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adam_mcphee 's review for:
The Long Ships
by Frans G. Bengtsson
Fantastic historical fiction. Bengtsson's dry wit is impeccable and perfectly in keeping with the sagas.
Three viking journeys, one to Muslim Spain, one to Æthelred the Unready's England and one to the viking Rus. The middle section in England is a bit of a slog, though the characters get to take part in the Battle of Maldon. They also serve as slaves and then bodyguards for Almansur. But it's the final section that rules the most: travelling the Dnieper searching for treasure and taking part in two amazing skirmishes.
The part that everyone talks about, the comparison between the four religions (Norse paganism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam) is there but it's only a small part of the book and it only gets talked about because it's the sort of thing book reviewers are trained to look for. What makes this so great isn't any didactic point the book makes, but the catharsis that comes from blending the storytelling style of the Icelandic sagas with the priorities of the 20th century novel. I think it also has a lot to do with what Tolkien called 'recovery,' but I'm not really equipped to talk about that just yet.
Three viking journeys, one to Muslim Spain, one to Æthelred the Unready's England and one to the viking Rus. The middle section in England is a bit of a slog, though the characters get to take part in the Battle of Maldon. They also serve as slaves and then bodyguards for Almansur. But it's the final section that rules the most: travelling the Dnieper searching for treasure and taking part in two amazing skirmishes.
The part that everyone talks about, the comparison between the four religions (Norse paganism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam) is there but it's only a small part of the book and it only gets talked about because it's the sort of thing book reviewers are trained to look for. What makes this so great isn't any didactic point the book makes, but the catharsis that comes from blending the storytelling style of the Icelandic sagas with the priorities of the 20th century novel. I think it also has a lot to do with what Tolkien called 'recovery,' but I'm not really equipped to talk about that just yet.