«Erik & the Gods» by Lars-Henrik Olsen

A classic of Danish children's literature, translated into over a dozen languages..

Winner Best Children's Book and PEN award

The Norse Gods have been fighting an endless war with the Giants and now they’re growing weak and losing their powers, so the God of Thunder, Thor, travels to earth to find help. He asks Erik, an ordinary teenage boy, to go on a secret mission to Asgard and the Land of the Giants.

Once in the Land of the Gods, Erik has to train to gain the skills to outwit and outrun the Giants. Together with Thor’s daughter, Trud, Erik ventures to the Land of the Giants to search for magic apples — the only thing which can revive the dying Gods. But time is running out.

Can they rescue the Goddess and prevent Ragnarok, the End of the World?

Reviews

«Erik and the Gods: Journey to Valhalla is an exciting retelling of Norse myths and legends that many of us have most likely heard of at some point in our lives. The author brings old myths and legends vividly to life with his story and whisks readers off on a magical adventure into the epic world of Norse mythology where adventure abounds.I was positively surprised by this novel, because it has the feel of an epic adventure due to the author's way of writing about the various Gods and their deeds in a marvellous way. The author effortlessly evokes a sense of an adventure and makes sure that his readers are having a good time.» **** - Seregil of Rhiminee

“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, Oxford Companion to Children's Literature«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, 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 lifelong passion for fantasy and, not least, reading. I am delighted that this novel has been translated into English for the first time and will be available to a whole new generation of readers.” –Jakob Stougaard-Nielsen, UCL Scandinavian Studies

Lars-Henrik Olsen is a Danish author. His writing spans both children's, youth and adult books. He has written over 70 books including non-fiction about animals and nature, Nordic mythology and several historical novels. His books have been translated into a total of 13 different languages and sold millions of copies. He also helped found the Panda Club for the World Wildlife Fund.His novel Erik and the Gods: Journey to Valhalla (Erik Menneskeson) was awarded The Danish Children's Book Award in 1986. A film is now being made of the book in Denmark.