The Viking Spirit: An Introduction to Norse Mythology and Religion Kindle Edition

This book is intended as a introduction to Norse/Viking Mythology and culture for the layman. It is written in a fairly accessible style and contains a plethora of information and retells many of the best known tales from Norse Mythology. It also includes many footnotes and a large bibliography if one is inclined to read deeper about these topics. However, there are some pretty substantial flaws in the book that a potential reader should be aware of:1) The author presents his own theories about Norse Mythology as almost undisputed fact. The two cases that leap to mind are (a) his theory (Which I personally agree with) that the goddesses Frigg and Freyja were originally the same figure. While this is a valid theory, he doesn't spend nearly enough time discussing why he came to this conclusion or presenting the opposing viewpoint that they are two separate figures. The other (b) is his theory that the idea of Norse Cyclical Time (ie, that the world renews after Ragnarok) is a late Christian influenced addition. There may in fact be merit to this theory, as there is identifiable Christian influence in some of the written versions of the myths that have come down to us (especially in Snorri's Edda), but he makes his case in a few sentences and quickly dismisses the traditional interpretations of the myth, even adding a snarky comment to the end of his rendition of Ragnarok that anyone who believes in the rebirth of the world doesn't understand what has gone before.2) The author is condescending. I am used to reading both academic and popular books on religion and mythology and often the authors, especially in academic works, take on a voice of authority that can be off-putting. This author, however, often condescends to the reader and disparages any interpretation of the myths that is not his own. When faced with contradictions in the source material, instead of just appreciating that Nordic culture wasn't monolithic, he often dismisses anything that doesn't fit with his own vision of Viking society as being either Christian embellishments, or being made up fictions by Snorri.3) The second half of the book contains retellings of many tales from Norse Mythology preceded by a short note on each story. The notes are helpful, but often he mentions having used two sources for his version, but doesn't mention what he changed or what he took from each source. He presents two versions of Baldr's death (one based on Snorri's Prose Edda and one based on Saxo Grammaticus' Gesta Danorum) and pretty well dismisses the Eddic version as being not "authentic" due to supposed Christian influences on Snorri (These could be valid, but he doesn't give any kind of balanced argument for this) and states that, while they could just be regional variations, it is more likely to him that the Gesta Danorum version is more "authentic," without mentioning that this version is a Euhemeristic retelling of the Norse myths that is near contemporaneous with the writing of the Prose Edda and that Saxo himself was likely a Christian and possibly clergy. I don't personally know enough about Saxo or his work to know what may have influenced his writing or what his sources were, but these things are never mentioned in this book.4) These classic Norse Myths are retold is a very simple style, which is not necessarily a bad thing. Simplicity can make tales such as these more accessible for a modern reader. However, these simply retelling retain none of the charm or style of the Eddic originals and can be fairly bland and boring (I had trouble muddling through the last half of the book). For a modern retelling of these tales I much preferred Neil Gaiman's Norse Mythology.In short, this book contains a lot of interesting material and some basic retellings of Norse Mythology, but potential readers should be aware of the above flaws before reading or accepting what the author says as accurate.

The Viking Spirit by Daniel McCoy was my second venture into Norse "religion" and Mythology. The book is probably as good a place to begin as any when digging into what actually remains of pre Christian Norse beliefs. The book is divided into two sections, the first one hundred twenty pages or so deal with Norse religion, followed by one hundred fourth eight pages of Norse myths.Dealing first with the myths, McCoy precedes each myth with an introduction to the myth, possible sources, possible Christian and or Middle Ages influence, and an educated guess at how much of the myth might actually be from original sources. This is a nice touch for those who might want to dig further for themselves for a more thorough interpretation.Norse religion, is addressed in the first portion of the book. McCoy is right up front about Norse religion in that it was never "systematized or codified during the Viking Age", nor was it recorded in a written language. The same can be said for the Viking myths, as the myths were not standardized, and the myths changed over time, and by different influences even within the Viking "nations".Using an analogy, think of a paleontologist, who finds a smattering of bone fragments, some larger and more complete, some hardly there, others missing entirely, mixed with other fragments of a different creature. He/she then attempts to piece together the original find, based upon incomplete skeletal remains, and then attempts to bootstrap together how that creature lived. That is my impression of the challenge facing the scholars who's goal is to compile Norse religion and mythology in their original forms. McCoy even rationalizes that the reader can invent their own means of interpretation and understanding of the Norse, as the beliefs of the Norse were constantly evolving.In closing, this was my second venture into Norse mythology. My first voyage was The Norse Myths by Kevin Crossley-Holland, about three years ago. I prefer the Crossley-Holland's work, if for no other reason, that it was my first experience with Norse myths. Rather than preceding his myths with an introduction to each, his note section, following the myths, he deals with each myth. KC-V also provides much more information in his note section for the interpretation of Norse mythology. If one is interested in understanding the Viking world through their mythology and religion, I'd submit that McCoy's book is the place to begin, then read Crossley-Holland's work. After that, if still wanting more, each author provides sources for further research.

I found this book to be overall well written. I like the way the author gave the reader a thorough introduction to the actual myths prior to presenting them. Here, the reader gets chatacter info that is very useful by the time the myths are presented. The author also provides translations for names and important Nordic words. The actual myths are very intersting. They read like ancient soap operas with all the drama of the gods, the giants, the dwarves and other characters. Lots of manly chest pounding, unhibited sexual exploitation, battles, verbal insults, blackmailing, conquests and more. One downside however is the admitted fact by the author that these myths may not all actually originate from the Viking Age. It is not known if Snorri created, manipulated or reformulated the stories due to Christianized pressures of his time period. However, the author pulls from other literature which contains the same or similar versions in conjunction with what has been discovered archeologically to make a strong case for these particular stories orginating in the Viking Age.

I don't know what the other reviewer is talking about as far as "having trouble trusting the author" and the author writing with a "condescending tone". I think this book is outstandingly informative and a blast to read.

I have long been a fan of he Viking but like most people didn't really read anything about them. I saw this book just by chance online and when I read the reviews I thought "why not". So when the kids were in bed I finally would read for an hour or two hoping that maybe I would learn something. All I can say is by day two I could not wait for my kids to go to bed and do dig deeper into this fantastic book. What a journey it takes you on. I do realise I need to read more to understand more but now that I finished the book after two weeks. I honestly can say this book is the best thing for any Starter or novice. It wiriten beautifully and is not over powering with its choice of words. Please buy this book and I hope you to enjoy it as much as I did

There is, all too often, a tendancy in books on the mythology of past peoples, to adopt a rather knowing tone, as if talking about foolish beliefs, and, just as often, in a 'voice' that one might adopt when speaking to a small child.Daniel McCoy is guilty of neither of these things. He writes well on a subject that he is so plainly expert in. In a properly scholarly way, he gives all his sources. I find myself constantly saying "oh, of course!" as he reveals one interesting fact after another.I have been a regular visitor to his excellent website for some time, and can recommend that as highly as this book.

I've read quite a few books about the Viking age since I became interested in and this is one of the more accessible ones (while remaining complete and not treating the reader like an idiot) that I've found. It's almost as though you're listening to an informal lecture by McCoy as opposed to reading a book. The language is very casual and conversational while still giving a lot of information to anyone who's interested in Viking mythology. In fact it would be my recommendation as an introductory text for anyone who'd like to learn more.

The book is divided into two parts - one examining the cultural beliefs of the Vikings, from their concepts of honour to their beliefs about magic and the parts of the self/soul, and their religious and mythological concepts; the other re-tells the Norse myths themselves.McCoy has an excellent way of making the sources accessible and engaging - I struggled to put the book down. He highlights with clarity how he has gathered information from various sources, and succinctly explains how trustworthy these sources are and how likely they are to be influenced by the Christianisation of the Vikings. He has a keen, critical eye.The book itself is easy to digest for newcomers and I am sure has plenty of useful information for those who are familiar with the subject as well. In the re-telling of each myth, McCoy outlines the sources from which the myth derives, and any differences between the different versions.

A very good introduction to the Viking myths and legends. A number of the myths have alternative versions, I especially liked the alternative story of Baldr's Death. I would say this is a must read for anyone new to the Heathen lifestyle. It gives a comprehensive look at the majority of the myths and legends. I read it for a second time only a week after finishing it first time around.