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A review by librarianonparade
Vikings by Neil Oliver
4.0
I didn't watch the BBC documentary series this book is designed to accompany - in fact, I've never seen any of Neil Oliver's documentaries. And call me a snob, but I try on the whole to avoid history books designed to accompany television programmes - by and large they tend to skim the surface of the history, aimed more at introducing the topic to the audience rather than going into it in any great depth. And, well, I like depth!
But I thoroughly enjoyed reading this. The Viking Age is not one with which I'm greatly familiar, and like most people, I would imagine, my mental image of Vikings tend to be the usual horned helmets, furs, battle-axes and names like Eric the Bonecrusher and Thorkel the Destroyer. So, as light as this was, it was an enjoyable and enlightening read. It focuses very much on the Viking picture as a whole, distinguishing between those from Sweden, Iceland, Denmark and Norway, and the emphasis is very much on the Vikings, rather than their victims. Personally I would have liked a little more of a focus on the Vikings' targets, a bit more about the impact and the experience of those people they attacked, but perhaps that's just me seeking the exciting bits of history!
The final chapter is particularly interesting, linking the Viking history neatly with our own - with the last great Viking king, Cnut (or Canute, of tidal fame) - king of Denmark, England, Norway and parts of Sweden, a true Viking empire. Or perhaps the last Viking king could be William the Conqueror himself, since the Normans were after all originally Vikings - hence the name, Normandy, North Men. Would that make England a Viking realm?
But I thoroughly enjoyed reading this. The Viking Age is not one with which I'm greatly familiar, and like most people, I would imagine, my mental image of Vikings tend to be the usual horned helmets, furs, battle-axes and names like Eric the Bonecrusher and Thorkel the Destroyer. So, as light as this was, it was an enjoyable and enlightening read. It focuses very much on the Viking picture as a whole, distinguishing between those from Sweden, Iceland, Denmark and Norway, and the emphasis is very much on the Vikings, rather than their victims. Personally I would have liked a little more of a focus on the Vikings' targets, a bit more about the impact and the experience of those people they attacked, but perhaps that's just me seeking the exciting bits of history!
The final chapter is particularly interesting, linking the Viking history neatly with our own - with the last great Viking king, Cnut (or Canute, of tidal fame) - king of Denmark, England, Norway and parts of Sweden, a true Viking empire. Or perhaps the last Viking king could be William the Conqueror himself, since the Normans were after all originally Vikings - hence the name, Normandy, North Men. Would that make England a Viking realm?