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They Came On Viking Ships (2005)

They Came on Viking Ships (2005)

Book Info

Author
Genre
Rating
4.01 of 5 Votes: 5
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ISBN
0207200114 (ISBN13: 9780207200113)
Language
English
Publisher
harpercollins (australia) children's

About book They Came On Viking Ships (2005)

I decided to read this book because I had been searching for a book that was unlike the sort of novel I usually read (dystopian, fantasy or supernatural) and I thought it would be an interesting change.This novel fills in the category of a book that teaches me about another time in history. This is a pretty broad category, but instead of reading something about British/ Tudor history I decided I wanted to know more about Vikings, because I found that I have quite a lot of Scottish Viking blood in me.My favourite quote from this book was “I think of pain differently now. There is pain that hurts, pain that is so bad you can no longer feel it. Your body just says 'hold on'.” 12 year old Hekja had already been through so much more in her life than anyone today could imagine, after being captured after a raid and taken to Greenland to work as a slave. This quote symbolises how strong she was, and how she always fought to stay herself.Something new I learned from this book was that things go wrong in life, and when they do you just have to keep going, and try and prevail. there's no point in giving up.A character I found interesting in this book was the Viking chiefs daughter, Freydis. She was an incredible leader, but her society stopped her from being truly great. She saved Hekja from death because she felt pity for her, as she revealed at the end of the novel, and throughout the story, began to love Hekja as a daughter. On her deathbed, she tells her that she has effectively adopted her, so that she could live her life free from slavery. I felt drawn to this character because she had such a strong personality and she was so loyal and good.

This is one of the nominees for the Maine Student Book Award. It was a okay book. I prefer her one of her picture books, Diary of a Wombat. The author also uses footnotes throughout the book to clarify certain Viking terms that might be confusing. I could see why maybe teachers would really like this, but I found it to be a bit distracting.The book is called Rover, which is the name of the dog. The main character is Hekja, the dog's owner. She lives a quiet life on an island until it is attacked by Vikings. She manages to outrun almost everyone but is captured by Freja and taken as a thrall. What happens to her after she is captured is the basis of the rest of the book. There is some mild romance at the end, which I sort of knew was going to happen the second the male character was introduced. There is sort of a romantic rival, and he is really easily done away with.I do not think this book will win at all.

Do You like book They Came On Viking Ships (2005)?

this book was on my friend group reading list that we all wanted to read back in high school, this is where i first fell inlove with such a beautiful story with well-written characters. the only problem i had with this book overall was when the author wrote chapter headings that gave away a chapter and pivotal plot point in the book. the book also gives a small insights of what the people around this time did, like traditions and beliefs. i was rooting for hejka and bran to be together by the end of the book because i felt these two characters were meant for each other and just fit together so perfectly, but i was disapointed when this did not happen.
—Cassie Wells

This is an excellent read for older children, young adults and adults alike. The story follows a Scottish island girl, Hekja, who lives in a small village with her dog Snarf who protects the cows. A Viking raid however sees them taken captive and the family destroyed. Young fit slaves were valued by the Vikings as runners and after some time Hekja is put aboard a longship heading to Vinland under the leadership of Freydis Eriksdottir. The Vikings did not make maps so they have only the words of earlier sailors to follow and they narrowly avoid icebergs on the long rough journey. Snarf's nose alerts them to land and they make landfall near an abandoned cluster of longhouses. Not only the natives might be unfriendly as there are undercurrents within the expedition, and Hekja just has to rely on her owner to protect her.Another slave, Hikki, teaches Hekja how to run efficiently over long distances and since he cannot marry a Viking, we see him looking thoughtfully at the young girl and picturing their future. The colony gets established but the native people, who initially wanted to trade, resent the spread of the Vikings and launch their own raids.The world of the Vikings is well realised and small details, such as Hekja's never having worn soft wool clothes as there were no sheep on her island, draw us into her life. There are plenty of dangers but the worst of the violence is suggested rather than shown.
—Clare O'Beara

I would rate this book a 2.5 to a 3. If I wasn't a teacher, I would NEVER have picked this book to read, but I feel that it delivered many of the things that I love in great books. The story details the results of a Viking raid on a small town, and describes the often brutal and mysoginistic views that vikings hold dear. I did care about the main character, Hekja, and her dog Snarf, but not many others. The descriptions and writing style flowed well, although many of the descriptions were about food...over and over...that I could have avoided. Although the plot was good, it seemed to be bogged down by many chapters in which nothing important seemed to happen. That was my only real issue with this novel - the good parts were good, but the in between parts seemed to drag a bit. The ending was well done, but the plot seemed to tie up a little too nicely, (without giving anything away) with marriages and situations that seemed a little too convenient. A good read though, and I would recommend this novel to students and adults.
—Terry Costantini

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