Meeting the Other in Norse Myth and Legend. by John McKinnell. Cambridge: D. S. brewer. 2005. Pp. 291. $90.

McKinnell's monograph, Meeting the Other in Norse Myth and Legend, is a thorough and impressive identification and study of cross-gender encounters of gods and legendary heroes with "the Other" in a variety of primarily Old Norse texts. In his study, McKinnell is concerned with the adaptations and development of mythological patterns over time. He has collected many examples of each pattern and, through their analyses, seeks to explain what usefulness the story patterns had, what needs may have produced them in the heathen period, and why they continued to be used after the conversion to Christianity.

Annette Lassen
University of Iceland