These dramatic and atmospheric tales are based on the Scandinavian myth cycle, one of the greatest and most culturally significant stories in the world. From the creation of the nine worlds to the final battle of Ragnarok, listeners will pore over the enthralling exploits of all-powerful Odin, mighty Thor and his hammer, and Loki, the infamous trickster. In this stunning anthology, the strange world of ancient magic, giants, dwarfs, and monsters is unforgettably imagined.

Ancient, rich, and strange, this collection of eerie tales from across Britain and Ireland have influenced our culture and the folklore that followed.

From the translator of the best-selling Poetic Edda comes a gripping new rendering of two of the greatest sagas of Old Norse literature. Together the two sagas recount the story of seven generations of a single legendary heroic family and comprise our best source of traditional lore about its members - including, among others, the dragon slayer Sigurd, Brynhild the Valkyrie, and the Viking chieftain Ragnar Lothbrok.

One of the finest German medieval epic poems, The Lay of the Nibelungs is perhaps best known now as one of the principal sources for Wagner’s four-part music drama The Ring of the Nibelung. It is easy to see how Wagner was enthralled by the story and the poetry for the power of the tale drives the narrative: intense love, loyalty, jealousy, murder, duty, honour and massacre are all interwoven into a classic.

Before time as we know it began, gods and goddesses lived in the city of Asgard. Odin All Father crossed the Rainbow Bridge to walk among men in Midgard. Thor defended Asgard with his mighty hammer. Mischievous Loki was constantly getting into trouble with the other gods, and dragons and giants walked free. This collection of Norse sagas retold by author Padraic Colum gives us a sense of that magical time when the world was filled with powers and wonders we can hardly imagine.