![]() ![]() The Danes need the metal for repairs in Copenhagen, following a devastating war with Sweden. His first task is to remove an old Icelandic bell from its tower. Jón Hreggviðsson has been caught stealing cord to tie his fish catch and is now working for the Danish king’s hangman. In the area where Jón Hreggviðsson lives, petty criminals are often sentenced to the workhouse and have to do work for their Danish masters. Iceland is under complete Danish control, which means that the Icelanders can only trade with the Danes and are subject to often arcane Danish law and justice though, of course, this story is told from the Icelandic and not the Danish perspective. The novel is set in the late seventeenth/early eighteenth century. The hero is Jón Hreggviðsson (though his name is changed both by the Danes and Germans). Like other of his novels, it is picaresque and features a stubborn, determined Icelander. ![]() ![]() This, for me, may well be the best of Laxness’ novels available in English. Home » Iceland » Halldór Laxness » Íslandsklukkan (Iceland’s Bell) Halldór Laxness: Íslandsklukkan (Iceland’s Bell) ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |