Customer Reviews

Nordic Hero Tales from the Kalevala

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James Baldwin's romantic take on these Finnish rune-poems breath a magical, atmospheric quality to these stories from the Kalevala. The Kalevala- a collection of poems and stories gathered by Finnish scholar Elias Lonnrot in the 19th century (from Finnish and Karelian folklore)- is an epic of the Finnish people, filled with mighty magics, monsters, and larger-than-life heroes (many of whom echo and betray the trappings of having been originally gods of the ancient Finns and Karelians). These poems were sung in verse with the accompaniment of a kantele- the ancient Finnish harp. It is no small wonder that famed British scholar, linguist, and writer J.R.R. Tolkien was inspired so greatly by its majesty- particularly in his writings of the Silmarillian and the Children of Hurin (one can see many qualities of "the mighty minstrel"- Vainamoinen- in the character of Gandalf, for example). Baldwin's prose rendition of these verse poems does not detract from the power or quality of the stories. Rather, they breath new life and make more accessible the stories of ancient Finland to young and old alike who may be a bit leary to jump headlong into the verse style of the original Kalevala. For those looking for an authentic reproduction of the power of the ancient Finnish verse poems, I highly reccommend the translation of Lonnrot's work by Eino Friberg. But for those just beginning their journey into the realm of Finnish mythology, you can do no worse with Baldwin's fine rendition.

The Kalevala is supposed to be a classic of world literature, and I keep picking up new versions to try to figure out why. This one is a children's version written by James Baldwin (not THAT James Baldwin) at the turn of the century, and it shows: stilted diction, romanticized characters, little scholarly apparatus. I only got through the first chapter, and gave up yet again.

What you lack in intriguing text, you can make up for with good illustrations, and the hint of Wyeth illustrations (not THAT Wyeth) sold me. But there are only four, including a plate of the cover -- that strikes me as misrepresentation.