13 minSummaryRead it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook editionPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
A seeress speaks to Odin, Thor loses his hammer, and a family of heroes faces a chain of vengeance.
The Poetic Edda gathers anonymous Old Norse poems about gods and heroes, moving between prophecy, wisdom and heroic legends. In Völuspá, a seeress tells Odin what she remembers and sees ahead. In Hávamál, Odin offers rules for living and a hard-won secret.
The mood shifts from prophecy to quarrels and jokes. In Þrymskviða, a giant steals Thor’s hammer and demands Freyja as his bride. The heroic poems turn toward Sigurd, Brynhild and Gudrun, where oaths, love and vengeance bind lives together. This is a collection of distinct poems, not one continuous story.
What you’ll discover
- A seeress speaks Meet the wise woman whose vision reaches across the whole life of the world.
- Words from Odin Explore Hávamál, where practical rules for living sit beside a god’s hard-won secret.
- Thor without his hammer Discover a less solemn side of the gods through quarrels, jokes and an outrageous demand.
- Oaths and love Follow Sigurd and Brynhild into heroic poems where promises and love bind their lives.
- Gudrun and vengeance Watch the focus turn toward Gudrun and a family caught in a chain of vengeance.
Who will love it
For readers who love myth, Vikings and the roots of fantasy, and for anyone drawn to riddles, proverbs and tragic family legends. It suits listeners who enjoy gods with flaws and heroes with doomed oaths.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Many voices tell of threatened worlds
- Creation already holds signs of ruin
- Wisdom begins with restraint and loyalty
- Knowledge can decide a dangerous contest
- Gods scheme and suffer embarrassment
- Human heroes face love and fate
- Cursed gold draws heroes toward betrayal
- Warnings gather around Atli's invitation
- Separate poems share a threatened world
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet or computer, once the book texts are online.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, once the book texts are online.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 13 minutes, to read today.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout. The eBook opens when the book texts go online.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then USD 0.14 a day in your first year on the yearly plan and USD 0.27 a day after, or USD 0.66 a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
25 languages, side by side
The Poetic Edda in 25 languages, side by side, paragraph by paragraph, once the book texts are online: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
The Poetic Edda
by Anonymous
A dead wise-woman rises at a god's command and foretells how the world will burn and bloom again.
Medium level10–20 hours to read20 languages
Learn a language with medium classicsSpanishFrenchGermanItalianJapanesePortugueseEnglishHow we measure levels
Excellent
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeRenews every year · Cancel anytimeHow it works
- Read, large type too
- 25 languages, side by side
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
In short
A wise-woman answers Othin's summons and reveals the world's past and future. She does not want to speak.
The Poetic Edda at a glance
- Reading time
- About 10 h 25 min8 h 15 min fast, 12 h 20 min slow
- Length
- 148,400 words
- Library level
- Medium longer sentences, everyday words
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A haphazard collection saved in one manuscript
The Poetic Edda is not one book by one author. It is a gathering of thirty-four separate poems, some about gods and some about heroes. Twenty-nine of them survive together in the Codex Regius, a manuscript copied around 1300.
Bishop Brynjolfur Sveinsson found it in Iceland in 1643. Scholars of his day were hunting for a lost verse collection tied to Saemund the Wise, so the bishop labeled it accordingly, and the name Elder Edda stuck. Today few think Saemund had any hand in it.
Renews every year · Cancel anytime
You looked at
Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 13 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- Language
- English
- Level
- Medium level
Cite this edition
The Poetic Edda. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-poetic-edda.
The Poetic Edda. (2026). Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-poetic-edda
The Poetic Edda. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-poetic-edda.
@book{anonymous2026poetic,
title = {The Poetic Edda},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-poetic-edda}
}
Free gifts
USD 580 in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
USD 170FREE - Every eBookIn 25 languages, any device
USD 120FREE - 15-minute summariesRead in 25 languages
USD 60FREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
USD 60FREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
USD 170FREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about The Poetic Edda
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
What is the Poetic Edda about?
It gathers thirty-four Old Norse poems about the gods, the creation and end of the world, wise sayings, and the heroic legends of Sigurth, Brynhild, Guthrun and Atli. Each poem works as a separate scene, speech or story.
What is the difference between the Poetic Edda and the Prose Edda?
The Poetic Edda is a collection of anonymous verse preserved mainly in the Codex Regius. The Prose Edda is a thirteenth-century handbook for poets by Snorri Sturluson, which retells Norse myths and quotes many of the same poems.
Who wrote the Poetic Edda and when?
Nobody knows. Many unnamed poets composed the poems, mostly between 900 and 1050, and singers passed them on by memory. They were written down in Iceland in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, and the main manuscript dates from around 1300.
More by Anonymous
See all their booksMore like this
Our mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
