The Vinland Sagas: The Icelandic Sagas about the First Documented Voyages Across the North Atlantic (Penguin Classics)

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This is one of those books where the author set out to prove that legend can often be true history. This is not simply a retelling of the Sagas, but the author pins down the action to actual places. The Vikings DID reach North America, and the proof is right here.

Very interesting. The original sagas are fascinating. They are fairly short, and so there is a lot of extra background material in the book, some of which seems unnecessary, but you can just skip that.

Excellent book.

fab

Superb, easy to read Penguin Classic. As well as the 'Greenlander Saga' and 'Eric the Red's Saga' translated by Keneva Kunz, we are given an introduction and notes by Gisli Sigurdsson. This really helps to put the Saga's into perspective.Was Vinland a fable based on earlier accounts of a land west of the sea (Atlantic) as recorded in 'The Book of Settlements' where 'The Land of the White Men' is, six days sailing west of Ireland, a piece of Christian propaganda at a time when the new faith was struggling to overcome the indigenous beliefs, or the result of a mistranslation over the centuries? All of these are touched upon. We know from archaeology that Norse settlers DID travel to Newfoundland, but the Saga's seem to suggest they travelled somewhat to the south of this to explore the coast line, perhaps as far as New York city?We are also given footnotes, maps and a family tree of the main characters plus background information on the ships and farmhouses in use around 1000ad. The book ends with a glossary and index.Unlike other Saga's, the 'Vinland Saga' feels very matter of fact and presumes some previous knowledge of the story and its settings from the listener, meaning it must have been widely known before it was ever written down. I found the encounters with the 'Skrealings' especially captivating.There is a full list of further reading material, but for the interested layman such as myself, I found everything in this book I was looking for and would recommended it.

"The Vinland Sagas" contains the earliest and most complete information about Vinland the Good. Many scholars believe Vinland to have been on North Newfoundland, which also happens to be the only authenticated Viking archaeological site at L'Anse aux Meadows. This book consists of two short sagas. "Greenlander's Saga" and "The Saga of Erik the Red". Both events depicted took place in the 11th century but were not written down until the 13th Century in Iceland. Two hundred years of Chinese whispers has produced some anomalies in the stories.The events in "Greenlanders' Saga" concern the voyage of Bjarni Herjolfsson the first Norseman to see the shores of North America and the subsequent voyages of Leif Eriksson, his brother Thorvald, his sister Freyis and an Icelandic merchant Thorfinn Karlsefni. This account describes hostilities with "Skraelings", the natives of Vinland and Greenland. The Vikings held these peoples in contempt."The Saga of Erik the Red" gives the account of a single expedition led by Thorfinn Karlsnefi who married Gudrid, Leif Eriksson's widowed sister-in-law. The saga tells how they traveled to Vinland and stayed for seven years. It covers the difficulties they encountered and their subsequent return.For many years the Vinland Sagas were considered to be merely fanciful myths but recent discoveries have begun to prove their veracity. The Vikings colonized far flung and hostile places like the Faeroe Islands, Iceland and then Greenland. Given the great seafaring abilities of the Vikings, it is not a difficult voyage across the Labrador Sea to North Newfoundland from their settlements in South West Greenland. It is only logical that in their 450 year occupation of Greenland, that they should make this step.Sadly if they had not treated the native Inuit with such contempt their ancestors might still be living in Greenland and even Newfoundland. Instead of nurturing a friendship with them and learning from their way of life which had stood them in good stead for thousands of years, they chose instead to continue with an unsustainable Western lifestyle and given a changing climate they were wiped out. A sad end to their most remote colonies.Like so many of the Icelandic Sagas these accounts stand up well as an exciting enjoyable epic of high adventure and exploration. They are simply a treasure not to be missed.

Fascinating and captivating little stories. Really really feel like on board of a longship with the Norse when reading the stories. The ones relating the fews years of settlement in newfoundland are very tragic. One can realise the difficulties the settlers encountered so far from their country.A good read is the book from Jared Diamond "collapses" which contains few chapters on the Viking expansion and ultimate failure in Greenland and Newfoundland.