Literature |

30 Nov

Snowblind

snowblind INDEPENDENT talks about the finest books of 2015 ‘to to fire the imagination, engage the grey matter and invigorate the spirit over the festive period’. I was happy to notice that amongst the 8 best crime books is the Icelandic novel Snowblind by Ragnar Jónasson.

‘Icelander Ragnar Jónasson’s first novel in the UK is Snowblind (Orenda, £8.99, trans. Quentin Bates), drawing inspiration from both the Scandinavian tradition and the classic English crime novel. His subject is the corruption that stretches to the upper echelons of Icelandic politics.’

Snowblind is the first book in a series called Dark Iceland. It’s set in Northern-Iceland, mainly in and around the small town of Siglufjörður. HERE you can read an interesting interview with the author and here’s Ragnar’s Twitter account, where you can get to know him even better and find out how to get hold of his book.

02 Nov

Autumn in London – Photo Gallery

IN AUTUMN

by Winifred C. Marshall (1761-1839)

They’re coming down in showers,
The leaves all gold and red;
They’re covering the little flowers,
And tucking them in bed
They’ve spread a fairy carpet
All up and down the street;
And when we skip along to school,
they rustle ‘neath our feet

[Show slideshow]

21 Sep

History at every step

History is at every step in London. Tudor, Victorian and Edwardian architecture is everywhere and as are the stories of famous people who used to live in the buildings.

Guided history walks are really popular here in London. I’ve been on a few of them myself and have never been disappointed. On Saturday, I went to a ‘Historic Local Walk: South Hampstead’, held by Friends of St Mary’s, a charity supporting vulnerable young people.

We had an excellent guide, David Brown, who most definitely knew the art of mixing knowledge and entertainment. I had never heard about the Hampstead murders, nor had I ever heard about Martina Bergman Österberg, a pioneer in physical education for women and a suffragette. I was also introduced to a very different lady, Lillie Langtry, one of the many mistresses of Albert Edward the Prince of Wales.

The house Sean Connery lived in while filming James Bond.

The house where T.S. Eliot was a lodger when he met his first wife Vivienne.

If you are visiting London, I highly recommend going on one of these walks.

07 Aug

Sleep, my young love

One of my first theatre memories is a terrifying scene from an Icelandic play called Fjalla-Eyvindur (Eyvindur of the Mountains) written by Jóhann Sigurjónsson. It’s based on the legend of famous Icelandic outlaws, Eyvindur and his wife Halla. In this particular scene towards the end of the play, Halla throws their newborn child down a waterfall. They are on the run from the authorities and this is an act of desperation. Before she drops the baby down the waterfall she sings a lullaby, Sofðu unga ástin mín. As a child I was heartbroken by this scene. In spite of it being really sad it’s a beautiful lullaby and very popular among Icelanders.

Sleep, my young love.
Outside the rain is weeping.
Mummy is watching over your treasure,
an old bone and a round case.
We should not stay awake through dim nights.

There is much that darkness knows,
my mind is heavy.
Often I saw black sand
burning the green meadow.
In the glacier cracks are rumbling deep as death.

Sleep for a long time, sleep quietly,
it is best to wake up late.
Sorrow will teach you soon,
while the day is quickly decaying,
that men love, lose, cry and mourn.

As pointed out in the article ‘These Icelandic lullabies are absolutely terrifying‘ Sofðu unga ástin mín is not the only lullaby from Iceland that’s either sad or creepy. Then again, lullabies from other countries quite often are like that as well. I wonder why?

26 Jul

Stuff Brits Like

51QGr-P7A2L._SX331_BO1,204,203,200_ One of the things I like most about living here is the British humour. Brits are specialists at making fun of themselves and that I absolutely love.

Stuff Brits Like: A guide to What’s Great about Great Britain is a new book by author Fraser McAlpine. The introduction of the book says it ‘celebrates why we like puns and pedantry, decorum and drawing willies on things, Trainspotting and Downton Abbey, apologizing needlessly (sorry) and cocking a snook. We cheer both the underdog and the bad guy, we adore melancholy types like Morrissey and grumpy Eeyore… and we love being told off by scolds.’

It didn’t surprise me one bit to read that the Queen was regarded as the most iconic Brit and that tea is the nation’s favourite drink. A bit more unexpected was that the Sunday roast and Curry beat Fish and chips in the competition of the favourite British dish.

Some of the British traditions rub off on you. After three years I find myself apologizing needlessly a lot more than before. So much in fact that when I’m visiting Iceland my friends sometimes look at me as if I’ve turned into a an elf or a troll. I still don’t understand the love Brits have for boybands, soap operas and marmite though.

19 Jul

Every single word in Icelandic

Screen Shot 2015-07-16 at 18.46.25

You can find cool stuff you didn’t know existed all over this surreal place called the internet. Recently I found an Instagram site where someone is making illustrations of Icelandic compound words. It’s called everysinglewordinicelandic and it’s so much fun. Check it out!

And talking of surreal, have you ever heard a word stranger than ‘nábrækur’?

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08 Jul

Iceland seen from above

THRIFT

I’ve learned a trick I play a lot,

though lesser men may cavil:

never to stir from near this spot

yet nonetheless to travel.

Jónas Hallgrímsson / Dick Ringler

When Jónas Hallgrímsson wrote this poetry in 1845 he probably didn’t imagine that 170 years later, a London based Icelandic woman would think about his poem while admiring her homeland with the help of drone footage. It’s never been easier to sit at home and travel the world at the same time. Whereever you are, I hope you enjoy those amazing images of Iceland!

Jónas Hallgrímsson

Jónas Hallgrímsson poetry

06 Jul

A Song for Jenny

Programme Name: A Song For Jenny - TX: n/a - Episode: n/a (No. 1) - Picture Shows: Julie Nicholson (EMILY WATSON) - (C) BBC - Photographer: Nicola Dove

Last night I watched the film A Song For Jenny on BBC1. Even now my eyes water when I think about scenes from the movie. It’s heartbreaking to watch but worth it. A Song for Jenny is based on a book by Julie Nicholson, a mother who lost her daughter during the 7/7 attacks in 2005. The book was adapted for television by the Irish playwright Frank McGuinness and Brian Percival directs. It’s very well written and directed. It’s often said that storytelling is all in the details and this screenplay is a proof of that. Emily Watson gives an incredible performance as Julie, one you’ll never forget.

Julie is struggling to accept her daughter’s death in the suicide bombing at The Edgware Road tube station. As viewers, we can feel the raw emotions through Watson’s performance, the anguish, the devastating wait for the worst news possible. Then the death of hope, the anger and the hatred, but also the complicated and mixed feelings when she tries to honour her daughter by letting go of the hatred, failing at first.

In this interview with The Express, Emily Watson talks about how she met Julie ahead of filming; ‘Julie was amazingly generous. She is a natural storyteller and has a sense of the poetic, despite her own grief,’ says Emily. ‘I asked her a lot of really direct questions and she answered them completely. Although she kind of lost her faith, she came through it and chose life and love and not hatred.’

If Watson will not take home a lot of awards during next awards season, I’ll be surprised. It’s not often we see acting on this level, not even in England.

A Song for Jenny is one of the most powerful explorations of grief I’ve ever seen.

download

22 Jun

My beloved Primrose Hill

11415470_10205826143266849_1252669487698795569_o In the words of William Blake ‘I have conversed with the spiritual Sun. I saw him on Primrose Hill’. It’s my heaven as well. One of my favourite places in London. It’s such a privilege to be able to take a stroll up Primrose Hill most days. It has one of the best panoramas the capital has to offer, but also fields of green, beautiful trees, and yes… tourists. However, they usually just visit the same spot so it’s easy to walk a bit further and be alone with your thoughts. You can read more about Primrose Hill here.

WILLIAM BLAKE (1757 – 1827)

Poems and Prophecies. Everyman/Dent, 1950.

From Jerusalem, Chapter 2 (To the Jews) p.190

The fields from Islington to Marybone,

To Primrose Hill and Saint John’s Wood,

Were builded over with pillars of gold,

And there Jerusalem’s pillars stood.

Her Little-ones ran on the fields,

The Lamb of God among them seen…

The Jew’s-harp-house & the Green Man,

The Ponds where Boys to bathe delight,

The fields of Cows by Willan’s farm,

Shine in Jerusalem’s pleasant sight.

[Show slideshow]

16 May

Spring or summer

The warm rays of the sun cover my face and the roses in the garden are blooming. My neighbours call it spring. I call it summer.

Last month I enjoyed the mesmerising beauty of the cherry blossom and magnolias. On the 21st of April 1960, Sylvia Plath wrote in a letter to her mother; ‘They are mowing the lawns everywhere, and the smell of cut grass, plants, and warm earth is delicious. Nothing is so beautiful as England in April’ (Letters Home. Faber, 1990. p.377) I couldn’t agree more.

Photo: Hörður Jónasson

It was still snowing in Reykjavik earlier this month and up north the snowfall hasn’t quite stopped. The wait for spring in Iceland can be long but when it finally arrives and nature awakens, nothing is more welcome nor celebrated.