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Product Description
Book Description
Icelandic Nobel Prize-winner, by the 'Tolstoy of the North'
Product Description
First published in 1946, this humane epic novel is set in rural Iceland in the early twentieth century. Bjartus is a sheep farmer determined to eke a living from a blighted patch of land. Nothing, not merciless weather, nor his family will come between him and his goal of financial independence. Only Asta Solillja, the child he brings up as his daughter, can pierce his stubborn heart. As she grows up, keen to make her own way in the world, Bjartus' obstinacy threatens to estrange them forever.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
32 of 32 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is probably my favorite book of all time, even though I have only managed to read it once. I was assigned to read this book for an Icelandic literature course when I was living in Reykjavik for the year. Every time I went to read it, I had to brace myself to withstand the onslaught, but when you are reading it, time passes quickly, and you can lose yourself in the words. It is only when you put the book down and have to think about what you have just read that the full scope of Bjartur of Summerhouses' life hits you. The detail that is contained in these pages makes for a depressing catalogue of deprivation.
The story contained here revolves around sheep, and the determination of Bjartur to accept no help, aid or loan. Bjartur manages to raise the money necessary to buy a piece of land and a flock of sheep. No-one has wanted this land, because it once belonged to a witch, and she still curses the land. (This may be difficult for the average person to accept who has not been in Iceland, but a more desolate and wind-scoured landlacape does not exist. When you are there, you can easily accept trolls, elf-mounds and witches.) Bjartur buys his land and marries a girl who has worked at the nearby prosperous farm, where he worked as well. She is already pregnant with the son of that family's child, and this starts the long and depressing marriage of Bjartur.
As the book continues, you can feel the great difference in their lives that a single cow makes, the prosperity that comes with world war one, and the return of poverty after the war. The rest of the world seems to move on, without touching the cold interior of Iceland.
I love this book, but warn anyone who goes to pick it up, that this book demands involvement, and it is NOT a piece of light reading.
24 of 25 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This novel acquaints the reader with the harshness of life in Icelandic farming communities, that persisted until quite recently. Much of the tragedy of the story is clear. Bjartur's stubborness and obsessive self-sufficiency cause terrible damage to his family and all who come in contact with him. But it becomes apparent that such qualities aid survival in the harsh conditions, for when he finally takes a more generous attitude, it leads to his downfall.
It is less obvious to the non-Icelander that this is actually a tragic comedy. Icelanders like black jokes. It incorporates a deeply satirical commentary on Icelandic history and social condition, and Icelandic speakers tell me that it is full of Icelandic "in-jokes". So perhaps we should compare this to Flann O'Brien's "The Poor Mouth".
One simple example of the difficulties we foreigners have. We might consider Bjartur's initial refusal to buy a cow a little miserly; in fact it is shocking. At the time, the Icelandic population obtained about 50% of their meagre calorific intake from dairy products, so he is condemning his family to malnutrition.
Icelanders have also told me that it is linguistically very rich, and Laxness was inclined to make up his own words and constructions, making it a tough read even for the locals.
Though it is unfashionable to say so, I find the translation rather annoying; the translator is attempting to give the reader a hint of the writer's style, but for me it comes out as a parody of Thomas Hardy. Magnusson's translations of Laxness's other books are less obtrusive.
To obtain full value from this extraordinary work, I would suggest that the reader invest the effort to read two other books first. One is Laxness's "The Fish Can Sing". It is shorter, lighter and more obviously funny, and the translation is less distracting, providing a gentle introduction to this work. The other is "Iceland's 1100 years" by Gunnar Karlsson, a very readable history of this extraordinary and unique country, from which the reader might obtain a feel for the some of the social commentary. And of course, go there!
It is less obvious to the non-Icelander that this is actually a tragic comedy. Icelanders like black jokes. It incorporates a deeply satirical commentary on Icelandic history and social condition, and Icelandic speakers tell me that it is full of Icelandic "in-jokes". So perhaps we should compare this to Flann O'Brien's "The Poor Mouth".
One simple example of the difficulties we foreigners have. We might consider Bjartur's initial refusal to buy a cow a little miserly; in fact it is shocking. At the time, the Icelandic population obtained about 50% of their meagre calorific intake from dairy products, so he is condemning his family to malnutrition.
Icelanders have also told me that it is linguistically very rich, and Laxness was inclined to make up his own words and constructions, making it a tough read even for the locals.
Though it is unfashionable to say so, I find the translation rather annoying; the translator is attempting to give the reader a hint of the writer's style, but for me it comes out as a parody of Thomas Hardy. Magnusson's translations of Laxness's other books are less obtrusive.
To obtain full value from this extraordinary work, I would suggest that the reader invest the effort to read two other books first. One is Laxness's "The Fish Can Sing". It is shorter, lighter and more obviously funny, and the translation is less distracting, providing a gentle introduction to this work. The other is "Iceland's 1100 years" by Gunnar Karlsson, a very readable history of this extraordinary and unique country, from which the reader might obtain a feel for the some of the social commentary. And of course, go there!
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I was never that fond of Laxness before I read Independent People, I had read a couple of his books when I was younger but I see now that I wasn't mature enough to grasp the brilliance of Laxness' writing. This book is probably the most memorable book I've ever read, and now I've re-read the books I had already read and found that Laxness fully deserved the Nobel prize he got in 1955.
This book is a definite must read for everyone.
This book is a definite must read for everyone.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Independent People
Independent People
Halldor Laxness has produced a worthy book. . It is set in Iceland at a time which does not become apparent until near the end of the book, but... Read more
Halldor Laxness has produced a worthy book. . It is set in Iceland at a time which does not become apparent until near the end of the book, but... Read more
Published 4 days ago by A.O'Connell
They've seen it all before
What a terrific novel to read in the wake of Iceland's financial crisis of 2008 onwards. This fascinating tale, brilliantly translated, burns with rich portraits of a life of... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Bristly Badger
Sheep, sheep and more sheep
It's a big book. There's a lot of sheep farming in it.
Set maybe a hundred years ago, we follow the life of Bjartur, an Icelandic sheep farmer. Read more
Set maybe a hundred years ago, we follow the life of Bjartur, an Icelandic sheep farmer. Read more
Published 4 months ago by jacr100
My favourite book
This story is exquisitely written, both poetic and utterly realistic, transporting the reader into a long-lost era of harsh realities and beautiful landscapes. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Palexpalexpalex
Not a rural idyll
This book is hard to describe in a few words but over the many pages of the novel one becomes oddly fond of an obstinate hard headed stubborn individual who against all odds... Read more
Published 7 months ago by KE
Integrity before everything else. The first choice for the Laxness...
I came to this after reading Christianity At Glacier, a very weird novel from late in the author's career. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Philoctetes
Great - but hard work
I came to this novel after reading Jane Smiley's wonderful The Graeenlanders. I was after another fix of epic nordic tragedy. And boy does Laxness deliver. Read more
Published 10 months ago by A. J. McGowan
An epic and moving struggle for freedom
In this formidable saga about the conquest of individual independence Halldór Laxness exposes his outspoken views on mankind, politics, economics and literature. Read more
Published 21 months ago by Luc REYNAERT
One of the best books i've ever read
One of the great epic novels, as bleakly beautiful as the Icelandic landscape in which the story takes place. Read more
Published 23 months ago by Isafish
Beautiful, informative, rich
This is the third Halldor Laxness book that I have read. I finished it a couple of days ago. I needed a day to let it leave my mind and then I started a book by a different author... Read more
Published on 16 April 2010 by Cathy Cooper
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