Erik and the Gods

About the Translator

ABOUT THE TRANSLATORPaul Russell Garrett translates from Danish and Norwegian and occasionally Swedish. Drama plays an important role for him, with several of his translated plays having been performed in London’s West End. Paul also heads up the [Foreign Affairs] translation programme and serves on the committee of the UK Translators Association. Upcoming publications include The Sixteen Trees of the Somme by Lars Mytting and Alen Mešković’s Ukulele Jam.

“Famous myths and legends burst into life again when 13-year-old Erik is enlisted to help out the Norse gods, now fallen on hard times. His adventures that follow are in the same epic league as Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, but delivered with a lighter touch as Erik brings in his own modern perspective to all he sees and hears now going on around him. Packing each chapter with incident and extraordinary detail concerning everyday life in Valhalla, the ancient home of the gods, Lars-Henrik Olsen provides readers of all ages with an unfailingly good-humoured feast for the imagination. Published thirty years ago in Danish, this wonderfully entertaining story, the first of four involving Erik, richly deserves a wider audience today.” − Nicholas Tucker, The Rough Guide to Children’s Books

“Lars-Henrik Olsen’s epic novel of Erik’s adventures with the Viking gods is a main reason why the powerful tales of Norse mythology continue to be shared by generations of Danes. When, as a young teenager, I first encountered Erik and the Gods, I discovered what would become a life-long passion for fantasy and, not least, reading.” − Jakob Stougaard-Nielsen, UCL Scandinavian Studies

“When the great hammer-wielding Thor whisks Erik off to Asgard, the boy finds himself in a new (and very ancient) world preparing to embark on a perilous quest. It will be an action-packed journey on a mythological scale, with Gods and giants, with monsters and magical knives, with dragons and wolves and serpents, with treachery and heroism. Olsen’s breathless new adventure is filled with the old stories, which it conjures back into life – an exciting and original introduction to one of the greatest of all mythological universes.” − Daniel Hahn, The Oxford Companion to Children’s Literature

Erik & the Gods

Journey to Valhalla

“The vivid imagination present in Lars-Henrik Olsen’s retelling [of the Nordic myths] makes it an obvious choice for bedtime reading. Odin’s loneliness, the death of Balder and the warnings about Ragnarok are world-class literature.”

− Jyllandsposten

“The first part of the novel is an incredibly lively and exciting introduction to the wealth of the Nordic myths. The second part leads the main characters on a journey to Hel, the Kingdom of the Dead, to Jotunheim, the land of the giants and on to the castle of Utgard-Loki.

The story will make you shudder and shiver as in the most hard-boiled crime novels while demonstrating the strengths and qualities of the two main characters as in any classic coming-of-age novel. For children of the current generation, [it’s] the perfect induction to the Nordic myths and legends.”

− Niels Mors, Information