Editorial Board recommends: Books to read with the autumn breeze
Translation: Þula Guðrún Árnadóttir
Icelandic books
Photo: forlagid.is
Eldarnir (e. The Fires) can be likened to the popular doomsday story, which has become more popular in recent years, but at the same time is a cute family story that warms the hearts of readers. Sigríður Hagalín Björnsdóttir shows her firm grasp of the material and delivers an artistically constructed text which holds the reader’s attention throughout the entire story. The book is especially relevant now there is an active volcanic eruption going on near the capital region.
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10 ráð til að hætta að drepa fólk og byrja að vaska upp (e. 10 tips on how to stop killing people and start doing the dishes) is a comedy of the best kind. Dark and sarcastic from start to finish. What happens when a war criminal from the Bosnian war moves to New York and builds himself a life there within the mafia? What if he is then forced to flee the country and ends up alone and penniless in Iceland? In 10 ráð til að hætta að drepa fólk og byrja að vaska upp Hallgrímur Helgason answers these questions like only he can.
Non-Icelandic books:
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Educated by Tara Westover is her biography and discussion on her unconventional road to education. Tara was born in 1986 in Idaho, America, and grew up around religious fanaticism among Mormons, within a home where extreme misconceptions about the government agencies and the impending end of the world were prevalent. Because of this, Tara was completely cut off from modern society and reality until she was able to break free from her difficult situation, completely on her own. It is amazing to read about the unbreaking tenacity and selflessness of this young woman despite the obstacles that stand in her way as she breaks her way towards education.
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Istanbul Istanbul by Burhan Sönmez is a beautiful but also tragic novel. Four political prisoners tell each other stories of the city above the dungeon where they stay, in between merciless torture from the guards. They need to be careful that within the stories lie no secrets, as there is always a possibility that their cellmates will break from the torture and tell the guards everything they know. The novel shares a lot with 1001 nights, and the stories of adventures in Istanbul are intertwined with the harsh situation of the prisoners in a heartwarming way.