Thor

The Origins, History and Evolution of the Norse God

By: Charles River Editors, Jesse Harasta

Narrated by: Anthony R. Schlotzhauer

"Across the rainbow bridge of Asgard, Where the Booming Heavens Roar, You'll behold in breathless wonder, the God of Thunder, Mighty Thor!" (Theme song from the television show Mighty Thor [1966]) "In swelling rage | then rose up Thor, - Seldom he sits | when he such things hears, - And the oaths were broken, | the words and bonds, The mighty pledges | between them made." (Völuspá Line #26 from the "Poetic Edda")

A hammer no mortal can lift. A flame-haired, fiery storm god. A comic book alien-hero-god who defends humanity. The swastika. Even the name "Thursday" ("Thor's Day"). Despite the virtual disappearance of the indigenous Norse religion and mythology several centuries ago, modern society still regularly encounters the storm god Thor, who continues to be brought back to life in the form of literature and was recently the protagonist in a big-budget Hollywood movie. What is it about this god, out of the hundreds (if not thousands) of deities that were consigned to the dustbin of history by the world's major religions, that so captures people's imaginations today?

A better understanding of Thor's appeal can be found in just about every aspect of the history and evolution of the figure over the centuries, including the origins of the god, the evocative imagery used to describe him, and even the parallels between Thor and similar gods and heroes.

©2012 Charles River Editors (P)2015 Charles River Editors

Interesting!

norse, myths-legends

In recounting the mythology of the Norse Thor, a really interesting study of comparative European pre Christian mythology and worship is done in this thesis. The whole of the Norse gods are recounted in context, but it is the comparison between others e.g. Germanic, that really helped me with questions I have had after reading series like Harry Dresden and also the Iron Druid. The writing is neither dry nor boring, and I enjoyed learning from it.
The narrator performed very well!

Short, but a lot of information

Well worth the listen if you have interest in Norse mythology or wonder why Thor is in today’s pop culture.

misleading

not enough on Thor or Norse. if I wanted a book about the whole world I'd look for one . this book talks about all other religions and irrelevant facts about them. don't buy this if your only interested in Norse or Thor