From the creation of the world, magical mills, bridal journeys, and shamans. Following the Icelandic arson in Örnolfsdalur, the second masterful retelling by Tilman Spreckelsen, beautifully illustrated by Kat Menschik, now appears: Kalevala, the Finnish national epic. In 1828, a young Finn named Elias Lönnrot sets out into the remote Karelian forest, swamp, and lake regions to collect the verses of the famous Kantele singers (a sort of mix between village bards, shamans, and musicians). In total, he will undertake eleven journeys, covering approximately 20,000 kilometers on foot, on skis, or by rowing; during this time, he collects 65,000 verses. Lönnrot was convinced that all these songs once formed a great cohesive epic, and he pieced the songs together. The fantastic long poem that emerged tells of the rivalry of a northern realm called Pohjola against the south.