Novel
Kristrún í Hamravík
Not translated into English
Guðmundur G. Hagalín · 1933
Synopsis
In an isolated community in the north-west of Iceland, at Hamravík, the old Kristrún Símonardóttir, whom the subtitle calls good, leads her everyday life, surrounded by characters such as Falur and Ólafur Betúelsson or Aníta Hansen. The book shows her above all through her speech: a rich language, nourished by words from the speech of the West Fjords that writing hardly knows, and a quiet faith in the powers above, who bring everything to a good end beyond every obstacle.
Context
The book appeared in 1933 in Akureyri, from Þorsteinn M. Jónsson, with the subtitle “a little tale about the good old woman”. Its author uses the language of the region where he was born: a chronicle of the Árni Magnússon Institute notes in it the word treggjaldi, peculiar to the speech of that region, which denotes the reefs at the entrance to a harbour. Critics have noted that he was more successful in the short form and knew how to capture the living speech of his characters. His next novel, Sturla í Vogum, in 1938, was read as a reply to Halldór Laxness's Independent People.
Who it is for
A short novel, in Icelandic, whose regional language is dense; no translation makes it possible to read it in French.
Prizes and reception
Regarded as its author's best book; he is counted among the most widely read Icelandic writers.