Customer Reviews

Scandinavian Ghost Stories and Other Tales of the SSupernatural

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From authentic sources, including the Norse folk legends collected by Peter Christian Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Moe, these centuries-old stories of sorcery, monsters and demons come from the imaginations of the Scandinavian people. Nineteen stories reflect the fear of evil that haunts and fascinates the human soul.

These ancient tales from Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Iceland, and Finland can be read on many levels: as entertaining stories of magic and mayhem; as fables to warn children to be careful of the hidden dangers of the world; or as symbolic reflections on the eternal struggle of good versus evil and the quest for ultimate power.

Sorcery, witchcraft, magic charms and incantations; graveyards and nocturnal journeys; ghosts, monsters, and demons of the night are common elements in these tales of the supernatural. For generations, the Scandinavian peasants huddled around their fires interweaving fantasy and belief based on superstition, religion, social customs and taboos, life styles and morals. The supernatural beings raised in these sittings represent the evil perceived in the heart of mankind and the harsh world beyond the hearth. The telling of undesirable human traits or emotions through witches, goblins, trolls, and other monstrous beings gave rise to the hope that being mindful and alert to these dangers would hold them at bay.

In this book, travel a frightening world of curses and maleficence, power and greed tempered by a revelation of the will to overcome. Illustrations by artists including H.J. Ford are throughout the book.

my husband and i purchased this book, along with "norwegian troll tales," while on vacation this summer. our friend liked them so much that we purchased a copy of each book for him here. although we prefer "norwegian troll tales," this is a nice collection of stories for anyone interested in the subject - great bedtime stories for (older) children and grown-ups alike

I found this collection to be quite refreshing. The term "ghost stories" isn't completely applicable, as there are plenty of anecdotes and cautionary tales dealing with a host of supernatural issues, including monsters, trolls, and the Devil. As is always the case to the learned folklorist, I recognized a number of motifs to be found in other Eurasian folktales, as well as what appeared to be stories bodily stolen from other cultures: in particular, you will recognize Baba Yaga, the three supernaturally skilled seamstress "aunts" of the brothers Grimm, and the well-known motif from Ireland and Brittany (no, not Britain) of the third young hero who outwits his evil boss--assassinating wives and building bridges of livestock's skeletons--and so avoids being skinned from his neck to his heel. The stories were tastefully written and accompanied by the occasional illustration of uncertain derivation, though they were unquestionably of nineteenth-century provenance. Even those who are well versed in the encyclopedic collections edited by, say, Booss, Moe, and Asbjørnsen will find something to tickle their respective fancies.