Book Club › For club leaders › Club kits › How Thor Got His Hammer
How Thor Got His Hammer: a book club kit
Where it comes from. Norse poets told how Thor got his hammer long before Snorri Sturluson wrote it down in Iceland, about 800 years ago.
In short (for the leader; it gives the ending away). Loki the trickster cuts off the golden hair of Sif, Thor's wife, and must get the dwarfs to make her new hair of real gold. He then bets his head that two dwarf brothers cannot make better treasures, and a biting fly, which most tellers say is Loki himself, tries to spoil their work. They still make the hammer Mjolnir, with a handle a little too short, and the gods judge it the greatest treasure of all.
The lesson, in one line. A mean trick can cause a lot of trouble, even when it ends well.
Reading plan, by the story's parts. Meeting 1: Part One, “Sif's Golden Hair” and Part Two, “The Sons of Ivaldi” and Part Three, “Loki's Bet”, pages 1–8 (about 6 minutes aloud); Meeting 2: Part Four, “The Short Handle” and Part Five, “The Judging” and Part Six, “Loki's Head”, pages 9–16 (about 6 minutes aloud). Each stop's own questions, which never give away what comes next: How Thor Got His Hammer by chapter.
Questions to talk about
- How did Thor get his hammer?
The story's answer: Loki bet his head that the dwarf brothers Brokk and Sindri could not make treasures as fine as the ones he already had. They made a golden boar, a gold ring and the hammer Mjolnir, and the gods gave the hammer to Thor. - Why is the handle of Thor's hammer short?
The story's answer: A fly, which most tellers say was Loki in disguise, bit Brokk between the eyes while he was pumping the bellows. Brokk stopped for a moment to swat the fly, the fire cooled, and the handle came out a little too short. - Who made Thor's hammer Mjolnir?
The story's answer: In the Prose Edda, the dwarf Sindri forged it while his brother Brokk worked the bellows. Brokk then carried it to Asgard and gave it to Thor. - Where does the story of Thor's hammer come from?
The story's answer: It is a Norse myth. Snorri Sturluson wrote it down in Iceland around 1220 in the Prose Edda, in the part called Skaldskaparmal. - What does this myth explain, or try to explain?
Listen for: Many myths explain how something came to be: a season, an animal, a name. - Was the main character right or wrong? Was the ending fair?
Listen for: Myths are often hard on people; let the group disagree.
Did you know?
- The story is in the Prose Edda, written in Iceland by Snorri Sturluson around 1220.
- In the Prose Edda, the dwarf brothers who make the hammer are named Brokk and Sindri.
- The hammer's name, Mjolnir, is spelled Mjölnir in Old Norse.
Activity: Make a new myth
Each reader explains something they see every day (why cats purr, why puddles dry up) with a short made-up myth of their own, told round the circle in three sentences.
More to talk about
More facts for the leader
- In the myth, Mjolnir always flies back to Thor's hand after he throws it.
- The same contest also gives Odin his spear Gungnir and Frey his folding ship Skidbladnir.
Words to teach before you start
- mischief: naughty tricks
- smiths: metal makers
- bellows: fire blower
- furnace: very hot oven
- bristles: stiff hairs
Questions leaders ask
How long does a How Thor Got His Hammer book club meeting take?
Reading it aloud takes about 12 minutes in all, so plan 2 meetings of about 30 to 45 minutes each, with time left for the questions. The reading plan on the sheet says where to stop.
What age is How Thor Got His Hammer for?
It is written at Peabody level 10, a grade 5 reading level, so most children at that level can read it alone. Younger children can listen to it read aloud.
Do the children need to read it before the meeting?
No. Each child can read it free on Peabody, before the meeting or together at it, and the questions work either way. The sheet's short version gives the ending away, so keep it for the leader.
How do I use the questions?
Start with the story's own questions, which have answers in the leader's notes, then move to the open ones and listen for reasons. There is no wrong answer to an open question. Stop when the group runs out of things to say.
Club kits for stories like this
- Atalanta and the Golden Apples (level 10)
- Baucis and Philemon (level 10)
- King Midas and the Golden Touch (level 10)
- Pandora's Box (level 10)
- Arachne the Weaver (level 11)
- Echo and Narcissus (level 9)
How this kit is made
The short version, the facts and the first questions with their answers are the story's own, written for its page in Peabody's library and checked against the sources named there. The open questions, the activity and the plan are Peabody's, written for this kind of story. No part of it is written by a computer model.
Running the meeting: the meeting plans (30, 45 and 60 minutes) and the sign-up sheet.