zeus is on an adventure of a lifetime—and a journey to fulfill his destiny as King of the Gods.Welcome to Wagmire (Itty Bitty Princess Kitty #7)
By Melody Mews. 2021
Itty visits Puppy Prince in his royal kingdom of Wagmire in this seventh Itty Bitty Princess Kitty chapter book.Once Itty…
arrives at Wagmire, she gets a fabulous royal welcome as Prince Pip shows her all his favorite spots, including Magic Mountain Lake. There&’s so much to do and so much to see that Itty excitedly wanders off by herself…only to get lost in a place she doesn&’t know! Will Itty be able to find her way back to the palace before the welcome celebrations are over?With easy-to-read language and illustrations on every page, the Itty Bitty Princess Kitty chapter books are perfect for emerging readers.Double Dip (Candy Fairies #9)
By Helen Perelman. 2012
Dash and Cocoa are on track to win the Double Dip sled race—but only if the rest of the Candy…
Fairies can help them!Dash, the mintiest and speediest candy fairy, has been invited to compete in the Double Dip sled race at Mt. Ice Cream. She chooses Cocoa as her racing partner and asks the other Candy Fairies to come along for the delicious adventure. Dash notices a tickle in her throat and isn’t feeling so minty, but she doesn’t tell any of her fairy friends because the race is so important to her. When Dash’s throat gets worse and she and Cocoa start arguing, the Double Dip race is in double jeopardy. How will the Candy Fairies get Dash and Cocoa back on track to sweet victory?