Customer Reviews

Odd and the Frost Giants WBD Book

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A review by Hank Wagner, co-author (with Christopher Golden and Stephen R. Bissette) of the upcoming Prince of Stories: The Many Worlds of Neil Gaiman, due out from St. Martins in October 2008:

Gaiman wrote Odd and the Frost Giants as his personal contribution to World Book Day in the United Kingdom, which exists purely to inspire children to read. It's an annual event where a group of authors write books for nothing and publishers publish them for nothing. These books are then sold for £1 each to children who have been given £1 Book Tokens. On its website, the World Book Day organization (www.worldbookday.com) describes it as "the biggest annual event promoting the enjoyment of books and reading."

Regrettably, at least for US residents, there are no current plans to publish this charming, 14,500 word novelette in America. Happily, the book is available through Amazon.uk and it's only £1, a bargain even with current exchange rates. Be warned, however, the shipping charge will make the final cost seem relatively steep.

The good news is that it's worth the cost: the story, enhanced by several illustrations from frequent Gaiman collaborator Mark Buckingham, is delightful.

As you may have guessed from the title, the novelette deals with characters from Norse myth, a subject Gaiman became entranced with at a very young age. It tells the story of the crippled Viking boy Odd, who, running away from home, is befriended by a group of forest animals--a fox, a bear, and an eagle--who are far more than they seem. In truth, they are the Norse gods Loki, Thor, and Odin, respectively. Hoodwinked by a crafty and vengeful Frost Giant, they have been transformed into animals and exiled from Asgard. Odd offers his help, and travels with the gods from Midgard to their homeland of Asgard, where the plucky lad plans to bargain with the Frost Giant in attempt to save the day.

No more about the story, you'll have to discover its significant pleasures on your own. Be assured though that this is vintage Gaiman, a lively, memorable tale that, although modern in its sensibilities, treats its source material in a respectful, affectionate, and humorous manner, making that material more accessible for modern readers, many of whom are likely encountering these characters and settings for the first time.

Neil Gaiman's Odd and the Frost Giants is a delight, a new tale in an old tradition, the mythological world of the Norse gods. Though intended for young readers, older readers can enjoy it as well. It is also a tale that reminds us that heroes come in all sizes, often from the most unlikely of beginnings, and that daring and wits can be even more important than strength and agility.

A good example of how Gaiman imbues his characters with personality is shown in this scene were the boy Odd is woken by the sounds of voices in the hut where he has taken refuge along with a strange trio of animals:

"It's because of you we're in this mess."
"I thought we had a deal. I thought we weren't going to keep harping on about a trivial little mistake..."
"You call this trivial?"
And then a third voice, high and raw, screeched.
"Silence."
There was silence. Odd rolled over. There was a glow from the fire embers, enough to see the inside of the hut, enough to confirm to Odd that there were not another three people in there with him. It was just him and the fox and the bear and the eagle...
Whatever they are, thought Odd, they don't seem to eat people. He sat up, leaned against the wall. The bear and the eagle both ignored him. The fox darted him a green-eyed glance.
"You were talking," said Odd.
The animals looked at Odd and at one another. If they did not actually say "Who? Us?" it was there in their expressions, in the way they held themselves.
"_Somebody_ was talking," said Odd, "and it wasn't me. There isn't anyone else in here. That means it was you lot. And there's no point in arguing."
"We weren't arguing," said the bear. "Because we can't talk." Then it said, "Oops."
The fox and the eagle glared at the bear, who put a paw over its eyes and looked ashamed of itself.
Odd sighed. "Which one of you wants to explain what's going on?" he said.
"Nothing's going on," said the fox brightly. "Just a few talking animals. Nothing to worry about. Happens every day. We'll be out of your hair first thing in the morning."
The eagle fixed Odd with its one good eye. Then it turned to the fox. "Tell!"
The fox shifted uncomfortably. "Why me?"
"Oh," said the bear, "I don't know. Possibly because it's _all_your_fault_?"

Also, given that this story was intended to spur interest in reading, Gaiman succeeds at that as well, offering little tidbits such as this one that will entice younger readers to go beyond this story and read more:

"Old Odin left his chair, and walked towards them. He wiped the goose grease from his mouth with his sleeve, smearing even more grease all over his grey beard. He said, quietly, into Odd's ear, 'Do you know what spring it was you drank from, boy? Where the water came from? Do you know what it cost me to drink there, many years ago?'"

Gaiman leaves the questions unanswered. It is not hard to imagine any number of curious readers going on to find the answers themselves by reading the original Norse mythological tales that provided the background and setting for this new one.

All in all, a pure pleasure to read, with very nice illustrations by Brett Helquist. Highly recommended.

This short story for children is basically everything I love about Neil Gaiman broken down into a quick 90 pages. The writing is fun and fluid with a knack for description that leaves just enough up to the imagination. The way he weaves the Norse Gods into his story is fun, exciting, and realistic. It gives just a little taste of what the Norse Gods are like, thus invoking curiosity about them in any reader (and what a better way to learn more about them than to go read Neil Gaimain's other books - American Gods, to be specific!) - which I think is exactly what is needed in a children's book. Any book that makes kids curious and inspires them to learn gets an A+ in my book.
In general, I find that Gaiman does adult novels and comics better than he does children's books. At least, I used to feel that way until the awesomeness of the Graveyard Book. This book aims at a younger audience than that of the graveyard book and still manages to be fantastic for an adult audience.
With Odd and the Frost Giants, Neil Gaiman shows that he is, indeed, able to take the awesomeness of his ideas and make them accessible to children. And yet, through it all, he throws in the occasional reference that children may not understand (and don't need to understand to appreciate the book) but that leave the adult riveted through the entire epic journey.
All in all, this book ends up being the perfect read for a mother or father to read to their child. Or for a child just getting into books. Or for an adult with a quick half hour in the waiting room.
It was just wonderful.
I don't think any more needs to be said. :-)

Twelve year old Odd, a young lad living in a Norwegian village, hasn't had it easy at all. After his father's untimely death in a Viking raid, his mother married a man that Odd despised. Having badly injured his leg in an accident cutting down a tree, Odd was unable to fit into the community. His cruel neighbours constantly bullied him and abused him with their laughter at his weakness. Gaiman obviously intended the name "Odd" to serve as a metaphor for the struggles he faced and the growth of his unwillingness to live any longer in a place that didn't accept him for who he was.

As a bitterly cold winter tenaciously refused to let go of its hold on the land, Odd gathered some food and ran away to his father's cabin in the woods to live by himself. You can imagine Odd's surprise when he encounters three talking animals - a fox, a bear and an eagle - surprise that turns into a blend of astonishment and fear when learns that the animals are, in fact, gods. Thor, Odin and Loki, defeated by their nemesis, the Frost Giants, were tricked into assuming these animal forms and banished from Asgard, the traditional home of the Norse gods. In a wonderfully endearing and very modern twist on the David vs Goliath theme, Odd enters Asgard to help the gods win back their ancestral home, outwit the Frost Giants and, in the bargain, release winter's deadly grip on his home village.

ODD AND THE FROST GIANTS is an inventive, thoughtful and thoroughly entertaining allegory that an adult can comfortably read in the company of even the youngest beginning readers in the family or enjoy on their own as a short, enjoyable fantasy. A charming and yet comfortingly realistic ending will put a smile on every reader's face.

Highly recommended.

Paul Weiss

Neil Gaiman's imagination knows no bounds. With "Odd and the Frost Giants," he somehow manages to make the story of Odd, a young crippled Norse boy dealing with the premature death of his father into a universal story of self-discovery and triumph.

It's not every day a young boy gets to save Asgard.

Odd, son of a Viking woodcarver, suffers an apparent misfortune when he accidentally crushes his own leg in a horrible accident. This misfortune is compounded by the early demise of his father, a heroic Viking who nevertheless preferred to spend his days releasing the inner statues locked inside blocks of wood. And yet Odd's reaction to life's misfortunes is to smile, oddly, at all the most inappropriate times.

And so it is that Odd may be the most likely person to stumble across three of the mightiest Norse gods - Odin, Thor, and Loki, trapped in animal bodies during a seemingly endless winter.

What follows in this novella is a brief yet riveting tale of self-discovery and triumph by an original, unlikely hero. This book is quite simply a must-read for any child who can read - a perfect little book for all ages.

The only reason I give this book 4 stars is that I don't think Gaiman has yet written any further stories about Odd. If he decides to write some sequels, further fleshing out this magnificent hero, I reserve the right to go to 5 stars.

If you've read anything else by Neil Gaiman, you know he's a brilliant writer with a wry sense of humor and an incredibly deep knowledge of world mythology (the Sandman series that started his career could be a college course in itself. A fun one.) In this book, he has fun with the Norse legends and a smart but slightly odd little boy who saves the world. My child is just a baby, so this book - like any book, really - goes over his head. I don't care - it's such a fun read that I enjoyed it for myself, and I'm looking forward to reading it to him again and again as he gets older.

Odd and the Frost Giants was one of those books that you couldn't put down for me. It really got me interested in Norse gods, the aesier. So, I got a book from the library and the name of the main character, Odd, was actually a Norse god.

The book takes place during Viking times, around the 11th century.
The best part was probably the main character Odd, who really drew my attention. One of my other favorite parts is how the author narrates the story. You feel like you're a fly on the wall, and you get so into the book you forget you're even reading.

So, if you like a good adventure story, you should read Odd and the Frost Giants.

My 6 year old and I loved reading this.

The particular points that stand out are:

* There are 8 chapters, of nice length for 1 or 2 chapters a night before bed.
* The introduction to the Norse mythology was very nicely handled, not too much and not too little.
* As with other Neil Gaiman books for children, it doesn't pull punches and quickly introduces the reader to the sad aspects of Odd's life, then builds towards a sweet ending.
* There aren't many, but the half a dozen drawings are excellent.

Odd and the Frost Giants by: Neil Gaiman is a great book. It's a bit short but the details are really amazing. The book is about a regular boy named Odd. He finds these 3 animals, a fox, a bear, and an eagle. Odd thinks that he's doomed and will be eaten. The animals talk and say they are gods. Their names are Loki, Odin, and Thor. The story is very well plotted. The problem is that the frost giant took over the god's home and changed their forms to animals. Odd and the gods venture out and then Odd confronted the Frost Giant. Odd convinced the frost giant to leave and then Lady Flaya came out. She shaped the gods back to human form. They had a feast and Odd went home. Before He did Odin came up to Odd and presented him with a staff to take with him. He ended up walking with it for a long time.
I think that the purpose and theme of this book is to entertain readers with a short story. I think that the theme is to teach people that even a simple village boy can have a great adventure. I think this because Odd is a ordinary boy. Then he goes on a adventure and that is why I think this. The Arthur might have had this in mind too when he was writing the book.
In my opinion, the book is great. The book is good because the descriptions about different things are very detailed. It really paints a picture in your mind. I think that part of the reason I like it is because I know a lot about myths. This can help because you could understand the book better.

Written by Neil Gaiman for World Book Day in the UK, Odd and the Frost Giants, seems to have been penned with a real dose of magic in the quill! From the moment I began reading this whimsical story about the son of a sea-faring Viking, set in ancient Scandinavia, I experienced an instant connection with Odd, and was transported through time to a simpler world who's inhabitants place value on craft and physical strength. Odd and the Frost Giants is a coming of age story about a young boy faced with the loss of his father compounded by physical deformity--Odd demonstrates courage and a level of maturity that makes my heart swell with pride.

Gaiman weaves a new twist on classic Nordic mythology that takes Odd and his bigger-than-life animal companions, on a journey to save Asgard. I felt as if I was right there with him--trudging through the frozen wilderness, knowing his physical pain but somehow numbed by the magical world that surrounded him. I felt the warmth of the bears thick winter coat, smelled the musky scent of the enormous animal--felt the bitter wind as the eagle flew high in the sky--smiled at the mischievous behavior of the wily fox.

Packaged as a pocket sized, cloth bound Novella, Odd and the Frost Giants is perfect for the small hands of it's readers (children age 8-10). Illustrations by Brett Helquist round out the visual beauty of this literary treasure; his pen and ink sketches strongly resemble wood carvings that could have have been done by Odd's father, a woodcarver by trade.

Gaiman has a real gift for writing children's literature but he never forgets the adults that so often breath life into his words while narrating for his young audience. Gaiman created a protagonist kids can relate to and cheer for and an antagonist kids can also identify with, but find frightening. While fairy tale endings don't always happen in real life (or even in adult fiction), fear, in children's literature should be defeated. In fact, I think it's a rule! Buy Odd and the Frost Giants for your children, read it for yourself!

To learn more about World Book Day and Gaiman's inspiration for writing this Novella, visit Neil Gaiman's website.