The Poetic Edda Decoded: A Complete Guide to the Sacred Poems of Norse Mythology (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781971761046)

The Poetic Edda is the oldest surviving record of Norse mythology. Forty-five poems preserved in a thirteenth-century Icelandic manuscript, containing material centuries older than the manuscript itself. Creation and apocalypse. Gods who know they will lose and fight anyway. Heroes who walk into destruction with their eyes open.

The Poetic Edda Decoded opens this foundational corpus poem by poem - explaining the history, the structure, and the deeper meaning behind each text, turning a difficult and fragmented source into something clear and readable.

• Complete analysis of all major poems: Völuspá, Hávamál, Lokasenna, the Völsung cycle, and more
• Deep reading of the Hávamál and its runic tradition - wisdom, sacrifice, and the eighteen incantations of Odin
• Full heroic cycle: Sigurðr, Brynhildr, Guðrún - the Norse source behind Wagner, Tolkien, and the entire Germanic tradition
• Instant access to a full translation of the Poetic Edda via QR code - the guide and the source text, in one place
• Full glossary of key characters, gods, heroes, and cosmological terms

This is not just a summary - it is a way to actually read and understand the Poetic Edda.