The Poetic Edda: Stories of the Norse Gods and Heroes

Jackson Crawford

Nov 2018 · Blackstone Publishing · Narrated by Jackson Crawford

About this audiobook

“The poems of the Poetic Edda have waited a long time for a Modern English translation that would do them justice. Here it is at last (Odin be praised!) and well worth the wait. These amazing texts from a thirteenth-century Icelandic manuscript are of huge historical, mythological, and literary importance, containing the lion’s share of information that survives today about the gods and heroes of pre-Christian Scandinavians, their unique vision of the beginning and end of the world, etc. Jackson Crawford’s modern versions of these poems are authoritative and fluent and often very gripping. With their individual headnotes and complementary general introduction, they supply today’s readers with most of what they need to know in order to understand and appreciate the beliefs, motivations, and values of the Vikings.”—Dick Ringler, Professor Emeritus of English and Scandinavian Studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison

Ratings and reviews

An excellent translation, but unfortunately the heavy accent makes it a painful listen. My apologies to the reader, but for European listeners the thick American accent can be terribly grating/distracting in a Scandinavian tale.

I honestly never would have been able to pronounce alot in this book which is why I got the audiobook. It feels as if he made every character come alive. Very much enjoyed this book.

Beautiful fantastic poetry. Read it before, the audio book is perfect around a campfire or in a hottub gazing up at that v night sky.

About the author

Jackson Crawford earned his PhD in Scandinavian studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and an MA in linguistics from the University of Georgia. He has taught Norse mythology, the Old Norse language, and the history of the Scandinavian languages at the University of California, Los Angeles and the University of California, Berkeley. He is an Instructor of Nordic studies and coordinator of the Nordic program at the University of Colorado, Boulder.