But in the Greek myths, the main gods and goddesses just keep going. Gaiman also explains what fascinated him as a boy about the myths: they are full of tragic heroes and villains 'with their own doomsday: Ragnarok, the twilight of the gods, the end of it all.' In both Norse and Greek mythologies the gods and goddesses are powerful, flawed beings who embody human traits or forces of nature and give appropriate justice or unexpected trouble, and who appear in stories that feature origins, metamorphoses, and ethical messages on hospitality, oath keeping, and the like.

what the rainbow was, and how to live their lives, and where bad poetry comes from.' He achieves his aims. I hope that they paint a picture of a world and a time' of 'long winter nights' and 'the unending daylight of midsummer,' when people 'wanted to know. He would drown in a vat of mead late one night, hunting in the darkness for a place to piss.' In his introduction, Gaiman says that 'I've tried my best to retell these myths and stories as accurately as I can, and as interestingly as I can. Near the end of the only romantic happy ending story in Neil Gaiman's Norse Mythology (2017), Gaiman makes a brilliantly ironic aside: 'Their wedding was blessed, and some say their son, Fjolnir, went on to become the first king of Sweden. From Gaiman's deft and witty prose emerge the gods with their fiercely competitive natures, their susceptibility to being duped and to duping others, and their tendency to let passion ignite their actions, making these long-ago myths breathe pungent life again.Ī Comedy-Tragedy of Gods Giants Dwarfs & Monsters 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 a giant, a trickster and unsurpassable manipulator. 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.

Now he turns his attention back to the source, presenting a bravura rendition of the great northern tales. Neil Gaiman has long been inspired by ancient mythology in creating the fantastical realms of his fiction. Introducing an instant classic - master storyteller Neil Gaiman presents a dazzling version of the great Norse myths.

Audible norse mythology