Norse mythology vol 1 by Neil Gaiman

Adapted by P. Craig Russell, illustrated by Jerry Ordway, Mike Mignola, Jill Thompson, Piotr Kowalski, and David Rubín
​
This series is an adaptation of the book, Norse Mythology that Neil Gaiman published in 2017. Presented in this volume are a few of the major myths of Norse mythology: the creation of the world in Odin’s slaying of the giant Ymir; how Odin lost his eye but gained all his wisdom; the treasures of the gods obtained by Loki  as he pitted two dwarf craftsmen brothers against each other; the way in which the Aesir gods got their wall around Asgard; Loki’s children and how Odin dealt with all of them; and, the “marriage” of Thor, pretending to be Freya, to a giant who stole his hammer.

---

Norse mythology is often overlooked in mythology studies in favor of stories like Gilgamesh and The Odyssey.  This series brings together some illustrative heavy hitters while packaging Norse myths into school-friendly comicbooks. Ordway and Kowalsky have some amazing illustrations in their chapters, but the colors and page layout creativity award goes to David Rubín. Some of the chapters are very reminiscent of older style comics of the 60s and 70s, especially Mignola’s, but Rubín was the only one to use the entire page instead of utilizing white gutters like the rest of the artists.  Rubín also used more modern panel layout than the others, which is visually interesting and utilizes a variety of shapes and sizes of panels.
​
This would be great for collections where students are interested in mythology, or would pair nicely with Gareth Hinds’ The Iliad & The Odyssey for a thorough study of a variety of mythology.

Sara's Rating: 9/10
Suitability Level: Grades 9-12

Publisher: Dark Horse
Publication Date: March 23rd 202​1
ISBN: 9781506718743 (Hardcover)

Tags: Rating: 9/10, Suitability: High School, Comicbooks, Mythology, Dark Horse