Novels based on Beowulf
Novels and short stories
- 1949 : Silverlock a novel by John Myers Myers. In one scene the protagonist attends the celebration in Heorot after Beowulf kills Grendel. Beowulf only appears in this scene, but he has a profound effect on the motivations of the protagonist.
- 1958: The Ring-givers, a novel by W. H. Canaway. It is historical novel based closely on the poem.[7]
- 1961: As a children's story by Rosemary Sutcliff.[8]
- 1966: in The Green Man, a novel by Henry Treece, Beowulf is a minor character, who travels with his own bard, who is making the story about him.
- 1968: Beowulf: A New Telling, an adaptation for children by Robert Nye.
- 1971: Grendel, The Beowulf story is retold from Grendel's point of view in this novel by John Gardner.
- 1976: Eaters of the Dead: The Beowulf story, in combination with a fictionalized 10th century Arabic narrative of Ahmad ibn Fadlan created by the author Michael Crichton, was used as the basis for this novel. This story is portrayed in the movie The 13th Warrior.
- 1987: The Heorot series: science-fiction novels, by Steven Barnes, Jerry Pournelle, and Larry Niven, is named after the stronghold of King Hrothgar and partly parallels Beowulf.
- 1996: Whose Song is Sung, a novel by Frank Schaefer. The narrative is told from the point of view of a dwarf named Musculus, who becomes an advisor to Emperor Heraclius in the last days of the Roman Empire. Eventually, he makes his way north and becomes a traveling companion to Beowulf.[9]
- 1998: Bay Wolf: a poem by Neil Gaiman which retells the Beowulf story and appears in Smoke and Mirrors.
- 1999: Beowulf, an illustrated version by Kevin Crossley-Holland and Charles Keeping.
- 2006: The Monarch of the Glen, a novella Neil Gaiman published in his anthology Fragile Things involves "modernized Beowulf characters."[10]
- 2007: As a tie-in with the Beowulf film by Robert Zemeckis, a novelization of the film by Caitlin R. Kiernan was published in September of that year.
- 2008: The Saga of Beowulf, a novel by R. Scot Johns.
- 2009: Grendel's Mother, a novel by Ralph Bourne.
- 2009: Beowulf, an adaptation for children by Rob Lloyd Jones.
- 2013: Beowulf, an adaptation for children by Michael Morpurgo, with illustrations by Michael Foreman.
- 2015: Grendel's Mother: The Saga of the Wyrd-Wife, a novel by Susan Signe Morrison, portrays Grendel's Mother as being human, washed upon the shores of Denmark, with the character representing an integration between the old ways of the Scandinavian/Germanic tribes, and early Christianity. This novel has won a number of awards.[11]
- 2016: Grendel's Mother, a novel by Diana Stout.
- 2018: The Mere Wife, a novel by Maria Dahvana Headley, retells the story from the point of view of Grendel's Mother, set in contemporary, suburban America.[12]
- 2020: Beowulf, an illustrated adaptation for children by Nick Holt and John Howe
- 2022: Grendel's Mother, a novel in verse, by Jane Gardner.
- 2023: Shield Maiden, a novel, by Sharon Emmerichs, that reconsiders the Beowulf story from the perspective of King Beowulf's niece, Fryda, who was injured during childhood, but is now coming into her own power just in time--Guests are come to celebrate his 50-year reign which bring more than gifts & good-tidings to celebrate, & which only she may be able to overcome.
- 2023: Beowulf: In a Free Modern Retelling, by Ethan Mordden.
Graphic novels and comics
- 1975-1976: Beowulf Dragon Slayer, published by DC comics and edited by Dennis O'Neil, written by Michael Uslan and primarily illustrated by Ricardo Villamonte.[13] Later, Beowulf appears in Wonder Woman #20 (2008).
- Issue #49 of the Animaniacs comic book featured a Pinky and the Brain story featuring Brain as Brainwulf, who, accompanied by Pinknarf (Pinky), attempts to defeat Grendel so that he can take over Denmark afterwards.[14]
- 1999-2000:The Collected Beowulf: by Gareth Hinds & Leslie Siddeley.[15]
- Beowulf by Gareth Hinds, Published by TheComic.com (2000) and Candlewick Press (2007). A faithful adaptation with historically detailed, fully painted illustrations.[16]
- 2005: Speakeasy Comics: this series debuted a Beowulf monthly title featuring the character having survived into the modern era and now working alongside law enforcement in New York City to handle superpowered beings.[17]
- 2006: Antarctic Press ran a manga adaptation of the Beowulf legend, written and drawn by David Hutchison.[18]
- 2007: Beowulf: The Graphic Novel[19] by Stephen L. Stern and Christopher Steininger, released by AAM/Markosia.[20]
- Beowulf Cartoon: Bookwork by Michael J. Weller with introduction by Bill Griffiths.
- Biowulf by David Hutchinson. "A cyberpunk adaptation of the classic tale of Beowulf." Published by Antarctic Press in 2007.[21]
- 2007, Neil Gaiman and Roger Avary, a graphic novel version of their screenplay of the Beowulf movie, published by IDW Publishing.[22]
- 2008: Kid Beowulf, by Alexis E. Fajardo. A series of eight graphic novels, that depict the characters of Beowulf in the years leading up to the epic poem.[23] Published by Bowler Hat Comics[24]
- 2008: Beowulf: Monster Slayer, by Paul D. Storrie and Ron Randall.
- Stephen Notley's weekly strip Bob the Angry Flower ran a 10-part series entitled Rothgar. Bob attempted to take the place of Beowulf, using modern technology to help Hroðgar defeat Grendel; the ancient epic changed when Grendel was revealed as a sympathetic character.[25]
- 2013:[26] Beowulf by Santiago Garcia and David Rubín, published in English in 2017 by Image Comics.
- 2023: Bea Wolf, by Zach Weinersmith; illustrated by Boulet. "A modern middle-grade graphic novel retelling of Beowulf, featuring a gang of troublemaking kids who must defend their tree house from a fun-hating adult who can instantly turn children into grown-ups." Published by First Second Books.
- 2024: García and Rubín's version was republished, including 22 pages of an unfinished earlier album by García illustrated by Javier Olivares.[26]
