Published by Osprey Adventures
Paperback - 80 pages
Published April 2013
Review copy provided by publisher
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The second part in the Myths and Legends series that starts with
Jason and the Argonauts,
Dragonslayers takes a look at some of the most famous historical figures to against the evil winged serpents.
Beowulf and St. George, as the title suggests, form part of the main focus of the book, which sets to give the narrative tale of each dragonslayer without all the Olde Worlde flowery language or any intense academic discourse that leaves your head reeling.
What makes
Dragonslayers different to the first book in the series is that is offers tales from all around the world and across time periods, showing that dragon lore shares common traits that span continents. Most cultures have some form of belief when it comes to dragons and the heroes that deal with them.
It was also fun to spot little snippets from old tales (mostly Norse) that formed part of the mythology for Tolkien's Middle Earth, such as the broken sword that was reforged and flamed when wielded (sound familiar? It should; that's the origin for Anduril, Aragorn's sword).
The text is written in a straight, no nonsense style that gives you the story without any extra fluff. There are images and tidbits of information pulled from historical sources should you wish to delve a little deeper, and the original artwork by Peter Dennis is superb.
My only beef with these books is that they're too short for my liking, but I'm greedy like that. If I get my hands on something that makes complex mythology accessible, I want more. For readers with less voracious appetites, these form a perfect introduction to the dragon mythos.
Dragonslayers has continued the trend started by
Jason and the Argonauts in providing a highly accessible and succinctly written collection of mythological tales that serve as a fantastic entry point into the topic without scaring away non-academics. Short but brilliant.
About the author
Jamie Gibbs is the overlord of Mithril Wisdom as well as a terminal geek and great lover of sandwiches. He started out as an Egyptologist before changing tack and delving into the digital world, where he now blogs by day and blogs by night.
You can follow him on his
Google+ or
Twitter profiles for a daily dose of fanboy rants.