Other editions of book The Children of Odin

Before time as we know it began, gods and goddesses lived in the city of Asgard. Odin All Father crossed the Rainbow Bridge to walk among men in Midgard. Thor defended Asgard with his mighty hammer. Mischievous Loki was constantly getting into trouble with the other gods, and dragons and giants walked free. This collection of Norse sagas retold by author Padraic Colum gives us a sense of that magical time when the world was filled with powers and wonders we can hardly imagine. (Goodreads)

Padraic Colum's classic retelling of norse mythology, excitingly illustrated by Willy Pogany. The adventures of the realm of Asgard are told in compelling prose, as readers follow the feats of Odin, the All-Father, the mighty Thor and his hammer, and the mischievous Loki. The stories include: Part I: The Dwellers In Asgard, Far Away And Long Ago, The Building Of The Wall, Iduna And Her Apples, How Loki Put The Gods In Danger, Sif’s Golden Hair, How Loki Wrought Mischief In Asgard, How Brock Brought Judgment On Loki, How Freya Gained Her Necklace And, How Her Loved One Was Lost To Her, How Frey Won Gerda, The Giant Maiden, And How He Lost His Magic Sword, Heimdall And Little Hnossa, How All Things Came To Be, The All-Father’s Forebodings, How He Leaves Asgard, Part II: Odin Goes To Mimir’s Well, His Sacrifice For Wisdom, Odin Faces An Evil Man, Odin Wins For Men The Magic Mead, Odin Tells To Vidar, His Silent Son, The Secret Of His Doings, Thor And Loki In The Giants’ City, How Thor And Loki Befooled, Thrym The Giant, Ægir’s Feast, How Thor Triumphed, The Dwarf’s Hoard, And, The Curse That It Brought, Part III: The Witches Heart, Foreboding In Asgard, Loki The Betrayer, Loki Against The Æsir, The Valkyrie, The Children Of Loki, Baldur’s Doom, Loki’s Punishment, Part IV: The Sword Of The Volsungs And The Twilight Of The Gods, Sigurd’s Youth, The Sword Gram And The Dragon Fafnir, The Dragon’s Blood, The Story Of Sigmund And Signy, The Story Of Sigmund And Sinfiotli, The Story Of The Vengeance Of The Volsungs, And Of The Death Of Sinfiotli, Brynhild In The House Of Flame, Sigurd At The House Of The Nibelungs, How Brynhild Was Won For Gunnar, The Death Of Sigurd, and The Twilight Of The Gods.

The best, most powerful recounting of the Norse myths by the master storyteller, Padraic Colum. Filled with drama, intrigue, humor and adventure, this collection of tales begins with the building of Asgard, home of the gods, and ends with the final battle of Ragnarok when the world is deluged in water and made anew. In between we meet Iduna and her golden apples, Freya of the ill-gotten necklace, Odin the Wanderer, Sigurd the Dragon Slayer, the mischievous, clever but vindictive Loki, and the whole Norse pantheon from giants to dwarves. For richness, cultural wealth and sheer grandeur the Norse myths stand alone and unique in the world—and this edition for children has yet to be bettered.Padraic Colum, award winning author, poet and dramatist was part of the Irish literary revival before coming to live in America. Willy Pagany worked on many of Colums’ books, complementing them with numerous elegant line drawings and illustrations.This edition has been freshly typeset and edited for clarity, with footnotes added for unusual words the contemporary child might not know. A brief biography is included in the back, telling of Colum’s life in Ireland and his arrival in the land of hope, America.

Once there was another Sun and another Moon; a different Sun and a different Moon from the ones we see now. Sol was the name of that Sun and Mani was the name of that Moon. But always behind Sol and Mani wolves went, a wolf behind each. The wolves caught on them at last and they devoured Sol and Mani. And then the world was in darkness and cold. In those times the Gods lived, Odin and Thor, Hödur and Baldur, Tyr and Heimdall, Vidar and Vali, as well as Loki, the doer of good and the doer of evil. And the beautiful Goddesses were living then, Frigga, Freya, Nanna, Iduna, and Sif. But in the days when the Sun and Moon were destroyed the Gods were destroyed too—all the Gods except Baldur who had died before that time, Vidar and Vali, the sons of Odin, and Modi and Magni, the sons of Thor. At that time, too, there were men and women in the world. But before the Sun and the Moon were devoured and before the Gods were destroyed, terrible things happened in the world. Snow fell on the four corners of the earth and kept on falling for three seasons. Winds came and blew everything away. And the people of the world who had lived on in spite of the snow and the cold and the winds fought each other, brother killing brother, until all the people were destroyed. Also there was another earth at that time, an earth green and beautiful. But the terrible winds that blew leveled down forests and hills and dwellings. Then fire came and burnt the earth. There was darkness, for the Sun and the Moon were devoured. The Gods had met with their doom. And the time in which all these things happened was called Ragnarök, the Twilight of the Gods. Then a new Sun and a new Moon appeared and went traveling through the heavens; they were more lovely than Sol and Mani, and no wolves followed behind them in chase. The earth became green and beautiful again, and in a deep forest that the fire had not burnt a woman and a man wakened up. They had been hidden there by Odin and left to sleep during Ragnarök, the Twilight of the Gods. Lif was the woman's name, and Lifthrasir was the man's. They moved through the world, and their children and their children's children made people for the new earth. And of the Gods were left Vidar and Vali, the sons of Odin, and Modi and Magni, the sons of Thor; on the new earth Vidar and Vali found tablets that the older Gods had written on and had left there for them, tablets telling of all that had happened before Ragnarök, the Twilight of the Gods. And the people who lived after Ragnarök, the Twilight of the Gods, were not troubled, as the people in the older days were troubled, by the terrible beings who had brought destruction upon the world and upon men and women, and who from the beginning had waged war upon the Gods.

Before time as we know it began, gods and goddesses lived in the city of Asgard. Odin All Father crossed the Rainbow Bridge to walk among men in Midgard. Thor defended Asgard with his mighty hammer. Mischievous Loki was constantly getting into trouble with the other gods, and dragons and giants walked free. This collection of Norse sagas retold by author Padraic Colum gives us a sense of that magical time when the world was filled with powers and wonders we can hardly imagine.

This illustrated edition retains Willy Pogany's original drawings. Master storyteller Padraic Colum's rich, musical voice captures all the magic and majesty of the Norse sagas in his retellings of the adventures of the gods and goddesses who lived in the Northern paradise of Asgard before the dawn of history. Here are the matchless tales of All-Father Odin, who crosses the Rainbow Bridge to walk among men in Midgard and sacrifices his right eye to drink from the Well of Wisdom; of Thor, whose mighty hammer defends Asgard; of Loki, whose mischievous cunning leads him to treachery against the gods; of giants, dragons, dwarfs and Valkyries; and of the terrible last battle that destroyed their world. These ancient stories from Northern Europe, which make up one of the great myth cycles of Western civilization, spring to life in The Children of Odin. The late Padraic Colum was a poet, playwright, founder of the Irish Review and a leader of the Irish Renaissance, but he is perhaps best known today for his outstanding books for children. He was awarded the Regina Medal in 1961 for his "distinguished contribution to children's literature," honoring works like The Children's Homer, The Golden Fleece (a Newbery Honor Book), The Arabian Nights, The King of Ireland's Son and Roofs of Gold. (Also available in hardback: 978-1849024983.)

Readers interested in Norse and Teutonic myths and tales will find The Children of Odin by Padraic Colum a fascinating read. Padraic Colum was not only an outstanding novelist, playwright and biographer, but also a famous collector of folklore and one of the most important figures of the Irish Literary Revival. With his Children of Odin, he combines his passion for Celtic myth and for children's stories, the result being undoubtedly one of the most captivating collection of mythic stories.Many books about mythology contain just bare descriptions of the events, but not this one. The Children of Odin resembles a novel in every bit – the story of Odin, the god of healing, knowledge, death, poetry and frenzy, as well as the story of the other Norse gods are described in great, novelistic style. The accounts of the adventures that feature not only Odin, but Thor, Loki, other gods and mythical creatures such as dragons and giants as well are organized into an easy to follow succession. They introduce the reader to Norse mythology and offer a glimpse of the Norse pantheon, raising the reader's interest towards more detailed myths as well and opening up young minds towards how the world was perceived at the beginnings of history.The stories that have survived thousands of years are presented by Padraic Colum in an easy to read and very enjoyable way. Though the language used turns archaic sometimes, the book still makes an excellent read for school children and it is a great choice for parents and grandparents who want to read good stories to their pre-school kids and grandchildren, too. However, the book is not only for kids. Being often referenced in scholarly writings about Norse and Teutonic mythology, The Children of Odin by Padraic Colum is certainly a complex work and a piece that can be enjoyed by kids and adults alike.

Before time as we know it began, gods and goddesses lived in the city of Asgard. Odin All Father crossed the Rainbow Bridge to walk among men in Midgard. Thor defended Asgard with his mighty hammer. Mischievous Loki was constantly getting into trouble with the other gods, and dragons and giants walked free. This collection of Norse sagas retold by author Padraic Colum gives us a sense of that magical time when the world was filled with powers and wonders we can hardly imagine.