Winter is Coming: The Medieval World of Game of Thrones

by Carolyne Larrington

Overview

Game of Thrones is a phenomenon. As Carolyne Larrington reveals in this essential companion to George R R Martin's fantasy novels and the HBO mega-hit series based on them the show is the epitome of water-cooler TV. It is the subject of intense debate in national newspapers; by PhD students asking why Westeros has yet to see an industrial revolution, or whether astronomy explains the continent's climatic problems and unpredictable solstices ('winter is coming'); and by bloggers and cultural commentators contesting the series' startling portrayals of power, sex and gender. Yet no book has divulged how George R R Martin constructed his remarkable universe out of the Middle Ages. Discussing novels and TV series alike, Larrington explores among other topics: sigils, giants, dragons and direwolves in medieval texts; ravens, old gods and the Weirwood in Norse myth; and a gothic, exotic orient in the eastern continent, Essos. From the White Walkers to the Red Woman, from Casterley Rock to the Shivering Sea, this is an indispensable guide to the twenty-first century's most important fantasy creation.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780857729316
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date:	09/07/2017
Series:	20151021
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	272
File size:	12 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Carolyne Larrington is Professor of Medieval Literature at University of Oxford, UK. She is the author of The Women's Companion to Mythology (1997), Morgan and her Sisters in Arthurian Tradition (2006), The Land of the Green Man (2015) and Winter is Coming (2015), among others.

Table of Contents

List of AbbreviationsList of IllustrationsIntroductionChapter One: The CentreChapter Two: The NorthChapter Three: The WestChapter Four: Across the Narrow SeaChapter Five: The EastEpilogueNotesList of Further ReadingIndex

Editorial Reviews

For long-time lovers of A Song of Ice and Fire, the most interesting parts of Larrington’s book will be those where she goes off the beaten path… Larrington has an inviting style, and transitions easily between descriptions of the show or books, history lessons, and comparisons between the two. It’s a very thorough book that covers nearly every nook and cranny of the Song of Ice and Fire mythology, from the Night’s Watch and the Ironborn in the North all the way to Qarth and Asshai in the far east. Even superfans well-versed in the story’s historical bases will find plenty to chew on, and casual viewers who never bothered to think about it may find an entirely new way of looking at looking at their favorite show.

Dan Seicke