s="h3color tiny">This review is from: The Sagas of Icelanders: A Selection (Hardcover)

These sagas are selected from the excellent and rare five volume set "Complete Sagas of the Icelanders". The translations are clear and readable. A glossary is provided to explain terms unfamiliar to those new to the sagas. In addition there is considerable historical background material which gives the necessary context for understanding the sagas.If you enjoy the Old Icelandic sagas, this volume is a _must have_. If you aren't familiar with the Old Icelandic sagas, this is probably the best place to start.

   For the price offered ($16) this is an amazing bargain. For the cost of two Penguin translations (2 Sagas) you get 9 sagas and multiple tales. Speaking as a person that bought the hardback the paperback is not missing anything as far as I can tell by comparing tables of contents. However, earlier criticisms that it is missing some very classic sagas such as, _Njal's Saga_ though valid should not deter you from getting this book. I will conjecture that the length of those definitive sagas were too much to put into a one volume collection.Get the book - no shelf should be without the sagas and it is a thrifty choice.The collection that both the hardback and softback are taken from is a large collection called _Sagas of the Icelanders_ which is about ~$600 so you might also keep that in mind when buying. By no means is this all the sagas from that massive collection but it is a good survey and there is a good further sources section.For those who are saga junkies...Read more