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Viking Boy
Gunnar is the son of a Viking chieftain, living peacefully on his family steading with his mother, father and their people – until they are raided by Skuli and his Wolf Men, who raze his home to the ground and take his father's life. Gunnar swears an oath to avenge his father's death and save his mother from Skuli – but first he must run to save himself. Murderous raiders, hand to hand battles to the death, mythical flying wolves and a relentless sea journey to the Land of Fire and Ice... Unknown to Gunnar, his life has been foretold, and he finds he has a destiny greater than his own story.
208 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2012
30 people are currently reading
214 people want to read
About the author
Tony Bradman
649 books43 followersTONY BRADMAN graduated from Cambridge University and worked in journalism for many years as an editor and reviewer. Now a full-time author, he has produced several successful anthologies for young readers for Random House Children's Books, including three focusing exclusively on football: the FOOTBALL FEVER titles.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
October 31, 2025
The author seems to go along with Thomas Hobbes as he shows life around the fiords as being nasty, brutish and short. It's surprising how any Norsemen survived long enough to go a-viking in this blood-soaked landscape. It is very much a boys' story: the only female characters are Gunnar's mother, Brunhild the Valkyrie, and the three Norns – apparently auditioning for Macbeth. The men and boys are all busy thumping and slicing each other. It reminds me of my younger days in Toxteth (that's an inner city area of Liverpool in the UK noted for its lively atmosphere.)
A fine, exciting story for young teenagers, if you don't mind stoking up their natural aggression. Though making the characters of Norse mythology intermingle with the real world does not really present an historical understanding of the Viking world. Gunnar's father is carried off to Valhalla by a Valkyrie on the back of a giant flying wolf, Odin strides the Earth, the Norns at the base of Yggdrasil are available to have a chat with a passing youth, and the rainbow Bifrost is there to be walked on in Iceland. The author presents it all as real, not mythological. I offer my apologies to any current worshippers of the Norse gods, of course.
The illustrations match the text, though Gunnar does look more twenty-six than sixteen, and the severed head at the end should please any young devotee of the macabre.
A fine, exciting story for young teenagers, if you don't mind stoking up their natural aggression. Though making the characters of Norse mythology intermingle with the real world does not really present an historical understanding of the Viking world. Gunnar's father is carried off to Valhalla by a Valkyrie on the back of a giant flying wolf, Odin strides the Earth, the Norns at the base of Yggdrasil are available to have a chat with a passing youth, and the rainbow Bifrost is there to be walked on in Iceland. The author presents it all as real, not mythological. I offer my apologies to any current worshippers of the Norse gods, of course.
The illustrations match the text, though Gunnar does look more twenty-six than sixteen, and the severed head at the end should please any young devotee of the macabre.
May 5, 2014
Viking Boy is the coming of age story of Gunnar, whose peaceful life on his family steading is shattered forever by raiders. As his father dies, protecting his family, and his mother is taken prisoner by the raiders Gunnar swears a blood oath to avenge his family and to take back his life. But unfortunately, as such things are, it is not an easy path but it is a path that will make Gunnar who he was always foretold to be...
This is a lovely middle-grade book which is greatly reminiscent of the estimable Rosemary Sutcliff and Geoffrey Trease. Wickedly illustrated throughout (with a few very powerful double page spreads), it's a gorgeous modern spin on the historical novel tradition all packaged up with Bradman's pacey, accessible prose and some substantial myth and magic.
That element of myth and magic was the other great reason I loved this. There's a mysterious old man in this book who's missing an eye (and if you know your myth, you may know who I mean). Coupled with him, there's a whole world of references ranging from the Bifrost, through to Heimdall, through to two birds which keep watch on Gunnar throughout his adventures.
Something else to note about this book is that it might prove a good read for somebody who is a fan of something like the Avengers and Thor films / comics, and would like a confidence building book. They'll already be familiar with a lot of the terminology and they'll discover a swift, thrilling read with an excellent protagonist.
(And also, a rather brilliant and brave mother which I applaud being present).
This is a lovely middle-grade book which is greatly reminiscent of the estimable Rosemary Sutcliff and Geoffrey Trease. Wickedly illustrated throughout (with a few very powerful double page spreads), it's a gorgeous modern spin on the historical novel tradition all packaged up with Bradman's pacey, accessible prose and some substantial myth and magic.
That element of myth and magic was the other great reason I loved this. There's a mysterious old man in this book who's missing an eye (and if you know your myth, you may know who I mean). Coupled with him, there's a whole world of references ranging from the Bifrost, through to Heimdall, through to two birds which keep watch on Gunnar throughout his adventures.
Something else to note about this book is that it might prove a good read for somebody who is a fan of something like the Avengers and Thor films / comics, and would like a confidence building book. They'll already be familiar with a lot of the terminology and they'll discover a swift, thrilling read with an excellent protagonist.
(And also, a rather brilliant and brave mother which I applaud being present).
September 5, 2020
An MG novel following the adventure of Gunnar, an only son of a Viking chieftain, as he seeks to fulfil his oath to avenge his father's murder.
Firstly, I was surprised that the protagonist is 15 yo at the beginning of this novel but he sounded as if he's 12 or 13 (seeing that this is MG novel, being 12 or 13 is the better suited, I thought). I found the story to be pretty much basic and/or formulaic and characters rather two-dimensional but at the very least, Viking Boy engaged my 10 yo with some of the Viking cultures and myths.
Firstly, I was surprised that the protagonist is 15 yo at the beginning of this novel but he sounded as if he's 12 or 13 (seeing that this is MG novel, being 12 or 13 is the better suited, I thought). I found the story to be pretty much basic and/or formulaic and characters rather two-dimensional but at the very least, Viking Boy engaged my 10 yo with some of the Viking cultures and myths.
July 22, 2014
Gunnar, a 14 year old Viking farm boy, swears an oath to kill Skuli, and avenge his Father's murder. There is NO sequel!!
A great adventure through Viking life and the mythology - he becomes a thrall, visits Kaupang and Iceland, meets the Valkaryries, Odin and Vahalla.
Older fiction - great book for boys. Double spaced text, serif font and no pictures to support the text, althou some vivid and gruesome illustrations.
A great adventure through Viking life and the mythology - he becomes a thrall, visits Kaupang and Iceland, meets the Valkaryries, Odin and Vahalla.
Older fiction - great book for boys. Double spaced text, serif font and no pictures to support the text, althou some vivid and gruesome illustrations.
October 1, 2022
Good tale of fighting for survival for 8-12 year olds, especially those who are a bit bloodthirsty with plenty of slashing and head rolling. Reminded me of Utred, son of Utred! I fear those readers who don’t love reading could get a bit bored when the story tends towards Odin and related characters, but could also be a good introduction. A fab shorter non-epic read for kids who love the John Flanagan style fantasy.
December 12, 2018
This is a great book for children. It is complicated yet I loved it!
I would recommend this book for 8 or 9 year olds.☺☺☺
It is so so so sad!
Read it now!!!!!!!!?!
I would recommend this book for 8 or 9 year olds.☺☺☺
It is so so so sad!
Read it now!!!!!!!!?!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 4, 2022
Had to read this little treat as pre-course prep for my teacher training in September
October 24, 2022
2 stars
I read this because my class is studying it. Overall, it wasn’t the most compelling story and the plot outcome was predictable. The protagonist followed a trajectory that wasn’t very nuanced; it felt like his character was purely functional as an embodiment of Viking stereotypes.
I read this because my class is studying it. Overall, it wasn’t the most compelling story and the plot outcome was predictable. The protagonist followed a trajectory that wasn’t very nuanced; it felt like his character was purely functional as an embodiment of Viking stereotypes.
June 27, 2020
Typical David v Goliath style story with a Viking twist. Perfect for my LKS2 class
July 7, 2020
'I hate you! I am Gunnar, son of Bjorn Sigurdsson, and I swear on the blood of my ancestors I will take vengeance on you for the murder of my father.'
And so start an epic journey for Gunnar, young Viking boy who will not only seek to avenge the death of his dad by 'wolfmen' (the berserkers of legend, I guess) but also try and reunite with him in Valhalla. What's there not to like? It's pure kickass adventure for boys, and, Tony Bradman not taking his young audience for imbeciles, there's a lot to learn about Vikings too! Ironically enough, that might be its weakest point. If you are not sitting down with your child to help them go through it, it will indeed be difficult for them to make sense of what's really going on (e.g. Odin, the Valkyries, Valhalla, Iceland...). Plus, some chapters, especially towards the end, are indeed poorly structured, and, so, confusing -my boy, 8 at the time of reading, actually complained of them being 'difficult to understand'.
Never mind! Overall, my son loved it (and so did I). He gave it a four star rating, so... So did I!
March 16, 2015
This book promises ‘Blood. Fire. Vengeance’ and it doesn’t disappoint. Gunnar is the Viking boy of the title who is forced to run away to save himself after his homestead is raided and his father is murdered by the Wolf Men – ‘bringers of fire and slaughter’. His long journey to the Land of Ice and Fire is filled with many dangers, but he has to find Valhalla, for that is where Brunhild, Queen of the Valkyries, has taken his father - to the Hall of Fallen Heroes - and where Gunnar has to become a warrior.
Lots of action in this story, and in the illustrations by Pierre-Denis Goux, such as the drawing of the Valkyries riding their wolves 'creatures of nightmare, each the size of a horse, but with bristling grey pelts and huge, leathery wings. Their eyes glowed red, and blood dripped from their muzzles as if they had come from some ghastly carrion feast.'
Whether you are a child or an adult, if you enjoy a thrilling adventure you'll enjoy this book.
Lots of action in this story, and in the illustrations by Pierre-Denis Goux, such as the drawing of the Valkyries riding their wolves 'creatures of nightmare, each the size of a horse, but with bristling grey pelts and huge, leathery wings. Their eyes glowed red, and blood dripped from their muzzles as if they had come from some ghastly carrion feast.'
Whether you are a child or an adult, if you enjoy a thrilling adventure you'll enjoy this book.
August 6, 2019
This book is the reason I'm willing to read middle grade books.
What a wonderful story this was! Though written for younger readers, it was completely enjoyable for adults as well.
Set in viking times, a boy goes through all kinds of trials to accomplish a personal quest. While that sounds like an all too common plot, the characters were all wonderful, realistic people (from major to minor). The bad guy was realistic and completely believable -- there was no black and white here.
But, as good as the characters are, the world was even better. While it was set on Earth in a real time period, and while it was very realistically written, it had a really nice "supernatural" (religious? mythical?) element as well: All the viking stories were real, all the gods and mythical beings really existed and sometimes took interest in mortals.
Though this book was written for middle school kids (thus even younger than YA), the author did the very best thing any author could do: He trusted his readers. He never came out and said "This is a [supernatural thing]" but he gave hints and let the reader put the pieces together.
The one small thing I disliked was the ending. It felt seriously abrupt and I wish the book never ended it had gone on at least a while more, but the story did have a conclusion.
If this author had written more books I had any interest at all in, I'd snap them all up. Unfortunately he writes mostly children books that are retelling of fairy tales (Rapunzel Lets Her Hair Down, Red Riding Hood Takes Charge, etc).
What a wonderful story this was! Though written for younger readers, it was completely enjoyable for adults as well.
Set in viking times, a boy goes through all kinds of trials to accomplish a personal quest. While that sounds like an all too common plot, the characters were all wonderful, realistic people (from major to minor). The bad guy was realistic and completely believable -- there was no black and white here.
But, as good as the characters are, the world was even better. While it was set on Earth in a real time period, and while it was very realistically written, it had a really nice "supernatural" (religious? mythical?) element as well: All the viking stories were real, all the gods and mythical beings really existed and sometimes took interest in mortals.
Though this book was written for middle school kids (thus even younger than YA), the author did the very best thing any author could do: He trusted his readers. He never came out and said "This is a [supernatural thing]" but he gave hints and let the reader put the pieces together.
The one small thing I disliked was the ending. It felt seriously abrupt and I wish the book never ended it had gone on at least a while more, but the story did have a conclusion.
If this author had written more books I had any interest at all in, I'd snap them all up. Unfortunately he writes mostly children books that are retelling of fairy tales (Rapunzel Lets Her Hair Down, Red Riding Hood Takes Charge, etc).
December 21, 2025
Well I honestly only read this book because it’s in my English unit for next term. It was a very easy read, literally read it in just over an hour.
It was alright, I got a little lost in the sense that there was no time tracking - suddenly it mentioned half a year had passed and I was like …. What??? But it’s meant for younger kids so all in all it was alright.
3/5
It was alright, I got a little lost in the sense that there was no time tracking - suddenly it mentioned half a year had passed and I was like …. What??? But it’s meant for younger kids so all in all it was alright.
3/5
March 15, 2020
Its my favourite book I love it so much but I feel sorry for Gunner dad when he dies its such a emotional story its the best history story I've ever heard I love the book its so good when rurik was a emperor he probably knew skuli
April 30, 2020
I used this as a class teacher with Year 5 and 6. The children loved the gruesome parts and really sympathised with Gunnar the main character. It was a great book to then complete a piece of writing alongside. I would definitely recommend this to go alongside your history topic of the Vikings.
March 6, 2023
Gunnar lives with his family on their farmstead when, one day, raiders attack. He sets off on a quest to avenge his father and rescue his mother with a little help from the gods. This was an enjoyable adventure story with the right degree of drama and peril for the young hero.
December 12, 2024
Read this one for work, and while my kids loved it, I did feel like some parts might have been a bit too graphic and violent. I also felt like some parts of the story dragged on and could have been shorter.
February 21, 2018
Was going to read it to my class but fairly bloodthirsty. Be warned. Good portrayal of Vikings as warriors
November 26, 2019
very good book.
August 23, 2020
Gunnar with help from the Norse Gods attempts to avenge his family.
Lots of heads get chopped off throughout the book - lots of death and blood.
Lots of heads get chopped off throughout the book - lots of death and blood.
January 11, 2021
Great story.
November 13, 2024
I remember this as having been great
December 11, 2025
Great book to read and work from for Year 5. so many fantastic responses from the class.
January 12, 2023
This is a brilliant book if you like adventure stories with lots of fighting. It's very gory in some places and there's always a cliffhanger after each chapter.
February 25, 2022
If I could give this book 0 stars I would. PERSONALLY I think this book has a bit to much gor The main character (gunna)smashes people's head
s open . They get hanged but thay manage to escape this book is not for me
s open . They get hanged but thay manage to escape this book is not for me
September 30, 2020
My teacher introduced us to Tony Bradman when we started our Viking topic.
Viking Boy is all about Gunnar, a young Viking. His home is attacked and his father is killed. Gunnar escapes but swears a blood oath to get revenge, rescue his mother and take back the family farm.
The book has lots of great facts about life in Viking times. The author must have done a lot of research. It was interesting to read about things that we’d been learning in our history lessons.
The story mixes facts with some characters from Norse Myths which turns the adventure into more of a fantasy story. I would have preferred it to be more realistic.
Viking Boy is all about Gunnar, a young Viking. His home is attacked and his father is killed. Gunnar escapes but swears a blood oath to get revenge, rescue his mother and take back the family farm.
The book has lots of great facts about life in Viking times. The author must have done a lot of research. It was interesting to read about things that we’d been learning in our history lessons.
The story mixes facts with some characters from Norse Myths which turns the adventure into more of a fantasy story. I would have preferred it to be more realistic.
April 18, 2015
I read this in mind to use for my Year 3 class (aged 7-8) for our Saxons and Vikings topic.
Really enjoyed this book. It is slightly too old for my class, but if I was doing this topic with older children, I would most certainly use it. I will recommend this book to my higher ability readers to read on their own though.
It is a great epic tale, worthy of being told in mead halls in the Viking times! It is an epic quest of a young boy, trying to complete his blood quest to avenge his fathers death. It is great because it mentions great information about Vikings. It talks about daily life, slaves and the Vikings gods.
Gunnar is a great character and lots of children will enjoy him for being brave, clever and never giving up. The secondary characters really bring this story alive and I love the wisdom they bring to the tale. I also like the 4/5 illustrations in book, really striking black and white full-page spreads that really bring an epicenes to the story!
All in all, I would recommend this story for 9+ children if they like epic quests and for teachers (who teach Year 4+) who are doing Vikings as a topic. A wonderful tale.
Really enjoyed this book. It is slightly too old for my class, but if I was doing this topic with older children, I would most certainly use it. I will recommend this book to my higher ability readers to read on their own though.
It is a great epic tale, worthy of being told in mead halls in the Viking times! It is an epic quest of a young boy, trying to complete his blood quest to avenge his fathers death. It is great because it mentions great information about Vikings. It talks about daily life, slaves and the Vikings gods.
Gunnar is a great character and lots of children will enjoy him for being brave, clever and never giving up. The secondary characters really bring this story alive and I love the wisdom they bring to the tale. I also like the 4/5 illustrations in book, really striking black and white full-page spreads that really bring an epicenes to the story!
All in all, I would recommend this story for 9+ children if they like epic quests and for teachers (who teach Year 4+) who are doing Vikings as a topic. A wonderful tale.
August 30, 2024
Very much like Anglo-Saxon boy - historically accurate and a great read for the right age who wants to find out more about life in Viking times. It's quite gory (lots of heads are sliced off and go rolling along the ground) which will appeal to many. It has the main character interacting with Odin, the Valkyries, the Norns, and going to (and returning from) Valhalla, which seems right for the era as the Vikings believed Odin travelled the world. This also would add to a young reader's knowledge of the mythology of the Vikings. However, for me, (and yes, I'm not the target audience) it's too trite and too cliched. Seasoned Vikings pop up all over the place with nothing better to do than help the 15 year old protagonist to get his revenge. And, the only two female characters are the protagonist's mother who is beautiful and briefly wields a spear before being captured and forced to marry her captor, and the wife of a baddy who is ugly and shrieks like a harpy (to mix my mythology). Come on, Tony Bradman, you can do better than that!
It's Henry Treece or Rosemary Sutcliffe all the way for me.
It's Henry Treece or Rosemary Sutcliffe all the way for me.
July 20, 2023
If you are a teacher and you teach the Vikings, or want a book to interest boys and girls alike, then this is the book for you! Suitable for 9+, this book has it all - murder, mayhem, revenge, friendship and perseverance. The historical detail is accurate too. Can’t wait to read this to my grandchildren!
September 2, 2012
Awesome book, especially for boys. Read my interview with author Tony Bradman at http://wp.me/p1ToOe-qy
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews