Myth and Religion of the North cover

Myth and Religion of the North

by Gabriel Turville-Petre

REVIEW: From 10 Best Scandinavian Mythology books: https://norse-mythology.org/the-10-best-norse-mythology-books/ Myth and Religion of the North: The Religion of Ancient Scandinavia by E.O.G. Turville-Petre Much like Ellis Davidson’s Gods and Myths of Northern Europe, legendary Oxford Old Norse professor E.O.G. Turville-Petre’s Myth and Religion of the North provides a comprehensive overview of the pre-Christian religion of Scandinavia. However, while somewhat more academic than Ellis Davidson’s book (which is why I listed Gods and Myths of Northern Europe as #4 and Myth and Religion of the North as #5), Turville-Petre more than makes up for this with his sheer comprehensiveness and acuity of insight. Where Ellis Davidson is highly admirable, Turville-Petre is downright astonishing. In numerous universities across the world today, Myth and Religion of the North is treated as the go-to reference book for all things related to Norse mythology, and with good reason. Reading this book is something like an intellectual initiation. To put it simply: until you’ve read this absolutely essential book, you’re just a dabbler in Norse mythology.

Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

  1. Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
  2. Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
  3. What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
  4. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
  5. Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?