Age range 9 to 12

One day in the distant future, Thor, the Norse god of thunder, is destined to battle the giant snake that threatens to devour the world. Until then, mortals of Middle Earth look to Thor and his magic hammer for protection from evil. In this third volume of the Secrets of the Ancient Gods series, Thor takes time from his duties to lead readers through the mythological Norse realms, those mysterious worlds that are home to gods, giants, elves, and monsters. He also delves into the age of the Vikings and reveals how they lived and what they believed. Using Thor as her humorous narrator, author Vicky Alvear Shecter provides a well-researched and unconventional nonfiction introduction to Norse mythology. Includes a glossary, bibliography, and index.

Mortals, do you dare follow the god of strength and weather and mighty muscles on a tour through Norse mythology?…Larson’s dark, operatic tableaux of melodramatically posed figures clad in outsized headgear and geometrically patterned cloaks add a comically Wagnerian tone… Return trips are definitely in the offing. -Kirkus Reviews

In this third entry in the Secrets of the Ancient Gods series… Shecter assumes the rough-and-tumble voice of everyone’s “good-buddy’ god, Thor, introducing more than a dozen myths and the gods central to them…. Larson’s delicately etched pen-and-ink illustrations have a creepy, Goreyesque edge… Extensive character descriptions, source notes, and a glossary round out this entertainingly informal introduction to Norse legends. -Publishers Weekly