The Viking Spirit: An Introduction to Norse Mythology and Religion

I haven't done much research into this book prior to purchase, unlike my purchases for Michael Haag's books on the Knights Templar or Romulus Hillsborough's analysis on the Shinsengumi. This was a pure purchase on a whim in response to passing my first history class in college. Literally sat there and said "I like the cover, go". Just got it I'd say 2 hours ago, came home, skimmed through the book and MAN, that bibliography. It's been very apparent, at least to me, that finding a solid, well research, and widely circulated book like this is a treasure to any aspiring historian's collection of reference material and this fits my bill personally. I've read some chunks of the text just to know what I'm getting into and it's straightforward, doesn't go on tangents, and tells you the facts straight with plenty of notes you can flip to and get your references. This organization and structure alone, is why I hopped on the computer to type this review. As for the quality of the references, I've spotted some philosophical takes (which is ALWAYS appreciated when examining cultures, especially theological/social conepts) and a majority of the prints are recent so it's a matter of "you're getting relevant and recent references". Also from a variety of locations so you're not getting an entire bias of American works but rather Canada, Netherlands, Sweden Etc. so you also have a variety of outlooks on a relatively wide topic. Not to mention, consistent review over specific authors, meaning you're getting a clean line of understanding rather than jumping from 30 different authors. It's this that is stunningly impressive. Now it seems weird to post a 5-star review on "oh my god the bibliography is so good" even though I've only read the intro thus far, but my point is this: organized, thorough, research deserves praise, ESPECIALLY for widely circulated material such as this. This book is probably one of the first things you see on your Amazon search for Norse Mythology and for anyone interested in such non-fiction material who want the best bang for their buck when they can't readily find scholarly works, these books are stellar to have. To the author, Mr. McCoy I greatly look forward to my little pandemic summer of fun ahead for me, thank you for your work and research, I'm bound to dig some information myself. To the reader of this review, again it's digestible, easy to pick up, and fundamentally sound in terms of logos and references. If you're aspiring to go into such fields whether it be history, literature, theology, sociology, philosophy, I'd recommend this.

Loved it

This is exactly what it is described of being, an introduction to Norse Mythology and Religion. It is written in an easily digestible style. It gives information in a straightforward manner without being dry. You can read the passion of the author in the pages. This will be the first book on the Norse that I have read and I feel comfortable diving into a more books now that I have a foundation to build off of. My one complaint (if it can even be listed as such for it seems to harsh) is his inclusion of several myths that he himself asserts as having been influenced in it's entirety by the writer Snorri and quite possibly a fabrication using the original mythology as a baseline for the story. But this is a minor complaint encompassing perhaps two stories out of the 40+ in the book. All in all this is a quick read and I would encourage anyone looking for a foundation in the Nordic beliefs to read this book.

3.5 rounded up to 4 (because it's better than "okay") I appreciate McCoy's scholarship and clear, concise writing, which is why I was baffled at a few missing pieces (Loki is typically credited as having two sons by Sigyn, for example, but McCoy only gives us one) and while most of the articles on Norse Mythology for Smart People are very even handed, there were places here where McCoy presents his views as the only views--which is not to say that these interpretations of the stories are not solidly researched and accepted in academia, only that there are a lot of places where academia is divided and I would have like to have seen that mentioned, even if competing theories were not offered up in on the page. (Specific case in point: Heimdallr is cited in some sources as being the son of Odinn, and in others, no father is cited; Snorri was somewhat infamous for making *all* the Gods Odinn's children--or at least as many as he could.) A few quibbles aside (quibbles I have with most mythology books), Viking Spirit is a solid read, well researched, and a great book to add to one's library. Where the book truly shines is in the latter half, where McCoy gives us not only a look into some of the most important myths, but an understanding of how those stories were influenced by outside sources and how different sources gave us variations on the myths in question. This, in particular, is why I bought it in the first place.

Fantastic read. Well written, engaging, and smart. This is a book for people who like to think for themselves. The author addresses the reader as an intelligent partner in the search for the truth about the Viking people and era. I love the deep dives and the extra effort the author put into analyzing traditionally used sources as well as introducing lesser known sources that often introduce insight running counter to the traditional view of Vikings. The author also discusses the potential biases of those historians whose accounts of Vikings provide the foundation for what we know and understand about the Viking era, which is rarely done in most of the history books I read. It's important to understand what we know of history is oftentimes skewed by those who wrote about it. I love books that challenge me to expand or re-examine what I learned in school (or from TV!) I also love history books that don't put me to sleep, and this is one of those I could barely put down.

This book is exactly what it says it is: an introduction to Norse mythology and religion. It doesn't delve deep into the core tenets of Norse religion, but it is a good starting point to begin understanding the Northern Way as it relates to its historical practice during the Viking Age. I found McCoy's writing style to be quite conversational and easy to follow, which makes it simpler to digest. This, to me, is its main selling point. Reconstruction and analysis of ancient religious practice can be pretty tedious, but McCoy makes it engaging and casual. The way the myths are presented isn't remarkable. Most readers will probably have heard these stories told before, in a myriad other ways. The differentiator in this book is that it presents the myths in the context of the Norse belief system. It's not isolated stories of olden times, like most introductions to mythology, it's the stories in the appropriate societal values and religious practice of the time. It does a decent job at discerning what is purely Norse and what are later Christian additions. I could not find the flaws other reviewers talk about, especially when it comes to "presenting a personal opinion as fact." I guess these reviewers must have missed the 25 pages of sources backing up McCoy's theories. The truth of the matter is that there is a LOT that we don't know about ancient Norse practice, and we will likely never know. This book does not pretend otherwise and it's not a guide to the new Asatruar. Overall, this is a good introductory book for people with an interest in learning more about Norse myth.

I've always been intrested and passionate about the Viking world and culture. That was my motive to look more and more into it and wanting to learn deep information about it. So, I bought this book which left me speechless and explained everything perfectly. I knew some of the myths (most of them) but not in so much detail. It covers all the questions you might have and guides you into a mythical world in which everything seems real. However, it is truthful and doesn't present the Viking world as perfect, on the contrary it describes the reality and the dark side of the Vikings. Highly recomend to all the Viking lovers out there.

This book is set up sort of like an English literature book. It gives you the preface first, which explains how all the information has been collected about the vikings religious practices over the years. Then it gives you the overview of each god and creature before telling the stories. It's very informative and the author clearly did his research. It's written in a way that is still easy to read and keeps you interested. It really is an intro to Norse myth. It also pulls parallels from other mythologys and Bible history, at times. Very interesting!

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.

If you want to learn the basis of Nordic mythology this is the book for you. Clear language and to the point. It also provides all the reference for his argument without going too deep into the academic debates. I personally liked it a lot.

Great book very informative, heil odin and the gods, victory or valhalla.

Encantada con este libro, genial para principiantes en la cultura Nordica

Simple enough to discover concepts and then try to go deeper in the subject with some more "scolar" books. Go ahead, great book!