book cover

Two Terrible Vikings and Grunt the Berserker

by Francesca Simon, illustrated by Steve May

Interest age: 6 to 8
Reading age: 6+

Published by Faber, 2022

  • Adventure
  • Funny
  • Historical

About this book

Brother and sister Hack and Whack are two of the worst Viking children in the village. They’re rude, noisy, messy, and the rotten apples of their parents’ eyes… but one day, someone even worse moves in right next door.

Grunt the Berserker is massive, fearsome, and very, very smelly, and he’s making life hell for all the villagers! With the help of their friends and a couple of lessons from the brand new Viking school, it’s up to Hack, Whack, and Muddy Butt the dog to chase Grunt out of town.

You might know Francesca Simon from the fantastically popular Horrid Henry books – and somehow, the Two Terrible Vikings manage to make Henry look like an angel. Packed with super-silly toilet humour, madcap action, and lively cartoonish illustrations from Steve May, the hilarious adventures of Hack and Whack are bound to be asked for again and again – though the simple text and short chapters mean they’re also perfect for children beginning to read independently.

About the author

Francesca Simon was born in St Louis, Missouri, grew up in California, and went on to study Old and Middle English at Oxford and Medieval Studies at Yale. Following this, Francesca decided to work as a freelance journalist, writing for the Sunday Times, Guardian, Mail on Sunday, Telegraph, and Vogue (US). When her son Joshua was born in 1989, she started writing children’s books full time.

One of the UK’s best-selling children’s writers, Francesca has published over 50 books, including the immensely popular Horrid Henry series, which has now sold over 16 million copies. She lives in London with her husband, son, and Tibetan Spaniel, Shanti. 

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