內容簡介
內容簡介 奇幻文學大師、鬼才作家尼爾．蓋曼新作－－激發作品如《美國眾神》創作靈感的重要來源，「故事寶庫」尼爾．蓋曼帶您進入北歐神話的世界！尼爾．蓋曼以純熟詼諧的文字，為遠古時代的故事增添小說元素，從傳說中九個世界的誕生開始，不僅訴說阿斯嘉（Asgard）各神祇的事蹟，如聰慧狡猾的主神奧丁（Odin）、力大無窮的雷神索爾（Thor），以及惡作劇之神洛基（Loki），也描繪其他世界的精靈、火魔（fire demons）、華納神族（Vanir）、人類、侏儒、巨人、亡者等生物，使神話角色的百態躍然紙上。尼爾．蓋曼的重新詮釋，忠實於北歐神話，更讓古老的故事重獲新生！ Introducing an instant classic―master storyteller Neil Gaiman presents a dazzling version of the great Norse myths.Neil Gaiman has long been inspired by ancient mythology in creating the fantastical realms of his fiction. Now he turns his attention back to the source, presenting a bravura rendition of the great northern tales.In Norse Mythology, Gaiman stays true to the myths in envisioning the major Norse pantheon: Odin, the highest of the high, wise, daring, and cunning; Thor, Odin’s son, incredibly strong yet not the wisest of gods; and Loki―son of a giant―blood brother to Odin and a trickster and unsurpassable manipulator.Gaiman fashions these primeval stories into a novelistic arc that begins with the genesis of the legendary nine worlds and delves into the exploits of deities, dwarfs, and giants. Once, when Thor’s hammer is stolen, Thor must disguise himself as a woman―difficult with his beard and huge appetite―to steal it back. More poignant is the tale in which the blood of Kvasir―the most sagacious of gods―is turned into a mead that infuses drinkers with poetry. The work culminates in Ragnarok, the twilight of the gods and rebirth of a new time and people.Through Gaiman’s deft and witty prose emerge these gods with their fiercely competitive natures, their susceptibility to being duped and to duping others, and their tendency to let passion ignite their actions, making these long-ago myths breathe pungent life again.
