Review: Vikings by WB Bartlett

One of the perks of being published by Amberley Books is the opportunity to read and review other publications from their catalogue and recently I was sent a copy of Vikings: A History of the Northmen by WB Bartlett.

Quite a weighty subject. And, indeed, this is quite a hefty book, at 374 pages, plus maps, endnotes and bibliography. It needed to be this long because it is a thorough and comprehensive history.

The author begins with a quick explanation of the terminology i.e. the definition of a Viking, and then moves swiftly on, bringing us a chronological history of the raiders/adventurers/visitors who set out from various northern lands.

Writing mainly about the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England I tend to think of the Viking age as the one which affected the English kingdoms and, indeed, this period is covered in some detail. But we also discover what was happening in other parts of the world - Frankia, Ireland, Orkney to name a few - and always in a chronological framework.

I found this a very useful approach. This book will remain now on my shelf and I know that if I need to look up a particular period, or Viking personality, I will be able to turn to the right chapter. And, as my next-but-one novel will feature a famous (ish) Viking, this book will be invaluable to me.

All the major characters are here but we also develop an understanding of the Viking mindset, the different groups of people who all get lumped under this one name, their stories, the stories about them - the sources and sagas are used with caution and clear understanding - and their varying fortunes. Some are success stories and some are anything but. There is also lots of discussion of archaeological evidence and you come away with a clear idea of how people in the various regions and settlements lived.

Obviously a book with this much scope cannot go into tiny detail about every aspect but I used the sections about English history as a benchmark. While they didn't go into tremendous detail they were accurate and gave a good overview of the period, so I am confident that the rest of the book matches this in term of accuracy.

There is plenty here for those who know something of the history already, but equally it is a very accessible book for those who are less familiar with the period under examination. 

Vikings is available from Amberley Books and all good bookstores/sites