a great romp through medieval Iceland and Snorri Sturleson, the man responsible for much of what we know about Viking mythology. ( )

Good book if you enjoy meandering and odd bits like on page 54 "Egil too was a hard drinker. When he was a 3 years old his father, Sala-Grim, refused to take him to a feast, telling him," You don't know how to behave yourself when there's company gathered and a lot of drinking going on. You're difficult enough to cope with when you are sober." I read it slowly in part because the names and kinship ties can be hard to follow. For folks who are interested more in the influences on Tolkien, the first and last chapters will be of primary influence. ( )

An Early Reviewer win.
I never knew that much about Snorri (though I always adored his name). I was therefore intrigued to read about the man behind so many of the sagas. What I did not know was how much of what I thought was traditional Norse myth was in fact his creation. This book is a great blend of history and literature and really makes me want to visit Iceland. I highly recommend it. ( )

I love reading about the Norse myths, about Viking history. And when it comes to the source for Norse myth, most of it comes from one man, Snorri Sturulson. I was expecting more myth in this book, and less about Snorri. That would have been OK, because he was a great subject for a book, full of contradictions, living at a time of change. But somehow, it just wasn't that interesting. I kept falling asleep reading this one. Kind of a disappointment. ( )

As someone who has always held a love of mythology, but who is quite lacking in the Norse area, I leapt at the chance to read this book on Snorri and the history of Norse myths.

It was quite an interesting read, but I guess I was expecting a bit more mythology and a bit less history of Snorri himself. I did enjoy learning about him and his family tree; I found the Icelandic history surrounding his story rather fascinating. It was all brand new information to me, and I'm always pleased to learn about important pieces of history, especially when they're so full of adventure and intrigue!

I did feel slightly shorted on the mythology aspect, though. Norse mythology is so unique in many respects, it's just enchanting, so I was hoping to get a more full view of all these myths that we have Snorri to thank for our awareness of. So, if you're looking strictly for myths, you may not be too keen on this book. But if you're looking for a little mythology with all the history surrounding it, look no further! ( )