She Speaks: The Women of Norse Myths in their Own Words

Gr 4 Up–This delightful collection of Norse mythology short stories begins with a völva, a seeress, speaking to Odin who has asked her to foretell the future. Thereafter unfolds eight tales that highlight the strength and cunning intellect of various female figures of Norse mythology, such as Idunn who granted the gods immortality using magical apples and Gridr the giantess who saves Thor from being killed by Loki. The first-person narrative as well as the conversational dialogue and humor will immerse readers into the Norse universe. Equally impressive are the illustrations. The rich, vibrant colors resemble medieval tapestries with their decorative borders, and the text wrapping mingles the words with the images, balancing the contribution of both text and illustrations to the overall reading experience. The author provides background information about Norse mythology at the beginning of the book as well as more detailed information about the main characters at the end. Also included is a bibliography with both primary and secondary sources.