Gods and Warriors
Unlike the climate they come from, the myths of the Norse gods have been hot ever since the movie Thor (speaking of hot…). Suddenly, there are books about being a teen in the United States of Asgard, gory graphic novels about warlords of yore, and tales of gods and Valkyries retold in times both ancient and modern. It's not the only mythology that has enjoyed a bit of popularity lately, with Percy Jackson bringing the Greek monsters to your bookshelf and movie screen, but definitely, the Norse myths are having a moment.
Barbarian Lord – this graphic novel, just out this month, is based on a Norse tale and features some of the traditions of the ancient Scandinavian people, not to mention tons and tons of really bloodythirsty action rendered in a heavy comic style that reminds me a bit of Black Metal. This one is not in yet at the library, but worth keeping an eye out for if you want some so-old-there-wasn't-school-yet mayhem.
Valkyrie Rising – When a teenage girl goes to stay with her grandma in Norway, she learns about not only mythology, but also some well-hidden family history and her own destiny. A fast read with a seriously kick ass female heroine. Also available as an ebook.
Gospel of Loki – This is a longer book from the adult collection, but a really good read if you are up for something slightly denser. What really makes it is the voice of Loki, sarcastic, sardonic, and just the right mix of bad and stylish to have you with him all the way. I keep wanting to hand this off to people and tell them to read it!
Stork – This is an unusual one, in which a normal teenage girl suddenly discovers she is one of a group of "storks," women who pair souls with potential babies in utero. This involves making some calls about who will be the best moms, as well as some drama between the storks in their small town, and she has to learn to navigate all of this on her feet. It's lighter, but interesting. Also available as an ebook.
United States of Asgard – This series blends modern day USA with Norse mythology for a setting that makes the adventures of Asgardian teens accessible in a new way. The son of a famous berserker warrior and the daughter of a seer go searching for a missing god in the series opener, The Lost Sun, also available as an ebook.
Vinland Saga – this graphic novel was one of my picks for the summer, and I now have my hands on volume 2, with volume 3 in the system and waiting for me! :D It's a seriously epic story, as the title suggests, of a young boy whose father, a former hero, has vengeance taken on him by his old Viking warrior tribe. This all happens in volume one, and by the end, we are well set up for volume two, with the young boy swearing to avenge his father in turn. These are not for the faint of heart, as the Vikings were a famously bloodthirsty bunch, but they are gorgeous and massive in scope, well worth the read if myth and battle appeal to you.
Loki's Wolves – The gods have long since died. Ragnarok, the end of the world, is coming. And it turns out that this time it's up to the teenage descendants of the gods to try to save the world — if they can'turn the course of mythology and beat the monsters this time around. This series is actually in the children's section, but so much fun I couldn't not include it, and it is written by two top-shelf YA authors, Kelley Armstrong and Melissa Marr, so.
And, of course, there's Marvel's Thor. Hero of comic books for decades, many of which are now bound into graphic novels under Marvel's excellent publishing programme. And Thor of the movies, with the delicious Chris Hemsworth wielding the famed hammer, Mjolnir. But did you hear the surprising and very interesting news about the Thor of the comic world that just came out this week? That Thor is going to lose his hammer, and a woman will step into his place, becoming a new Thor?
I wasn't sure what to make of this, especially coupled with the news, just a couple of days later, that Captain America will also have a change coming, and in this case, Falcon will become Cap. Falcon is also African American, meaning that Captain America will be a black man, another interesting move toward diversity and shaking up old images. A good friend of mine pointed out that this is allowing more people to see themseloves in Marvel's heroes, or as having the potential for heroism, which is a lovely idea.
What do you think? Can you completely reboot a character or a myth like that? Do you think it works and carries forward the attributes of a character in interesting ways, or do you think they should just start fresh with new characters instead?
10 thoughts on “Gods and Warriors”
I am interested in Norse mythology, but yes, I can’t name any gods that arn’t Odin, Thor or Loki. I would love to read some of these books to learn more.
I think they should start fresh with new characters. They should give them their own personality traits, without the expectations the classics would put on the character.
I agree, it would seem forced if they try so hard to match their personalities with the classical versions of the characters, much better to start anew.
Do you find it interesting to see what they do with old favourite characters when they “reboot” things, though?
Sometimes I don’t, but sometimes I do, so I can be split on this one!
Sometimes changing a character around can be successful, or it can end up totally sucking. For example, in the Thor movies, instead of the evil and trickster loki in the stories, the Loki in the movies is shown to be more conflicted, emotional, and personal. I personally like this loki more since it explains how loki turned evil rather than have him being evil from the get go.
Very true. I really wish Loki could get his own movie.
I think so too, mostly because I can not keep up with the classics.
The book Gospel of Loki I mentioned up there? Is FANTASTIC if You’re a fan of Loki. Same kind of treatment as in the movies, in some ways. For example he is sarcastic, and sort of sees it as part of his nature to be a trickster, is aware he’s doing some bad stuff, but talks about his motivations. Highly recommend it, even though it’s a hefty one.
Fiction which has Greek and Norse mythos at its center is all well and good. My major gripe is with how teenagers are inserted into these stories to serve as the reader-surrogate, taking a potentially mature, dark, adult, and meaningful story into a pandering mess that appeals to the naive youthful sensibilities of the struggle between good and evil, not to mention the dreadfully written characters, and shoehorned love story that has no real bearing on any character development (if there ever was any to speak of). The Percy Jackson series is an offender of everything in the previous sentence.
If you need something meatier, I definitely recommend The Gospel of Loki, which is an adult read rather than a teen title, and much denser, even though still a lot of fun. I loved it, and keep telling my adult friends to read it, too!
But as teen books go, often having a teen main character is a great way to draw in readers and let them imagine themselves in those circumstances, so I can fully understand why it’s such a common approach. 🙂