By Louie Stowell (published by Walker Books, 2022)
In which case I may as well be honest in these pages. There’s a first time for everything.
My tragedy began with a trick involving the goddess Sif, her long, golden locks, a pair of scissors and an ill-timed nap. I’ll spare you the details, but let’s just say that no one in Asgard can take a joke. Or a haircut.
Loki has finally been thrown out of Asgard for pulling one trick too many. Not only that, but he’s been sent to Earth in the body of an 11-year-old boy! He’s not on his own though, as Thor, Heimdell and Hyrrokkin will be coming with him as his brother and parents – the perfect family. Perfect to keep an eye on him and wind him up anyway!
While on Earth, Loki is tasked with becoming…good. Which is not going to be easy as he must raise his virtue score from -3000 to +3000, in only 31 days. Can he do it, and earn his place back amongst the gods in Asgard?
Loki: A Bad God’s Guide to Being Good is one that I was definitely looking forward to reading – between the crazy, eye-catching cover, the use of Norse mythology, and already being a fan of Stowell’s writing, I knew I was in for a good time! (Ed: Lynda actually read it last year, but we didn’t write it up until now.)
The story is written in diary form, with the aim of helping Loki keep track of his good deeds. It’s no ordinary diary however; rather, it is a diary imbued with the wisdom of Odin so that, should Loki pen a lie in it, it immediately corrects him underneath the entry. This is a fun way of discerning the truth from Loki’s opinion, and gives the opportunity for plenty of laughs as the diary certainly doesn’t worry about sparing his feelings!
It’s amusing to see Loki’s thoughts behind being a schoolboy. After all, he may be in the body of a child but he still has the mind of a god, meaning maths lessons are bound to be dull! For those who might be worried, or who may be familiar with the original myths, don’t worry – everything is, of course, age appropriate.
Despite trying to be good, Loki can’t help but keep up bad habits; he lies, he cheats, but he is (sometimes) trying…and is that perhaps the glimmer of a conscience we can see appearing?
‘Riotous fun’ is really the best way to describe this book, from the playful and painful interactions between Loki, Thor, and the other “children”, to Stowell’s (or perhaps Loki’s!) simple and fitting diary doodles peppered throughout. If you’ve ever wanted the Norse gods to fall into Diary of a Wimpy Kid (though better than the latter in my opinion), then you absolutely must pick up this book!
And if you enjoy it, then you can keep the fun going – book 2 (Loki: A Bad God’s Guide to Taking the Blame) also came out in 2022, while book 3 (Loki: A Bad God’s Guide to Ruling the World) comes out at the start of June this year.
If you want to hang with Loki and the gang, you can grab a copy at the link below.
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Looking for more books of fun and laughter? If so, you can see our previous reviews here.
