I finally got around to reading Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman, and loved it so much that I purchased the audiobook read by the author so I could hear it all again on my commute to work.
Gaiman starts with an introduction describing his background on Norse mythology, describing himself as a young boy reading the Marvel comics involving Thor, only to later discover Asgard was nothing like the high-tech superhero realm found within the comics.
Several stories are covered, some of them being the most common and well-loved stories such as Odin’s dealing with Mirmir, how the gods got a wall built around Asgard, the origin of the Mead of Poetry, and of course the death of Baldur, the imprisonment of Loki, and Ragnarök itself.
Even as someone who has read versions of these myths before I was very happy with Gaiman’s interpretations, keeping a very wry and humorous disposition when addressing the myths. His way of telling the stories is what compelled me to purchase the audiobook for a second-go-through of the material, and hearing his delivery is well worth it.
Overall I highly recommend this book, even if you have experience with Norse mythology, I still feel this is a unique and worthwhile presentation, and if you aren’t familiar - I feel this is a great book to introduce you to the Norse myths.
