Heathen Reading List

This list will get added to. If you believe a book should be on this list, that is not already, please get in touch at

Historical Documents

• Edda by Snorri Sturluson, translated by Anthony Faulkes (Everyman, 1987)

  
  

• The Prose Edda, translated by Carolyne Larrington (Oxford University Press, 1996)

  
  

• Beowulf (man translations available but the one by Seamus Heaney is well regarded)

  
  

Modern Academic Books

• Myth and Religion of the North: The Religion of Ancient Scandinavia by E.O.G. Turville-Petre (Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1964)

  
  

• Gods and Myths of Northern Europe by H.R. Ellis Davidson (Penguin, 1964)

  
  

• Scandinavian Mythology by H.R. Ellis Davidson (Paul Hamlyn, 1969)

  
  

• Myths and Symbols in Pagan Europe: Early Scandinavian and Celtic Religions by H.R. Ellis Davidson (Manchester University Press, 1988)

  
  

• The Lost Beliefs of Northern Europe by H.R. Ellis Davidson (Routledge, 1993)

  
  

• The Lost Gods of England by Brian Branston (Book Club 1974)

  
  

• Myths of the Pagan North: The Gods of the Norsemen by Christopher Abram (Hambledon Continuum, 2011)

  
  

• Tracing Old Norse Cosmology by Anders Andrén (Nordic Academic Press 2014)

  
  

• The Viking Way by Neil S. Price (Oxbow Books 2009)

  
  

The Norse Myths Retold

• The Norse Myths by Kevin Crossley Holland (Penguin Books 1980)

  
  

• The Norse Myths by Neil Gaiman (Bloomsbury 2017)

  
  

Books by Modern Heathens

• Our Troth Volume 1 and Our Troth Volume 2 - published by an American Heathen organisation, a mine of useful facts and modern thoughts on the Norse Gods

  
  

• Essential Asatru: walking the Path of Norse Paganism by Diana L. Paxson – also American and a basic introduction

  
  

• Elves, Wights and Trolls by Kvedulf Gundarsson (iUniverse 2007) - a look at the lesser creatures our ancestors believed in

  
  

• Heathen Paths: Viking and Anglo Saxon Pagan Beliefs by Pete Jennings (Capall Bann Publishing 2007) - an English writer

  
  

• A Practical Heathen’s Guide to Asatru by Patricia Lafayllves (Llewellyn Publications,U.S. 2013)

  
  

• The Havamal: The Sayings of the High One by Asatru UK (CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform 2017)

  
  

• The Gods’ Own County: A Heathen Prayer Book by Dan Coultas et al (Heathens of Yorkshire 2019)

  
  

Overview of Mythology

• Dictionary of Northern Mythology by Rudolf Simek (D.S.Brewer, New edition 2008)

  
  

• Norse Mythology: A Guide to Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs by John Lindow (Oxford University Press, U.S.A. 2002)

  
  

• The Anglo-Saxon World: An Anthology Kevin Crossley-Holland (Oxford University Press 2009)

  
  

•  Nordic Religion in the Viking Age by Thomas Dubois (University of Pennsylvania Press 1999)

  
  

•  The Viking World by Brink and Price (Routledge 2011)

  
  

Old Academic Books

• The Norsemen HA Guerber original publication 1909 (CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform 2017)

  
  

• Northern Mythology from Pagan Faith to Local Legends by Benjamin Thorpe original publication 1851 (Wordsworth Editions Ltd 2000)

  
  

The Runes

• The Runes Academic books Runes: An Introduction by R.W.V. Elliot, 2nd Edition (Manchester University Press, 1989)

  
  

• Runes, Magic and Religion: A Sourcebook by John MacKinnell and Rudolf Simek, with Klaus Düwel (2004)

  
  

• Runic Amulets and Magic Objects by Mindy MacLeod and Bernard Mees (Boydell Press, 2006)

  
  

• Runes: A Handbook by Michael P. Barnes (Boydell Press, 2012)

  
  

• Esoteric Runology and Magic Runes and Runic Inscriptions by Terje Spurklund (Boydell Press 2009)

  
  

• An Introduction to English Runes by R.I. Page (Boydell Press 2006)

  
  

History Books of the Viking Age

• The Vikings by Magnus Magnusson (Bodley Head/BBC 1980) – accompanied a TV series, it was also updated by the author

  
  

• Viking - Hammer of the North by Magnus Magnusson (Orbis 1976)

  
  

• The Hammer and the Cross by Robert Ferguson (Penguin Books 2010)

  
  

• A Brief History of the Vikings by Jonathan Clements (Robinson Books 2009)

  
  

• A History of the Vikings by Gwyn Jones (Book Club Associates 1973)

  
  

• Vikings a History by Neil Oliver (Weidenfield and Nicolson 2012) accompanied a TV series

Icelandic Sagas 
This is only a sample of the more well known Sagas, also see the Online Resources for more titles.

• Laxdaela Saga translated by Magnus Magnusson and Hermann Palsson (Penguin Classics 1969

• Njal’s Saga translated by Magnus Magnusson and Hermann Palsson (Penguin Classics 1960)

  
  

• Grettir’s Saga (also known as the Saga of Grettir the Strong)

  
  

• Egil’s Saga translated by Hermann Palsson (Penguin Books 1967)

  
  

• The Vinland Sagas - the Norse discovery of America by Magnus Magnusson and Hermann Palsson (Penguin Books 1965)

  
  

• Hrafnkels Saga and other stories translated by Hermann Palsson (Penguin Books 1971)

  
  

• Erbyggja Saga translated by Hermann Palsson and Paul Edwards (Penguin Books 1972)

  
  

• Orkneyinga Saga by Hermann Palsson and Paul Edwards (Penguin Books 1978) - holds the distinction of being the only saga set entirely in the British Isles.

  
  

Books on related topics

• Westward to Vinland - the discovery of the Norse settlement in Newfoundland by Helge Ingstad (Jonathan Cape 1969)

  
  

• A Heathen Guide to Cooking, Baking and Brewing by Craig and Emma Brooks (CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform 2017)

  
  

• Scandinavian Legends and Folktales retold by Gwyn Jones original publication 1956 (Oxford University Press 1995)

  
  

• Viking Friendship - The Social Bond in Iceland and Norway, c. 900-1300 By J V Sigurdsson (Cornell University Press 2017)

  
  

Kids Heathen and Viking Books

• D’Aulaires Book of Norse Myths by Ingri D’Aulaire (NYRB Children's Collection 2006)

  
  

• The Riddle of the Runes by Janina Ramirez and David Wyatt (OUP Oxford 2018)

  
  

• Make This Viking Settlement by Iain Ashman (Usborne Publishing Ltd 2009)

  
  

• Viking Raiders by Anne Civardi (Usborne Publishing Ltd 1997)

  
  

• The Saga of Erik the Viking by Terry Jones (Puffin 1988)

  
  

• Norse Myths and Legends by Cheryl Evans, Anne Millard and illustrations by Rodney Matthews (Usborne Publishing Ltd 1986)

  
  

• Odd and the Frost Giants by Neil Gaiman (Bloomsbury Publishing PLC 2010)

  
  

• Trolls and Their Relatives by Jan Bergh Eriksen and illustrations by Per Aase (Dreyer Bok 1988)

  
  

• D’Aulaires’ Book Of Trolls by Ingri and Edgar D’Aulaires (NYRB Children's Collection 2006)

  
  

Adult fiction set in the Viking Age

• The Whale Road (and sequels) by Robert Low

  
  

• The Last Kingdom (and sequels) by Bernard Cornwell

  
  

• Blood Fued by Rosemary Sutcliffe (Quercus 2018)

  
  

• God of Vengeance (and sequels) by Giles Kristian

  
  

• The way of Wyrd by Brains Bates (Book Club Associates 1983)

  
  

• Eaters of the Dead by Michael Crichton (Arrow 1997)

  
  

• Viking – Odin’s Child (and sequels) by Tim Severin

  
  

Others

• Days in Midgard: A Thousand Years On by Steven T. Abell (Outskirts Press 2008)

  
  

• Last Places by Lawrence Millman (Andre Deutsch 1990)

  
  

Online resources

• The Road to Hel by H.R. Ellis - A Study of the Conception of the Dead in Old Norse Literature -

  http://www.germanicmythology.com/scholarship/road_to_hel.pdf

  
  

• The Icelandic Saga Database -

  http://sagadb.org/

  
  

• Icelandic Saga Map -

  http://sagamap.hi.is/is/