Adventure

Elizabeth Creith has written a charming tale about an Icelandic sheep who, after a long journey, is being quarantined in a pen on a farm. When Marie, a little girl, goes along with her mother to feed him, she notices that this sheep is quite different from the others. Her mum explains that this is because he is different: This sheep has just come from Iceland. He’s a member of a breed which is over a thousand years old—a breed that was actually kept by the Vikings! In light of this, Marie names the new woolly addition to the farm “Erik the Red”.

Recognizing Erik’s loneliness, Marie visits him in his pen as often as possible. She reads him picture books about the Vikings, big hairy men who carry swords and shields and travel across the water on dragon-headed ships. The books fill Erik’s head with images, dreams, and ideas. When Marie can’t visit, he imagines himself in Viking gear. He already has the horns, but his mind outfits him with a sword and a shield and places him at the front of his own dragon-headed ship. He imagines himself leading a group of fierce Viking sheep on hay and grain raids.

When Erik is finally let out to pasture with the other sheep, they quickly lose patience with his obsessive recitation of stories about Vikings. He can’t take a hint, so they resort to butting him. Sheep don’t like hearing new ideas, one elderly ewe explains. Given the cold shoulder, Erik is left to entertain himself. Seeing an empty bucket one day, he decides to put it on his head to get a sense of what a Viking helmet might actually feel like. Problem is: he can’t get it off.

Creith, aided by wonderful watercolorist illustrator Linda Henry, tells how Erik’s ensuing panic leads to acceptance by his new flock, and, ultimately, to a special role as storyteller to the youngsters.

This is a delightful, well-told tale about imagination, acceptance, and finding one’s calling along the way. ( )

I didn't like when the other sheep were dicks to Erik about wanting to talk about vikings all the time, despite sometimes feeling the same way with my kid and construction vehicles, but I did certainly like how self-conscious they were about not wanting to think about vikings and their adventures. "We sheep like an adventure as much as the next guy, really! It's Erik who has no sense of social couth!" ( )