Leifur Eiricksson

‘Though I treated him worst, I loved him best’Gudrun is headstrong, proud and the most beautiful woman in Iceland. The tragic story of how she comes to betray and destroy the only man she has ever truly loved lies at the heart of this family saga, which traces the passions and blood feuds of three generations. Written around 1245 but telling of earlier centuries, when magic rites and sorcery clashed with the spread of Christianity throughout the Viking world, this tale of revenge slayings and sacrifice, desire and regret, is one of the best-loved works of Icelandic literature. The accompanying sequel tells of Bolli Bollason, Gudrun’s adored son, and his fortune-seeking exploits. Translated by Keneva KunzEdited with an Introduction by Bergljót S. Kristjánsdóttir

The Saga of the Greenlanders and Eirik the Red’s Saga contain the first ever descriptions of North America, a bountiful land of grapes and vines, discovered by Vikings five centuries before Christopher Columbus. Written down in the early thirteenth century, they recount the Icelandic settlement of Greenland by Eirik the Red, the chance discovery by seafaring adventurers of a mysterious new land, and Eirik’s son Leif the Lucky’s perilous voyages to explore it. Wrecked by storms, stricken by disease and plagued by navigational mishaps, some survived the North Atlantic to pass down this compelling tale of the first Europeans to talk with, trade with, and war with the Native Americans.

Written in the thirteenth century, Njal's Saga is a story that explores perennial human problems-from failed marriages to divided loyalties, from the law's inability to curb human passions to the terrible consequences when decent men and women are swept up in a tide of violence beyond their control. It is populated by memorable and complex characters like Gunnar of Hlidarendi, a powerful warrior with an aversion to killing, and the not-so-villainous Mord Valgardsson. Full of dreams, strange prophecies, violent power struggles, and fragile peace agreements, Njal's Saga tells the compelling story of a fifty-year blood feud that, despite its distance from us in time and place, is driven by passions familiar to us all. This Penguin Classics edition includes an introduction, chronology, index of characters, plot summary, explanatory notes, maps, and suggestions for further reading.