Modern Icelandic Literature

19th-century poets

Romanticism reached Iceland in the first half of the 19th century and became linked with the independence movement. Jónas Hallgrímsson is the best-loved poet in Iceland, and his poems such as "Gunnarshólmi", "Ferðalok" and "Ísland" are still sung and read today. Bjarni Thorarensen, Grímur Thomsen, Matthías Jochumsson and Steingrímur Thorsteinsson were also influential poets. Towards the end of the century realism gained ground with writers such as Gestur Pálsson and Þorgils gjallandi. The first modern Icelandic novel, *Piltur og stúlka* (Lad and Lass) by Jón Thoroddsen, was published in 1850.

Halldór Laxness

Halldór Kiljan Laxness (1902–1998) is the best-known Icelandic writer of the 20th century. He received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1955 "for his vivid epic power which has renewed the great narrative art of Iceland". His home, Gljúfrasteinn in Mosfellsdalur, is now a museum.

Other 20th-century writers

The 20th century produced many important writers: Þórbergur Þórðarson (*Íslenzkur aðall*, *Ofvitinn*), Gunnar Gunnarsson (*Advent*, *The Church on the Hill*), who wrote in Danish and was very popular in Europe, and Guðmundur Kamban. Poets such as Davíð Stefánsson, Tómas Guðmundsson, Steinn Steinarr and Snorri Hjartarson left a deep mark. The "atom poets", including Hannes Sigfússon and Einar Bragi, introduced modernist poetry after the Second World War. In the second half of the century Svava Jakobsdóttir, Guðbergur Bergsson, Thor Vilhjálmsson and Einar Már Guðmundsson became prominent.

Icelandic crime fiction

Icelandic crime fiction has become hugely popular since around 2000. Arnaldur Indriðason led the way with his books about the detective Erlendur Sveinsson; he won the Glass Key, the Nordic crime fiction award, in both 2002 and 2003, for *Jar City* and *Silence of the Grave*. Yrsa Sigurðardóttir, Ragnar Jónasson, Lilja Sigurðardóttir and Eva Björg Ægisdóttir are also widely read around the world.

Contemporary writers

Contemporary Icelandic writers have won numerous international awards. Sjón received the Nordic Council Literature Prize in 2005 for *The Blue Fox*, and Auður Ava Ólafsdóttir in 2018 for *Hotel Silence*. Jón Kalman Stefánsson has been nominated for the Man Booker International Prize, and Andri Snær Magnason has written both children's books and influential works on the environment. Gerður Kristný, Kristín Eiríksdóttir and Bergsveinn Birgisson are among other notable authors.

Literary awards and literary life

• The Icelandic Literary Prize – awarded since 1989 in several categories.
• The Icelandic Children's Book Prize and the Reykjavík Children's Book Awards.
• Fjöruverðlaunin – the Women's Literature Prize.
• Reykjavík International Literary Festival – held since 1985.
• Iceland was guest of honour at the Frankfurt Book Fair in 2011.