A lively contemporary translation of these action-packed Medieval Icelandic poems.
Quiet now, you sacred ones,
all creeds, all Heimdall’s born sons;
Valfather, I will try to retell tales
of old men and long-gone Gods.
Valkyries, cannibalism, elves, a giant wolf, the gods, cross-dressing, the undead, tragic love, talking birds, how to behave at dinner parties, and the creation of the cosmos are just some of the elements of these poetic tales. Anonymously committed to vellum in Iceland around 1270, The Poetic Edda contains aspects of much older oral lore that had been circulating throughout Northern Europe for centuries and that has enticed Wagner, Tolkien and Borges, among others. This rousing new translation, by celebrated poet Jeramy Dodds, brings a contemporary liveliness to these myths and legends without chipping the patina of the original.
Praise for the Poetic Edda:
‘This is a wonderful new edition of the Poetic Edda. It captures the language, vitality and rhythms of the original. Jeramy Dodds has given us inspiring translations of the Old Norse and Icelandic poems about the gods and heroes.’
– Jesse Byock, UCLA and Háskóli Íslands
