'Gunnlaugs saga ormstungu', or 'The Saga of Gunnlaugur Serpent-Tongue', is a masterpiece of Icelandic literature, written in the late 13th century. It follows the story of two Icelandic poets, Gunnlaugr Ormstunga and Hrafn Önundarson, who both love Helga the Fair, granddaughter of Egill Skallagrímsson. The saga is known for its strong characterization and emotional impact, and its skaldic poetry attributed to the main characters. The story includes prophetic dreams, a love triangle, banishment, and recitation of poetry in the courts of Northern kings, making it an engaging read for those interested in Old Norse literature and Icelandic history.

This is the story/saga of a poet, poor and proud, with all the strength of a Viking and all the weakness of genius. He loves a fine lady, a spoiled child; who bewitches him, and jilts him, and jilts him again. In true Viking style he fights for her, kills for her, writes verse for her, and rises, for her sake, to the height of all that a man in his age could achieve. Then, after years, he has her at his feet, and learns of her heartlessness and worthlessness. He bids her farewell; but in the end dies with her name on his lips. The motive of the book is very modern, yet at the same time as ancient as the human race itself. It is dramatic and imaginative in the sense that it is told by one who was an artist in his craft of saga-telling. The diction is of the simplest and there is no fine writing, but the plot is balanced like a Greek play and the action drives along to its close. The result is conveyed without a word of moralizing. The characters are broadly drawn, and their types are still valid today. Without needless detail, there are touches enough of realism. It reads like a novel, and yet it is a true story. 10% of the net profit from the sale of this book will be donated to Charities. ============== Keywords/Tags: ashore, Asmund, battle, beauty, Bersi, blood, brother, Saga of Cormac the Skald, country, Dalla, day, dead, farm, father, fell, field, fight, firth, forth, fought, glory, goddess, gold, good, great, Halldor, Harald, healed, Helga, Holmgang, horse, house, Hrutafiord, Iceland, king, lady, little, Mel, Midfiord, mother, mountains, Narfi, Norway, ocean, Odin, Ogmund, point, riding, ring, sacrifice, Saga, Saurbæ, shame, ship, shore, Skald, Skeggi, Skofnung, slaughter, son, song, Steinar, Steingerd Steinvor, summer, sword, Thambardal, Thorarin, Thord, Thordis, Thorgil, Thorkel, Thorvald, Thorvard, Thorveig, Tinker, Tongue, Tunga, Vali, valley, voyage, weapon, weapons, wedding, Whitting, woman, wounded

Living in the present days of peace and tranquillity it is difficult to picture the life of our ancestors in the days of King Alfred, when the whole country was for years overrun by hordes of pagan Norsemen, who slaughtered, plundered, and destroyed at will. The wholesale massacres and outrages which would in such a case have been inflicted upon the conquered Saxons at the hands of the Danes. From this terrible state of subjection and suffering the Saxons were rescued by the prudence, the patience, the valour and wisdom of King Alfred. In all subsequent ages, England has produced no single man who united in himself so many great qualities as did this first of great Englishmen. He was learned, wise, brave, prudent, and pious; devoted to his people, clement to his conquered enemies. He was as great in peace as in war; and yet few English boys know more than a faint outline of the events of Alfred's reign, except, maybe, that he burnt the cake. In this time of chaos and Viking onslaught, Alfred the untested Saxon King of Wessex, had to fight to save his people and his land. This tale is told by a young thane, Edmond (a fictitious character), who trains as a knight, becomes Alfred's friend and mightiest warrior. When the Danes over run the land and the Saxons capitulate, this young knight trains and leads a highly motivated corps of pike-men to recapture the kingdom. ============== KEYWORDS/TAGS: Viking, Norse, Danelaw, Alfred the Great, Danish, Danes, Dragon and the Raven, G. A. Henty, , Edmund, men, great, Dragon, , arrows, attack, boats, country, course, Egbert, enemy, England, enter, father, fight, fleet, fought, Freda, galleys, ground, hands, King Alfred, marshes, might, night, Northmen, numbers, oars, Paris, party, river, Saxon, sea, ships, shore, Siegbert, strength, Sweyn, together, vessels, Viking, walls, way

OLAF TRYGGVASON, the hero of this saga is not an imaginary one; he was a real flesh and blood man who eventually reigned as King of Norway just over a thousand years ago. His life reads as only a Viking Saga could and should. Herein you will find the salient facts of his adventurous and outstanding life. They are: his boyhood of slavery in Estonia,his life at the court of King Valdemar,his wanderings as a Viking,the many battles he fought, on land and sea,his conversion to Christianity in England, and;his ultimate return to his native Norway where he reigned as King – are set forth in this volume which, if summarised, would make for a cracking campfire yarn. The events related herein can be found in the various Icelandic sagas dealing with the period in which he lived. In short, Olaf was your archetypal Viking. Very few authors could pen a saga that mirrors the life of Olaf, and many have tried. However in penning this story, Leighton made full and free use of these old time records, and added only such probable incidents as were necessary to give a thread of continuity to the reader. NOTE: For the convenience of readers who may wish for greater exactness; Olaf Triggvison was born A.D. 963 and he started on his wanderings as a Viking in the year A.D. 981. The sea fight between the Vikings of Jomsburg and the Norwegians took place in A.D. 986, and the battle of Maldon in the year A.D. 991. Olaf reigned only five years as King of Norway, being crowned in 995, and ending his reign with his death in the glorious defeat at Svold in the year A.D. 1000. 10% of the publisher’s profit from the sale of this book will be donated to UNICEF. KEYWORDS/TAGS: Viking, Norse, Saga, Story, Olaf Tryggvason, slave, warrior, King, conversion, Christianity, Valdemar, land battles, sea battles, Jomsburg, England, Norway, Norwegian, battle of Maldon, battle of Svold, finding of olaf, sigurd erikson, gerda' s prophecy, slaying of klerkon, norse kings, training, captain of the host, west, over-seas, hermit, scilly Isles, thorir klakka, evil earl, christening, Sigrid, haughty, long serpent, sigvaldi, treachery, snare, svold sound, defence

The saga of Gunnlaug the Worm-Tongue and Raven the Skald, composed in the 13th century, relates the story of two Icelandic poets Gunnlaugr Ormstunga and Hrafn Önundarson, and their competition for the love of Helga the Fair, daughter of Þorsteinn Egilsson and granddaughter of Egill Skallagrímsson. The story opens with a prophetic dream of two eagles fighting over a swan, prefiguring the love triangle in the story. The rivalry is initially fought using verse, but later with weapons, when Gunnlaug challenges Hrafn to a holmgang -- a duel, the recognised Norse way of settling disputes. The narrative follows Gunnlaugr and is sympathetic towards him as it describes his ambitious career as a court poet across Scandinavia and the British Isles. The saga has similarities to earlier sagas of poets, such as Kormáks saga and Bjarnar saga, but it is more refined and elegant with strong characterization and emotional impact. Long considered a masterpiece, the saga is often read by new students of Old Norse literature. William Morris is normally thought of as a fantasy precursor of Tolkien, having written The Wood Beyond the World among other works. But he was also a translator, along with Eiríkr Magnússon, of more than just a few Norse Sagas. Originally written in the old Icelandic language, considered to be the closest tongue to that spoken by the Vikings, Gunnlaug the Worm-Tongue and Raven the Skald is but one of those efforts. ================= TAGS: Viking Saga, Norse, Norway, Gunnlaug, Worm-Tongue, Raven The Skald, Iceland, Greenland, Thorstein Egilson, Kin, Dream, Birth, Fostering, Helga The Fair, Raven, Vow, Faring, Abroad, East, West, Ireland, Quarrel, Swedish King, Wife, Abide Away, Landing, Wedding, Skaney, Kings Cloak, Two Foes, Fight, Dingness, News, Death Of Helga