Beowulf: A Graphic Novel; Illustrated by Gareth Hinds

Absolutely amazing ! Any fan of Beowulf ,the poem or book that is ( not the movies ) , has a wonderful treat in store with Gareth Hinds version told in sequential art form or a graphic novel if you will . Text is provided by perhaps the best rendition in written form penned by Francis Gummere . The illustrations are a thing of wonder as Mr Hinds can point to this effort as a magnum opus of his artistic career. The starry skies alone as background is a tribute to early cartographers in scope . The figures are indeed real as well as a good deal of historical effort was put forth and research from the blades to the shields to the Boar shaped helmets . This is a great starting point for the young to bring forth the importance of this story being the first to be written in English, even before the bible ! In fact it's been used in many schools already but be mindful if showing to small children as the fight with Grendel is bloody. All in all, no other graphic novel can touch this one including any superhero on the market .Please check out Gareth Hinds other wonderful efforts such as the richly, lush Odyssey as well. Mr Hinds , may I recommend Gilgamesh ?

I love the Beowulf story and this is a beautifully-illustrated retelling of this legendary story. The narrative is kept tight and the illustrations graphically convey the action and even the stoic look on the hero's face when he's not deep into hand to hand battle. I just wish there was more of the story to illustrate!

Like watching a 30-minute film - the layout of the graphics flows easily and tells the story without a clutter of words. There is enough of the epic to keep the work going, but the fight scenes and the heroic work is carried visually. Superb.We also have "The Odyssey" by Gareth Hinds - The Odyssey - I can not recommend these books highly enough.Next I'm going to try his Shakespeare.

Even though I had read this classic Scandinavian tale in school many years ago I decided to purchase this (Beowulf by Gareth Hinds) graphic novel version. For those who might not be familiar with Beowulf it is about a great and mighty brave warrior who had fought many battles before volunteering his services to King Hrothgar. A great hall was built (Heorot) for the clansmen where they could all eat, drink and be merry; however, an evil monster named Grendel began to kill anyone he found in the great hall.This is where the great warrior Beowulf enters the story and he not only fights the monster naked (almost naked in this graphic novel) with no weapons, but winds up beating the creature tearing off one of the monster’s arms. The monster was not killed at this time and now Grendel’s mother wants revenge as well.I never like to give away too much when reviewing a novel but this classic story is filled with action and the great drawings make the story come alive. If you are interested in the Beowulf classic tale you should check out this graphic novel version.Rating: 4 Stars. Joseph J. Truncale (Author: The Samurai Soul: An old warrior’s poetic tribute).

My 10yo likes mythology and old tales. This book made Beowulf accessible. I enjoyed it too.

Gareth Hinds' graphic adaptations of classics delight my 11 year old grandson. Before Beowulf he was thrilled by the Iliad and the Odyssey. These are NOT comic books. Hinds actually manages to hang on to some of the poetry along with the drama of the stories. I think when my grandson meets these epics again in high school and college he will already love the characters, know the story line and have a head start on diving deeper into these monumental works.

My grandson, age 15 loves this book! Graphics are fabulous!

I stumbled onto Hind's The Odyssey - which was both brilliant and beautiful, by the way - so his interpretation of _Beowulf_ was an easy choice. The strength of the book is in the illustrations: Beowulf is everything a Viking hero should be: lean with powerful musculature, fierce, determined and unstoppable in combat. Similarly, the monsters are feriocious and terrifying - Grendel is enormous, his gaping jaws brimming with pointy teeth, his hands more claws than fingers; Grendel's mother is similarly terrifying, the dragon truly a horrible serpent. The combat and violence is graphic - too graphic, I think for readers under 11, but Hinds is keeping true to the spirit and intent of the orignial in the gore.The unfortunate weakness is the narrative. Unlike _The Odyssey_, which more closely followed the story by Homer, Hinds hits the main plot points, but leaves much of the story telling out, in favor of showing the action with his illustrations. Because of the power of his pictures, he is able to carry the story, but I had hoped and anticipated that it would be a little more "text heavy" than it is. As an introduction to the epic poem, this is fine - it is difficult to out-do the original, but Hinds could have done more in terms of the writing to capture the flavor of the language.

Graphic novel of an ancient tale beautifully, respectfully & innovatively created and produced. Highly recommended.

Cómic fuera de lo corriente. Interpretación de parte del autor no convencional. La utilización de expresiones del ingles antiguo muy acertadas. A mi particularmente me ha encantado.

El arte es un gusto adquirido, pero resume a la perfección la historia, la entrega como siempre rápida y el estado del producto fue impecable. Bastante satisfecho

Bought this thinking it would be a good intro for junior teens but the language and sentence complexity is dense. It takes a lot of work to read and the graphics are quite dark. Quite disappointed.

Legendary tale told in a wonderfully poetic style with some highly detailed, well flowing art. Really digging Gareth Hinds style. Highly recommend, just be wary of used copies, mine was delivered in much worse condition than advertised.