Vikings of Legend and Lore Paper Dolls

Vikings of Legend and Lore Paper Dolls by Kiri Ostergaard Leonard
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

After digging into this book, I decided to give a review on here. The book contains a paper doll based around Viking Legends, which includes a total of seven paper dolls (Thyra Danebood, Tove of Venden, Kraka the Shieldmaiden, Gorm the Sleepy, Harold Bluetooth, Ragnar "Hairy-breeks" Lothbrok, and the dragon, Lindwyrm). Each doll has a different pose, so their clothing can not be shared between them. Along with each paper doll, there is a short summary of the legend dealing with each person. I do wish that the book explained the legends a little more deeply, but I suppose I can't complain. The style of the paper dolls and clothes are beautifully done, and the colors chosen compliment the era of the Vikings well. The pages are all pretty thick, though not thick enough for the paper dolls to stand upright (even using the provided stands). The tabs for the clothing were placed very awkwardly. I was surprised to see parts of the clothing printed out onto the tabs, so that once folded behind the doll, it distorted the appearance of the clothes. Tabs were placed on a curved part of the body (such as the shoulder), so that you couldn't fold the tab over without really messing up the look of the clothing on the front. There was even a pair of pants where a tab was actually placed too far into the pants, so that folding the tab would over would still leave a large chunk of the bright white tab visible on the doll. I don't use tabs, and general snip them off, however, that specific tab even posed a problem for me, as I had to actually cut into the pants to remove the tab.

Aside from the tabs, I really liked this paper doll book. I love how the characters from Viking legends are depicted more as children rather than adults. Their faces are so detailed and original on each doll, it really makes for a set of fun paper dolls. Especially if you are someone that has an interest in Vikings. I think that this paper doll book and a book that further explains these legends would be a great gift for a child interested in this culture.


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