August is Women In Translation Month so what better moment to feature our incredible Special Commendation
Reykjavik Requiem by Icelandic poet Gerður Kristný which completes her highly acclaimed trilogy. In all three poetic sequences, the poet revives the saga form to conjure up razor-sharp dark images of the fates of women in a world where the boundaries between life and death and what lies beyond are unclear. Kristný gives a voice to a woman whose story was one that society was not ready to hear at the time, a woman who was abused as a child and committed suicide before her own account of what had taken place was published. At its heart is the very notion of articulation, of how our language and culture determine what stories we can tell and what words we can use.
Gerður Kristný graduated in French and Comparative Literature from the University of Iceland. She has published poetry, short stories, novels and books for children, and a biography Myndin af pabba – Saga Thelmu (A Portrait of Dad – Thelma’s Story) for which she won the Icelandic Journalism Award in 2005. Her collection of poetry Blóðhófnir (Bloodhoof ) won the Icelandic Literature Prize.
Order Reykjavik Requiem with 25% off for members.
