The Skyrim Library; Volume 1: The Histories Review

  Written Various Authors (Bethesda Softworks)
Published by Titan Books, London, 2015
ISBN: 9781783293193

The Skyrim Library is a complication of the in-game book’s players of The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim can find scattered about the world. Each of these books is essentially a short story or article about an aspect of the history or lore of The Elder Scrolls. Over the three volumes of The Skyrim Library we get each of these in-game books illustrated with beautiful art of the many regions, characters, and magical artifacts that they refer to.

They are wonderful collector’s pieces, but are they worth reading?

I honestly loved my time spent with this first volume. This is because of how much it allowed me to immerse myself into the world of Tamriel. Each of the stories, guides, and other bits of information within The Skyrim Library are written entirely from within the world of Nirn. We get to learn not just about the lore, and history of Tamriel and the surrounding continents, but thanks to a clever use of biased authors we also get to learn about the attitudes and prejudices of the people that call the continent home. This bias was particularly effective at adding more depth to the stormcloak rebellion that’s occurring during the events of the Skyrim video game. By comparing historical records written before the stormcloak rebellion, to those written by the stormcloaks themselves, we’re able to see the intentional rewriting of history. We also see a similar bias with historical records written by the previous Septim empire. It’s captivating to see how rich this world is. While reading about the history of Nirn was fascinating, it’s not all that this book does, as we get some fictional short stories as well.

A photograph of the The Skyrim Libraries Volume I The Histories. The page shows a map of Skyrim on the righthand page, with paintings and sketches of various ruins on the left hand. The right page is titled 'An Explorer's Guide to Skyrim'. 

The stories that really stood out to me and I think deserve a little more attention were ‘A Dance in Fire’, ‘The Argonian Account’, and ‘The Wolf Queen’. I will begin by looking at both ‘A Dance in Fire’ and ‘The Argonian Account’ since they both follow the same lead character. We follow Decummus Scotti, an imperial office clerk who is thrown into the middle of Valenwood during the Five-Year War, sometimes known as the War of the Blue Divide. This was an invasion of Valenwood by the cat-like Khajiit set in 3E, 397, during the events The Elder Scrolls I Arena. Scotti is a cowardly man but shows an impressive survival ability when it comes down to it. Seeing him pushed from one conflict to another throughout Valenwood allows readers to both learn more about the Five-Year War as well as enjoy a well written adventure. The ending in particular was very impactful. I won’t spoil it, but it’s one I won’t soon forget. ‘The Argonian Account’ acts as a sequel to ‘A Dance in Fire’ and follows Scotti as he takes a business trip to Blackmarsh and encounters many things that a man of his culture and class is wholly unprepared for. Strong booze, nasty bugs, and a swamp full of people a lot more rough-and-ready than himself. It’s the weaker of the two stories but I still enjoyed my time with it. This was mostly because I found myself invested in the character of Scotti and wanted to see how his story ended.

‘The Wolf Queen’ tells the story of Potema Septim, better known as the Wolf Queen or the Queen of Solitude. This book is all about the political drama of a medieval inspired dynasty, which of course means it has a lot in common with ‘Game of Thrones’. We get to learn about the woman who almost upended the entire Septim Dynasty with her selfish power grab. Despite having already read about the historical linage of the Septim family earlier in ‘The Skyrim Library’, I found myself hooked on the ‘The Wolf Queen’. This was due to the impressive writing that keeps you invested, even if you know the history already. Such an impressive short story.

A photograph of the The Skyrim Libraries Volume I The Histories. The left page shows a sketch of a ornate tower. The right page is full of text, titled 'Book Four'.

While I loved my time with Volume One of The Skyrim Library, I think its faults are obvious. This is more of a collector’s piece than it is anything else. Only existing fans of the Elder Scrolls will have any interest it. Even then, fans could just read all these books in the Skyrim game without needing to spend the £30 on this collection. While I adore my copy of this book, it’s on display with the rest of my Elder Scrolls merchandise, I don’t think that most people will get much value from it. That being said, if you are a massive fan of this series, then this is a must buy product.

Is this worth reading? It all depends on how much of an Elder Scrolls fan you are. If you’re a more casual fan, then I’d say it’s best you just read these books as you find them in the games. If you’re like me and can’t get enough of the lore and history of The Elder Scrolls, then this is a must own product. All three volumes are taking pride of place upon my shelf right now.

If you’re an Elder Scrolls fan: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

If you’re a more causal fan or new to the series: ⭐⭐✩✩✩