Personal book rating: PG-13
Recommended Audience: Teen/Young Adult
The book is told through the first-person narrative of Magnus Chase, a 16-year-old homeless boy living on the streets of Boston. Through an increasingly strange set of circumstances that make the world of Percy Jackson look normal, Magnus discovers that he's a demigod and must go on a quest to save the world. The difference is that Magnus is a child of the Norse gods, not the Greek gods. I thoroughly enjoyed Magnus' humorous, sarcastic narrative and the breathlessly-paced, action-packed plot--for entertainment alone, it's a fun summer read. Riordan's books have an impressive power to suck the reader in that rivals the Harry Potter books. However, without giving away too much, I will say that I actually put the book down for a while because I couldn't handle the weirdness of it, perhaps because I'm not as familiar with Norse mythology as I am with Greek mythology. I'm still puzzled as to how Riordan plans to reconcile the decadent, golden world of the Greek gods with the darker, finite world of Norse mythology.
While the formula is the same as Percy Jackson, Magnus' world is quite different. Perhaps because Magnus is initially older and in far worse circumstances than Percy was at the beginning of the series, his outlook on life is more cynical, with a deep sense of lost innocence and fatalism. Much of the difference in tone comes from the vast differences between Norse mythology and Greek mythology. On a surface level, the Greek gods' main occupation is typically pleasure-seeking, bickering and carelessly wreaking havoc on humanity. While the Norse gods also share these characteristics to some extent, they are more unified, and more focused on honor, glory, sacrifice and (spoiler alert) the end of the world. The Norse gods' main occupation is actually preparing themselves for the great world-ending battle of Ragnarok. They all know how the battle will play out and how each of them will die. Their fate has already been decided. This opens up interesting discussions within the book about fate, free will, and the importance of our own actions. A sense of fatalistic nobility haunts the book, particularly in its closing chapters. This same aura permeates throughout Tolkien's works of Middle-Earth. I remember that somewhere in the middle of reading Lord of the Rings, I was certain that there was no way this story could end well, and yet I wanted to finish it anyway, to see the story to its end, however depressing it might be. The need went beyond my usual desire to know what happened. I really cannot explain why. Riordan does a fantastic job of capturing a hint of the depressing grandeur of people (and gods) bound by fate, striving to do right anyway. The questionable ethics of the Norse gods prompt discussions on the nature of justice that can easily be carried on outside the text as well as inside. There are also some Hobbit-like values to be found in Magnus' personal philosophy, and that of (spoiler alert) his father, Frey.
Of course, the overtly pagan nature of the book has to be taken into account. This is obviously a work of fiction and not religion, but stories often shape our worldviews far more than religious texts, so be aware of what you're absorbing. On the other hand, we need to gain a greater understanding of the mythologies that shaped our civilization, and Magnus Chase explains Norse mythology brilliantly.
In conclusion, I have two side notes, one writerly and one nerdy:
1. Loki is a far better villain than Kronos--though Kronos was impressive, Loki is far more interesting.
2. Do not expect Thor in the book to be like Thor from the Marvel movies. Loki, on the other hand, is fairly close to the Loki in the Marvel movies.
At this point, it's difficult to discuss the Norse gods without mentioning Marvel. :)
Happy Reading!
--Jodi
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