Category: Books & Literature
A Viking Slave’s Saga
A Viking Slave’s Saga is a trilogy of novels by the famous Swedish author Jan Fridegård: Land of Wooden Gods (Trägudars land, 1940), People of the Dawn (Gryningsfolket, 1944), and Sacrificial Smoke (Offerrök, 1949).
Lost Scottish folk tales published online
The notebooks of the Scottish folklore pioneer Alexander Carmichael have been prepared for publication.
The Werewolf in Medieval Icelandic Literature
In all corners of the world there are stories about people who have the ability to transform themselves into animals. The following article will focus on stories about werewolves in a wolf-free country, Iceland.
Wasteland with Words. A Social History of Iceland
Wasteland with Words is a very welcome addition to the small number of academic books about Iceland’s modern history available in English.
Diary of Witchfinder General trials goes online
A 350-year-old notebook which describes the execution of innocent women for consorting with the Devil, has been published online by The University of Manchester’s John Rylands Library
Anglo-Saxon Women Before the Law: A Student Edition of Five Old English Lawsuits
The status of women under Old English law is among the most contested topics in Anglo-Saxon studies. The five charters edited here record lawsuits in which the principal litigants are women of different backgrounds.
Rare King James Bible found in Wiltshire village church
A rare original King James Bible has been discovered on a shelf in a Wiltshire church.
‘Tolkien Professor’ Corey Olsen brings Middle-earth to iTunes via podcasts
Olsen is one of the most popular medievalists in America. His unusual path to success – a smartly branded Web site and a legion of iTunes listeners – marks an alternative to the publish-or-perish tradition of scholarship on the tenure track
Amazon Erases Orwell Books From Kindle
On Friday, it was “1984” and another Orwell book, “Animal Farm,” that were dropped down the memory hole — by Amazon.com.
Book Review: The Story of Silbury Hill by Jim Leary and David Field
Silbury is a truly unique monument and the hard work by so many people that has resulted in the new-found knowledge shared in this book is a huge achievement.
Burning of Njáll Repeated on 1000th Anniversary
One thousand years have passed since the historical fire of the farm Bergthórshvoll in Landeyjar, south Iceland, took place, where Icelandic saga protagonist Njáll was burnt to death along with his wife Bergthóra, three sons and other residents, as described in Njáls saga.
Opinion: Scrubbing ‘Huck Finn,’ and Our History
“Huckleberry Finn,” almost always regarded as an American classic, is a story of an unlikely friendship between Huck, a white adolescent, and Jim, an enslaved black man. I find it peculiar that the concept of human chattel is not too harsh for young readers, but a six-letter word renders this work obscene.
Medieval scholar to take one-year trip to explore Iceland’s sagas
A Cambridge scholar is starting a one-year journey across Iceland, to examine the history and significance of Icelandic sagas.
