I have explored myths in non-fiction and fiction and have dipped into some young adult versions as well.  When I was looking into Odd and the Frost Giants I stumbled upon The Children of Odin by Padraic Colum.  There was a practically free Kindle edition so I quickly added it to the collection (you can read it for free online).

Here is the publishers description of a recent version (the original was published in 1920:

Before time as we know it began, gods and goddesses lived in the city of Asgard. Odin All Father crossed the Rainbow Bridge to walk among men in Midgard. Thor defended Asgard with his mighty hammer. Mischievous Loki was constantly getting into trouble with the other gods, and dragons and giants walked free. This collection of Norse sagas retold by author Padraic Colum gives us a sense of that magical time when the world was filled with powers and wonders we can hardly imagine.

Unknown to me until I found this book, the author Padraic Colum (1881-1972) was a poet, a playwright, and a leader of the Irish Renaissance, but he is best known for his works for children, including The Children of Odin and The Golden Fleece (a newbery honor book).

Image via Wikipedia

As noted, the work is Colum’s retelling of the Eddas and the Volsung Saga for young adults but I would hesitate to label this a book for “children.” Yes, there is a simplicity and straightforwardness to the stories in Colum’s telling. But that only heightens, for me at least, their mythical quality.

Instead, this struck me as the perfect introductory text for Norse and Teutonic mythology. You get introduced to the characters, personalities, places, and historic events that make up these famous myths. Odin the All Father, Loki the trickster, Thor with his hammer, Asgard, the Great Wall, the Rainbow Bridge, etc.

The book is broken up into four sections:

• The Dwellers in Asgard
• Odin the Wanderer
• The Witch’s Heart
• The Sword of the Volsungs and the Twilight of the Gods

Each section then has seven to ten stories. The stories can be read as stand alone pieces of the mythology but the collection reads well together; like linked stories rather than a traditional novel. And they are filled with the ingredients of good stories.  There are interesting characters and interesting settings; powerful emotions and high stakes; action and intrigue; the birth of the world and its possible destruction.

These stories have lasted for centuries and have influenced untold authors and artists – from JRR Tolkien to Neil Gaiman – and their power to intrigue and entertain is retained even today. In many ways these stories are the building blocks of much of what makes up fantasy fiction and epic adventure. And if you enjoy those genres you will enjoy this book.

So whether you are looking for an accessible introduction to these myths, something interesting for the younger readers you know or if, like me, you just like exploring myths and ancient stories check out the Children of Odin.

Rather than stealing PW’s plot summary, how about we have Neil himself introduce the book?

I can’t get away, however, without a quote from School Libary Journal, as I like their description of the book.  They describe it as a “thoughtful and quietly humorous fantasy.”  Which was my reaction as well.

As is typical of Gaiman, there is a simplicity to the story but also a playfulness to the prose and  a sense of deeper and darker things lurking behind the scenes.  Odd has that infuriating smile that adds an edge, and a sense of mystery, to this partially lame but brave and generous boy.

While nothing is too dark or scary for young readers, Gaiman hints at the darker and capricious side of the gods and includes an element that will bring a smile to the adults in his portrayal of the relationship between the Frost Giant and the goddess Freya.

This slim volume, originally written for World Book Day in the UK and sold there as par of that charitable endeavor, has the feel of a fable; simple yet hinting at deeper things.  Obviously a must have for Gaiman fans – and fans of Norse mythology – but worth checking out for anyone who enjoys a simple yet well done tale.

The Graveyard Book

Having become something of a Neil Gaiman fan and given my interest in young adult fiction – particularly with a fantasy bent – The Graveyard Book seemed like a natural fit.  Here is the teaser:

Nobody Owens, known to his friends as Bod, is a normal boy.

He would be completely normal if he didn’t live in a sprawling graveyard, being raised and educated by ghosts, with a solitary guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor of the dead.

There are dangers and adventures in the graveyard for a boy-an ancient Indigo Man beneath the hill, a gateway to a desert leading to an abandoned city of ghouls, the strange and terrible menace of the Sleer.

But if Bod leaves the graveyard, then he will come under attack from the man Jack—who has already killed Bod’s family. . . .

Typical Gaiman: creative plot concept with a touch of the macabre.  I really enjoyed Coraline and so wanted to see what the author had up his sleeve this time.

And Gaiman didn’t disappoint.  After the intial dark plot sets the scene, The Graveyard Book is really a rather sweet natured coming of age story about friendship, trust, and the hard choices of becoming an adult.

There are really two aspects to the story that interact awkwardly at times but mostly work.  The first part of the story is rather simple.  Bod is an orphan being raised by substitute guardians in a strange place.  The story follows him as he learns to adapt and comes to understand his place in his adopted home.  That this place is a graveyard with dead people playing a prominent role doesn’t change the story structure much.

And even though this is well trod territory Gaiman handles it well.  Bod and his fellow denizens of the graveyard make for interesting characters and relationships.  This unique world is set up in such a way that you want to see how Bod makes his way.  The plot is not too heavy but the tension is there in the background and the suspense starts to build. Gaiman’s immagination and light touch keeps you reading.

And Bod’s interactions with those on the outside – his friendship with a young girl Scarlett who comes to the graveyard with her parents, briefly with students at school, etc. – further the story and provide some comic relief.  The story nicely balances the danger and the excitement of exploration; the enjoyment and the cruelty of childhood.

The second element, which ads to the mystery and suspense, is an additional supernatural aspect of the story.  It involves the backstory to why Bod and his family were attacked and why the killer Jack is still after him.  It also involves the mysterious nature of Bod’s chief guardian Silas and one of his tutors.

This later part of the plot seems a little thin at times; not quite fully explored or explained.  But it works to add some structure to the story and explain the plot to get Bod. I am not one to expect all the threads in a story to be wrapped up or for every little detail to be explained (a certain amount of mystery is neccesary after all), but the story behind Jack just doesn’t feel as flushed out as the rest of the story.

As a number of reviewers have noted, however, this gives the story the feel of the first book in a series.  Some aspects of the plot seem only to be introduced and the story ends in such a way as to leave the reader wanting to follow Bod on his further adventures.  I don’t know if Gaiman has plans for another book, but you can be sure it would be received with gratittude by his fans.

The Graveyard Book isn’t one of those can’t put down type books, and I found Coraline to be a tighter more focused story, but it is an enjoyable and immaginative one.  While Bod’s home is unique the underlining themes are universal: family, friendship, trust, growing up, etc.  And as usual, Gaiman handles them with creativity,wit, and just the right amount of spookiness (I am not sure I have read another author who can be creepy and frieghtening with less actual violence).

Recommended for readers young and old.