Introduction 1. Infancy and Childhood 2. Between Two Worlds: Teenage Girls 3. Adulthood 4. Pregnancy and Childbirth 5. Widows 6. Old Age and Death Epilogue
Valkyrie explores the fascinating texts of Medieval Iceland that feature viking women in a variety of roles carrying power.
Jóhanna Katrín Friðriksdóttir currently works at the National Library of Norway in Oslo. She was a historical consultant on Robert Eggers’ epic Viking film, The Northman. Her research focuses on Vikings, old Norse-Icelandic sagas, mythology and poetry, late medieval Iceland, medieval manuscripts and gender.
[Friðriksdóttir] brilliantly manages to make the Vikings feel far
closer to us than ever before ... 4 stars.
*Mail on Sunday*
Friðriksdóttir weaves a complex picture in which different kinds of
evidence successfully illuminate each other to provide a rich and
detailed picture ... This book is intelligent, engaging and well
written, with many new insights.
*BBC History Magazine*
Valkyries have an obvious appeal, but the real women of the Viking
age are more exciting. In Jóhanna Katrín Friðriksdóttir’s
significant new history, they are brought engagingly to life.
*Times Literary Supplement*
[A] fascinating overview of women's roles in the Viking world, from
infancy to death. It's a period of history that continues to grip
the popular imagination, here brought evocatively to life through
archaeological discoveries and contemporary sources, including
emotive stories and verse.
*History Revealed*
Valkyrie's true colour comes from the Old Norse literature that
underpins much of the analysis. The pages sparkle with tales of the
fierce Valkyries and vengeful wives of poetic legend, the goddesses
of Asgard and the women who feature in the Old Norse sagas...
Yeild[s] new insights into the complex nature of the Viking
Age.
*Literary Review*
This deep dive into the lives of the women of the Viking era is a
fascinating one, combining as it does both the realities and
mythology of the time ... Friðriksdóttir's investigation merges
these two worlds brilliantly ... 4 stars.
*All About History*
The author’s dilemma, in this scholarly study, is to reconcile the
larger-than-life legends of monstrous mothers and terrifying shield
maidens with the more mundane and complex reality of daily life for
Viking women from childhood to old age.
*Brisbane Times*
The book is beautifully written, and the author paints a vivid
picture of saga narratives so that even readers unfamiliar with the
stories will understand and feel transported to the world of the
Vikings and their descendants. It is an accessible text, and anyone
interested in learning more about women and daily life in the
Viking Age will find it both interesting and enjoyable.
*Anglican and Episcopal History*
Through an excellent insight into both the written, as well as
archaeological sources the author weaves a clear picture of women’s
lives from birth to death in the Viking Age. Valkyrie: The Women of
the Viking World is a significant book.
*Professor Jón Viðar Sigurðsson, University of Oslo*
Authoritative and provocative, bang up-to-date, yet steeped in
historical knowledge, JKF’s Valkyrie is indispensable for all
Viking enthusiasts. Her lively style, profound knowledge and
brilliant insights signal a stunning new voice in the debate about
the Vikings.
*Carolyne Larrington, Professor of Medieval European Literature,
University of Oxford*
This is the new standard work on women in the Viking Age – a
lively, authoritative and staunchly feminist survey that combines
both textual and material sources in a ground-breaking study of the
female life-course. With this superb book, Jóhanna Katrín has put
Viking scholars in her debt.
*Neil Price, Professor of Archaeology, Uppsala University*
What a wonderful book. For the first time readers can understand
the importance of the Valkyries in the Viking Age and see the
impact these mythical women had more broadly on culture and society
in the early medieval world. The scholarship is excellent,
interpretation thorough, yet the writing style is accessible. It's
a pleasure to read and be plunged into a world of sagas, runes,
myth and magic.
*Dr Janina Ramirez FRSA, University of Oxford*
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