Thor: Viking God of Thunder (Myths and Legends)

Good book focused on Thor and his beginnings anf mythology. Nice pictures and stories, but does not take account of his recent resurgence; mentions the latest movies, but stops at Marvel comic and movies. Nothing about neo-Aegardian interests and understandably light on historical religious practices. Nothing new to learn here, worthy of Wargames Research and Osprey fluff.

I already finished reading this book and I really enjoyed it. It goes into detail about Thor and his history. It even mentions not only Thor from Norse Mythology but also Thor from Marvel Comics.

This book was purchased to support 10th grade curriculum. I processed the book as I normally would and was startled when a student brought the book to me showing printing errors...lots of printing errors! Pages showing errors include 9, 10, 13, 14, 42, 43, 52, and 60. I have yet to scrutinize the other titles in this series I purchased. Yikes!

Wonderful condensed background material on an old legend that spans centuries. Found this book to be quick and entertaining read.

Great read

Excellent

With all the attention being paid to Thor lately, thanks to the Marvel same-named films and his appearances in the Avengers movies, Osprey Publishing made a wise decision to make the god the subject of one of their texts in their MYTHS AND LEGENDS series, this one written by Graeme Davis. I had been a little disappointed in my first MYTHS AND LEGENDS text, dealing with Jason and the Argonauts (giving it a three-star rating), but I found Thor: Viking God of Thunder to be an overall improvement on that first experience.The text, like all the Osprey books in the series, is slim, coming in at 80 pages, and begins with a brief introduction placing Thor in literary/historical/pop culture context. A short “cast list” comes next, offering up a 1-3 line description of several of the more prominent Norse gods and goddesses, followed by a similarly concise listing/description of the Nine Worlds settings.Davis moves us quickly then through some background on the sources for the upcoming stories, laying out the history of the Poetic Edda and the Prose Edda, as well as their structures. The myths begin on page 14, starting with “How Thor Got his Hammer,” and moving through “Thor and Utgardaloki” (one of the best-known tales, where Thor, unbeknownst to him almost empties the ocean and destroys the world by lifting up the Midgard Serpent), “Thor Hooks the Midgard Serpent, and ”Aegir’s Feast” (basically an insult contest involving Loki versus everyone else). The ensuing chapter focuses on other tales involving giants, including “Thor’s Duel with Hrungnir,” “Thrym’s Wedding,” (Thor has to dress as a bride to reclaim his stolen hammer), and “Thor and Geirrod,” These are all straight descriptive narratives, varying between simple summary and retellings. Davis switches to actual scene and dialogue with “Thor and Habard,” with Thor confronting a cantankerous ferryman (possibly Odin in disguise) who refuses to take him across the passage and instead hurls insult upon insult at him.After “Habard,” we get a concise but nicely detailed description of Ragnarok, the fall of the gods and rebirth of a new world. The retelling section of the text comes to a close with a chapter on a few myths that only barely mention Thor, such as “The Death of Balder” or “The Birth of Sleipnir.” After these, Davis quickly covers Thor’s religious role as opposed to his mythological one, tracing the god from early (first century) Germany through Anglo-Saxon England, the Vikings, and on into the overlap between Thor worship and Christianity, dealing with such areas as temples, icons, modes of worship, and the like. The last chapter takes Thor forward into the 19th and 20 Centuries, referencing Wagner, Hitler, and Marvel Comics along the way. Finally, the text closes with a glossary and a bibliography.As with other Osprey texts in the series, the narratives are supplemented by a large number of sidebars and illustrations. The sidebars here do a nice job of adding information that either fleshes out some aspects of the myths (expanding on Fenrir the wolf for instance) or gives a greater literary/historical understanding (the use of kennings or the tradition of the “insult duel). The illustrations are excellent: copious, varied in size (there are a pair of two-page spreads and multiple full-page panels to go with the numerous smaller ones), and including reproductions of paintings, film stills, woodcuts, stone carvings, illustrated texts, along with original black and white and color illustrations (Miguel Coimbra is the illustrator). They are a definite highlight. My only complaint is that there placement at times is a bit awkward with regard to the text, but really, they add so much to the text that this is a minor if sometimes annoying quibble.One of my complaints about Jason and the Argonauts was the flatness of the retelling, which robbed the tales of much of their excitement. That far less of an issue here.Davis prose is smooth and easy to follow, fluidly and concisely summarizing and retelling and shifting easily from straight non-fiction to more narrative form. While it isn’t quite as vivid or exciting as an out and out retelling, I’d say Davis strikes a nice balance here.Even though I’d been disappointed a bit in Jason, I still found it “worthwhile, informative, and complete.” Thor does all that and adds a more vibrant, entertaining dimension as well, making this a far easier recommendation. Osprey is so far doing a nice job with these works, offering up slim but informative information that will appeal to a broad range of ages and purposes, from younger students doing research to people just a bit curious.(this review originally appeared on fantasyliterature.com)

No. This isn’t Thornography. It’s simply a reference to the multiple facets the god of Thunder has which the author presents with elegance.Both the author and the illustrator are well known figures from the gaming world. Graeme Davis wrote one of the best GURPS supplements ever – GURPS Vikings; Miguel Coimbra is an extremely talented artist ever present in the gaming industry (both RPG’s and board games).This team created a fine work which shows the multiple aspects of Thor, the hero, the god, the folklore character, the national hero and even the super-hero.It analyses summarily with competence the sources for the Thor legends, including both the poetic and prose Edda, but also less known works such as Thorsdrapa.The main legends are “chronologically” arranged so that the reader can experience Thor’s adventures in logical sequences and include his most famous achievements such as how Thor got Mjolnir, the illusions at Utgardaloki, Aegir’s feast (and all related adventures such as the fishing of Jormungand, the cauldron of Hymir and the Flyting of Loki against all the gods), the duel against the biggest of giants – Hrungnir, Thor as a “bride” of Thrym, the assassination attempt by Geirrod, the Flyting between Harbard and Thor and the final battle at Ragnarok. There is also a resume of other legends where Thor made an appearance.The chapter Thor the god shows some rituals associated with Norse religion, sources for the temples and priesthood (although there wasn’t possibly “professional clergy”, there are clear references to priests who were local community leaders). The relations with Christianity and the progressive transformation of the god into a hero and folklore. The resurgence of Thor through the Romantic ideals of the 19th century and the nationalistic movements of the 20th century and finally to the well-loved comic book character (and also the silver screen hero).The color plates by Miguel Coimbra include: Thor wrestling the old woman Elli in the hall of Utgardaloki; Thor battling Jormungand while fishing with Hyrm; the quite comical grumpy Thor disguising himself as bride to the giant Thrym; Harbard (probably Odin) and Thor's famous Flyting contest (in this plate the contestants should be far apart); The last fight between the Midgard serpent and Thor; In the hall of Aegir Thor threatens Loki after the latter offends all guests; and a magnificent double page plate where Thor battles three huge giants.In this very good introduction to Thor you will also find a glossary, bibliography and internet resources where interested readers can analyze the sources in Old Norse and an English translation.

The book arrived promptly and in good condition. I was aware it was former library stock and was pleased to see it still had its protective plastic book cover.The book is beautifully illustrated and looks at the ancient god, his myths and also how he inspired Marvel's Thor. I would question a couple of minor points by the author; it is not a one stop shop for information on Thor. However as an introduction for beginners or a colourful addition to any library of mythology I would recommend it.

I came across this Osprey book in the Children's section of the Twelve,Days of Kindle, but really this is one for the adult or young adult being full of research, great variety of illustrations including some presumably commissioned for thus work, which for adults should perhaps be renamed, "A hundred things you always wanted to ask about Thor but never did?" This will make a good companion, with scenario ideas and plenty of detail, for those wargames using Osprey's myth based rules, "Of God's and Mortals" I heartily recommend this title.

I liked this book generally as I'd made repeated 'pop-cultural' contact with Thor, and wanted to know a little bit more about the original (so to speak).Covers all the bases and I didn't feel anything was missing - although a few more questions are raised than answered!

Interesting book following the stories and beliefs behind the worship of the god Thor, (Thunor) nicely illustrated through out good read for those who's interest has been peaked by the recent Marvel films and are wanting to know a little more

The book is a bit dry as it only gives a summary of the myths and legends rather telling them. Still, I know more after reading the book than I did before, so it served its purpose.