Monday, January 21, 2019

Odd and the Frost Giants

Odd and the Frost Giants. Neil Gaiman. Illustrated by Brett Helquist. 2008. 117 pages. [Source: Review copy]

First sentence: There was a boy called Odd, and there was nothing strange or unusual about that, not in that time or place. Odd meant the tip of a blade, and it was a lucky name. He was odd, though. At least, the other villagers thought so. But if there was one thing that he wasn't, it was lucky.

Premise/plot: Odd has a marvelous--though unexpected--adventure one winter. Out of all the Viking boys in his village, Odd might be the one voted least likely to have an adventure. His adventure begins, in a way, with his encounter with a fox, eagle, and a bear. Looks can be deceiving, for this isn't an ordinary fox, eagle, or bear. These are Norse gods...and they need a little help defeating their enemy.

My thoughts: DELIGHTFUL. I loved every minute of this one. I loved the story, the characters, the pacing, the writing. It was just a joy to read this little fantasy novel.

Original audience born circa 1996 to 2000.

© 2019 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

4 comments:

Stephanie said...

I'm so glad you enjoyed this so much! We have a copy floating around somewhere from when my son was young. I haven't read it yet, but we've started reading chapter books to my daughter at night, and I bet she'd enjoy this. I'll have to dig it up! :)

Becky said...

Stephanie, I think it would make a lovely read aloud.

Terry Doherty said...

We loved that timeless, fairy tale feel, too. The sizing really adds to the experience of sharing it aloud. https://thereadingtub.org/sf/reviews/show/ODD-AND-THE-FROST-GIANTS-by-Neil-Gaiman

Joel @ I Would Rather Be Reading said...

Gaiman writes so beautifully and makes it look so easy. He is a writer who I know I will love anything he creates.