3 h 37 minAudiobook15 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 3 h 37 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What proves a hero’s worth when the sea is dangerous, feuds run deep, and a good name matters?
In Viking Tales, Jennie Hall retells Norse stories drawn from the old sagas of Iceland and Norway. Sea kings, farmers, sailors and their families share a world of longships and hard winters. A young man shows his worth through action: handling a ship, facing a quarrel or making a hard choice.
The sea runs through these adventures, carrying people to raid, trade, explore and settle new lands. Beneath the journeys lie questions of courage, loyalty and keeping your word. Hall’s clear, steady storytelling offers an easy way into the values these sagas prize, including the resolve to face fate without complaint.
What you’ll discover
- Heroes tested by deeds Meet heroes whose worth rests on what they do when difficult choices arrive.
- Lives shaped by water Follow longships across a world where the sea carries both adventure and danger.
- More than sea kings Discover farmers, sailors and families alongside the heroes of these Norse stories.
- The weight of loyalty Explore a world where keeping your word and guarding your name matter deeply.
- Tales to share aloud Enjoy short, clear sentences that invite you to share the adventures aloud.
Who will love it
You will love this book if you enjoy dragon ships, mead halls and bold vows, or old legends told in clear, lively scenes. It suits readers curious about Vikings and the first voyages toward America.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Harald grows into the stories
- Olaf keeps pride beneath his collar
- A young king earns his followers
- Gyda gives Harald a greater ambition
- Refusing one king opens another road
- A settlement needs more than shelter
- Eric turns exile toward the west
- Unexpected winds carry discovery onward
- Kept promises connect the wandering lives
Who’s who
- HaraldSon of King Halfdan, he becomes king at ten and vows to rule all of Norway for the sake of Gyda.
- Olaf the CraftyA captured raider turned tooth thrall, he tells young Harald of his dragon ship, his vow, and his fights.
- GydaA proud, learned woman who dares Harald to make himself king of all Norway before she will marry him.
- IngolfA Norseman who leaves Harald's Norway and sails to Iceland, where he follows the pillars of his high seat.
- LeifIngolf's cheerful foster-brother, who longs for adventure and a new land where men can be their own kings.
- Eric the RedA fiery, quarrelsome man outlawed from Iceland, who sails west and settles Greenland.
- Leif EricssonEric's son, who sails to Norway and on the way home finds a warm land of wild grapes.
- GudridA wise, lively woman who marries the trader Thorfinn and eagerly sails with him to Wineland.
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- Hardcover
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- Large print paperback
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- Large print hardcover
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Viking Tales 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.
Viking Tales
by Jennie Hall · 1902
A boy of ten becomes king, and a dare from a proud girl named Gyda sends him to win all of Norway.
Easy read2–5 hours to read2 languages
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In short
Picture a ten-year-old boy who drinks his dead father's funeral ale, takes the high seat, and swears to grind his father's enemies beneath his heel. Now picture a proud young woman who says she will not marry a king who rules so few people.
Viking Tales at a glance
- Reading time
- About 2 h 5 min1 h 40 min fast, 2 h 30 min slow
- Length
- 29,600 words
- Library level
- Easy short sentences, plain words
- First published
- 1902by Jennie Hall
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 king's son grows up on tales of gods
The book opens with a dream. The queen of King Halfdan sees a thorn grow in her fingers into a tall tree. Its trunk is red as blood, its lower branches are green, its highest branches are white, and its shade covers all Norway and more.
Soon a baby son is born. Halfdan names him Harald and gives him ten pounds of gold. At seven months, the king gives him lambs, calves and colts, and a thrall named Olaf.
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Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 15 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1902
- Language
- English
- Level
- Easy read
Cite this edition
Hall, Jennie. Viking Tales. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/viking-tales.
Hall, J. (2026). Viking tales. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/viking-tales (Original work published 1902)
Hall, Jennie. Viking Tales. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/viking-tales.
@book{hall2026viking,
author = {Hall, Jennie},
title = {Viking Tales},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/viking-tales},
note = {First published 1902}
}
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What is Viking Tales about?
It retells old Norse sagas that follow the Norsemen westward, from Harald's Norway to Iceland, Greenland, and a land of wild grapes. Each tale adds a new link in the chain of islands leading toward America.
Who are Harald, Ingolf, Eric the Red, and Leif Ericsson in the book?
Harald is the boy who becomes king of all Norway. Ingolf settles Iceland, Eric the Red founds the colony of Greenland, and Eric's son Leif Ericsson finds Wineland, a warm shore with wild grapes.
Is Viking Tales a true story?
It draws on Icelandic sagas that older storytellers sang and later wrote on sheepskin. Jennie Hall retells them for young readers. The people and voyages come from tradition, and the book adds notes on Norse life.
The author
Jennie Hall
1875–1921 · American children's author
Jennie Hall (1875–1921) was an American author and teacher. She taught history and English at the Francis W. Parker School in Chicago. Her book Viking Tales was published in 1902. She lived in the United States during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
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