The Heart of a Warrior! Helga Makes A Name for Herself by Megan Maynor

YOUNG HELGA LOVED TO HEAR THE SAGAS OF HER FAVORITE VIKING WARRIORS.

SHE BEGGED FOR THEM AT BEDTIME... AND AT FISH-PICKLING TIME, AND DURING HER MONTHLY BATHS.

Helga fashioned a Viking helmet and a Viking shield for herself and her pet wolverine and trained to become a famous warrior. Her parents pooh-poohed her expectations.

"OH, HELGA," HER MOTHER SAID, "YOU ARE JUST A FARMERSDOTTER!.

HER FATHER LAUGHED. "WARRIORS DO NOT COME FROM SMALL MOUNTAIN VILLAGES LIKE OURS!"

But Helga fashioned herself a sword and wondered what her Viking name should be. She practiced Viking deeds with her pet, Wolvie. She charged up the steep hills when she took the sheep to pasture. She practiced swinging her battle ax when she chopped wood for the fireplace. She played out the daring deeds of the great warrior Ingrid the Axe. And then on Thor's Day, Helga hears some great news!

INGRID THE AXE WAS LOOKING FOR NEW WARRIORS!

HOLY VALHALLA!

Helga joined all the young would-be warriors, flocking to the coast to compete for Ingrid the Axe's sea raiders.

But in the uphill race, Helga is bested by Olaf, and Sigrid wins the axe-throwing competition. It's not looking good for Helga's career as a Viking warrior, and now she has to face Magnus in the sword fight contest.

But Helga run rings around Magnus, tweaks his nose, and finally plants her foot on his fallen figure with a loud, long Wolverine AROOOO, earning a place in Ingrid the Axe's fleet and her very own Viking name...

HELGA THE HOWLER!

In this lively take-off Viking tale, Megan Maynor's Helga Makes a Name for Herself (Clarion Books, 2020), "I gotta be ME!" is the theme of the comic drama of a farmer's daughter from the hill country who sees her future differently from her parents' expectations in a charmingly silly spoof of Viking sagas. Although being the scourge of the North Atlantic seas is currently out of favor, Vikings are a popular comic trope these days, and with artist Eda Kaban's perky cartoon characters, this is a lively story for Viking fans and a good choice for a read aloud for Women's Month in March.  Quips Kirkus..., "the art is peppy and thoroughly upbeat... You’d have to be beserk(er) not to appreciate this mighty gal."