Soon the winds will shift. As we button up, perhaps we'll hear whispers or howls in that northeast wind. Perhaps we will think about foamy waves and icy land and ancient stories told around fire. Join us at Castleton Free Library on Thursday (Thor's Day), September 27th at 7:00 pm for "Song of the Vikings: The Making of Norse Myths," a free presentation by award-winning author Nancy Marie Brown.
"Like Greek mythology, Norse myths are still with us, inspiring storytellers from Tolkien to Neil Gaiman, Michael Chabon, and A.S. Byatt. Surprisingly, most of what we know about Valhalla and the Valkyries, Odin and the Well of Wisdom, the Mighty Thor, and Ragnarok or the Twilight of the Gods was written by a 13th-century Icelandic chieftain, Snorri Sturluson….Brown brings the fascinating story of Sturluson's life into focus, drawing on newly available sources and illuminating the folklore and pagan legends of medieval Scandinavia," in this Vermont Humanities Speakers' Bureau program.
The speaker, now from Lyndon, Vermont, was a Penn State science writer who turned to books, with six general interest titles and a young adult novel to her credit, including the 2012 book on which this program is based. She describes her interests - "I like extremes: Science and sagas. Science and faith. History and fantasy. The Dark Ages and modern times. Fire and ice. My books combine extremes. They ask, What have we overlooked? What have we forgotten? What knowledge must not be lost?" She has spoken previously in our area on the Lewis Chessmen, walrus-ivory Viking figurines found in Scotland's Outer Hebrides in the 1800s.
Writing about Song of the Vikings, a Boston Globe reviewer said, "Nancy Marie Brown has taught me that the roots of this part run deeper than I knew -- down through "Norse Gods and Giants" to the imagination of a gouty poet, historian, and lawyer drinking beer in his hot tub eight centuries ago." And Patrick J. Stevens, curator of the Fiske Icelandic Collection at Cornell University says Brown's work "confirms the indelible signature of this sophisticated people on the texts of our global civilization, from Wagner and Tolkien to Thor (Marvel Comics)..." and belongs in the hands of every discerning student of Western civilization.
Light refreshments will be served. This program is open to all and accessible via parking on the west side of the library on 638 Main Street. Questions? Contact Mary at 802-468-5574 or castletonfreelibrary@gmail.com.