Nobel laureate Halldór Laxness’s Under the Glacier is a one-of-a-kind masterpiece, a wryly provocative novel at onc...
read full description
reviews
Dec 16, 2009
Marissa
rated it: 
I couldn't find Independent People in my library (which I had only read half of and really wanted to finish) so I picked of this book of Laxness's instead and I am glad I did. I was expecting something slightly more magical realist so I was maybe a bit disappointed that it was not but was glad the "crazy" beliefs, stories, people, etc. became what they did.
The first 3/4ths of the book seem to be filled with silliness. The pastor isn't doing his job and the women don't sleep or More...
The first 3/4ths of the book seem to be filled with silliness. The pastor isn't doing his job and the women don't sleep or More...
0 comments
like
(4 people liked it)
Aug 19, 2008
Mark
rated it: 
It's not that I hated "Under the Glacier" or didn't get a chuckle from it occasionally (OK, more like a wan smile). But to call it, as Susan Sontag did, “a marvelous novel about the most ambitious questions" and "one of the funniest books ever written," is a stretch. (And btw, I'm glad I was never invited to comedy night at the Sontags).
Written by Icelandic Nobel Prize winner Halldor Laxness, "Under the Glacier" is the story (using the term loosely) More...
Written by Icelandic Nobel Prize winner Halldor Laxness, "Under the Glacier" is the story (using the term loosely) More...
3 comments
like
(3 people liked it)
Dec 16, 2009
emily
rated it:
glaciers and absurdity
who doesn't judge books by their covers? i was in kramerbooks, soon to be headed to iceland, when this one called to me. i reached past the reds and blues and modern arts for a lovely green book with a title that pulled at my heartstrings. even though it was "ordinary people" that won halldór laxness the nobel prize, i went with "under the glacier" because of its title and because the subject matter seemed so fascinating.
how do i More...
who doesn't judge books by their covers? i was in kramerbooks, soon to be headed to iceland, when this one called to me. i reached past the reds and blues and modern arts for a lovely green book with a title that pulled at my heartstrings. even though it was "ordinary people" that won halldór laxness the nobel prize, i went with "under the glacier" because of its title and because the subject matter seemed so fascinating.
how do i More...
0 comments
like
(3 people liked it)
Dec 23, 2011
Daniel
rated it: 
I wanted to read one of Laxness' books and this one, and not Independent People, caught my attention, because of its unique plot. Believe me, this book is UNIQUE. I often found myself not having a clue about what was going on, but there was always something ahead letting me know that THAT was the point: to make you feel as confused as the bishop's emissary. I agree that this is not a 5 star book, because Laxness often rambles about the same over and over to make you feel consfused, and that can
More...
Mar 22, 2011
Elizabeth
rated it:
Glacier The first book by Halldor Laxness that I read, Independent People, is his most famous: the story of the unimaginably grim lives of Icelandic peasant sheep-herders. In spite of its grimness (and length - it goes on for some 512 pages) I loved the book, and was anxious to read another by the same author.
Under the Glacier is much shorter, not grim at all, and it's funny. Susan Sontag, in her introduction, points out that it's unlike anything else that Laxness ever wrote, and goes More...
Under the Glacier is much shorter, not grim at all, and it's funny. Susan Sontag, in her introduction, points out that it's unlike anything else that Laxness ever wrote, and goes More...
Aug 21, 2009
Matt
rated it:
I re-read this one recently, which is pretty rare for me to do with books I'm not teaching. I remember really liking this the first time I read it a couple years ago, but also feeling like I didn't quite get it, so I went back, and I'm glad I did.
The rap on this book is that it's a weird cosmic-philosophical exploration of terms of Christianity in a humorous, light-touch kind of way, with a lovable Candide-esque narrator. That's at least partly true, and I think I was able to follow th More...
The rap on this book is that it's a weird cosmic-philosophical exploration of terms of Christianity in a humorous, light-touch kind of way, with a lovable Candide-esque narrator. That's at least partly true, and I think I was able to follow th More...
May 11, 2009
Christy
rated it: 
Found it hard to condense my still tangled senses of this book to a staff pick card, since I only truly enjoyed the last part, when Ua returned. But here was my (very boring) try:
"Following a host of strange rumors, a young man is sent as an emissary of the Bishop of Iceland to investigate the parish at Snaefells Glacier, a landscape which profoundly roots and underlines the novel. Written by Iceland's premier author, Under the Glacier is a novel both comic and metaphysical, myt More...
"Following a host of strange rumors, a young man is sent as an emissary of the Bishop of Iceland to investigate the parish at Snaefells Glacier, a landscape which profoundly roots and underlines the novel. Written by Iceland's premier author, Under the Glacier is a novel both comic and metaphysical, myt More...
Jan 12, 2012
A.C.Hale
rated it:
Not the most accessible Laxness book so it may be worth starting off with Independent People, above all else this a very Icelandic book - in a good way!
Presented as a series of reports from the Bishop of Iceland's emissary who is sent to Snæfellsnes (under glacier) to investigate strange reports of funerals being held on the glacier, the loss of faith of the local pastor and boarding up of the local church.
As soon as he arrives the comedy of errors begins. The pastor devo More...
Presented as a series of reports from the Bishop of Iceland's emissary who is sent to Snæfellsnes (under glacier) to investigate strange reports of funerals being held on the glacier, the loss of faith of the local pastor and boarding up of the local church.
As soon as he arrives the comedy of errors begins. The pastor devo More...
Jan 22, 2008
Christopher
rated it:
Unlike anything else I've read. Quick, witty, and very strange. The story is ostensibly a face-value report of a clergy investigation in a rural Icelandic town...where the slow approach of the Glacier seems to have replaced religion. There, life has become more practical but truth less important, and, ultimately, life more mysterious.
0 comments
like
(2 people liked it)
Jun 20, 2011
Frederick
rated it: 
This book received glowing reviews in the NYT. The glow must have emanated from the reviewer's crack-pipe because the book completely sucked (I swear that I will never pick up another "modern Candide" as long as I live) and I am contemplating filing suit to get my $16.95 back.
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Sep 13, 2007
Mark
rated it:
Hilarious tale of Christianity at the Snaefellsjökull glacier (where Verne's heroes descend to the center of the Earth) by Icelandic Nobel laureate Halldór Laxness.
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Dec 16, 2009
Joseph
rated it:
If you read one book on Icelandic Mormons this year, make sure it's Under the Glacier. Laxness writes with such beauty and grace.
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Oct 27, 2009
Jessica
rated it:
Hilarious and disturbing. A book of ancient fears, straying from the path and unanswerable questions. When you venture down this path to Snaefells Glacier with the appointed emissary to the bishop of Iceland, first you will believe that nothing is as it seems. Later you may realize that everything was always precisely as it seemed and it was you who were too dense to grasp the meaning of the word "seems." The dialogue will make you want to write, the wandering mysterious plot will keep
More...
Jun 05, 2008
Matt
rated it:
I don't think I grasped all the nuances of this book, but fell in love with how bizarre it all is with humor mixed in. This would be horrible for a book discussion because of the disjointed plot, but fasinating to read.
From what I understood of it, a worker for the bishop of Iceland gets assigned to investigate a community by the glacier on rumors of their un-christian life that included a scandalous burial. He goes to the glacier finds the church boarded up and the community including the More...
From what I understood of it, a worker for the bishop of Iceland gets assigned to investigate a community by the glacier on rumors of their un-christian life that included a scandalous burial. He goes to the glacier finds the church boarded up and the community including the More...
Apr 28, 2008
Abi
rated it:
A novel ostensibly about an emissary of the Bishop of Iceland, who is sent to the remote town of 'Glacier' to investigate the rumour that Pastor Jon is not burying the dead, that the church is boarded up, and that in general Christianity is being 'tampered with'. The investigation leaves the emissary moiled in confusion and improbability as he discovers that the church being boarded up is one of the least strange things about Glacier. One of the characters is a woman named Ua who may or may not
More...
Nov 14, 2009
Erika
rated it:
My experience with this book:
This is supposed to be funny?
What's going on here?
Am I getting it?
This is supposed to be funny.
What's going on here?
Am I getting it?
This is sort of funny.
What's understanding?
On some level, I am getting it.
This book is funny, absurd funny.
What's up with the effing fish and the yogis from Los Angeles?
Ok.
My reaction upon finishing the book:
It was amazing. I think I got More...
This is supposed to be funny?
What's going on here?
Am I getting it?
This is supposed to be funny.
What's going on here?
Am I getting it?
This is sort of funny.
What's understanding?
On some level, I am getting it.
This book is funny, absurd funny.
What's up with the effing fish and the yogis from Los Angeles?
Ok.
My reaction upon finishing the book:
It was amazing. I think I got More...
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Aug 17, 2009
Lydia
rated it:
It's not fair for me to give this book a low score. It's the kind of book that you would like, if you liked this kind of book. It's deconstructed and strange and has lots of digressions. There's religion and Icelandic myth and lots of descriptions of the glacier. Mysterious people come and go, and are not as they seem. My linear and lumpen brain struggles to be patient with creative structures so after 90 pages i had to put it down. But give it a whirl if you enjoy being confused!
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Jun 04, 2009
Joe
rated it:
Like The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, this narrative is powered by the adventurous ignorance of its narrator. Unlike The Guide, this book plunges into scarier versions of the universe and never comes up for air. It's basically a novel-length ghost story set in rural Iceland.
"When I discovered history was a fable, and a poor one at that, I started looking for a better fable, and found theology." [76:]
"Hasn't the world been created, then?" More...
"When I discovered history was a fable, and a poor one at that, I started looking for a better fable, and found theology." [76:]
"Hasn't the world been created, then?" More...
Oct 04, 2011
Carolyn
rated it:
Once again, Laxness creates characters who reflect a whole range of aspects of the human condition - innocence, stupidity, spirituality etc, without necessarily explaining everything. I am not going to write a full review of this novel until I have re-read it, as I know there are far more depths that I want to explore.
I watched the film of this book last night and rather enjoyed it. It followed the novel in spirit, if not in all details. I recommend that you read the book before watching More...
I watched the film of this book last night and rather enjoyed it. It followed the novel in spirit, if not in all details. I recommend that you read the book before watching More...
May 16, 2010
Deborah
rated it:
This one stands out as the most quirky, macap, utterly brilliant novels that I have ever read. I searched all over trying to find another copy since I thought the one I had was missing the last 20 pages. But no, that was all part of the the way this book undoes all of those formulaic conventions that novels are usually known for. Fun.
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Jul 14, 2011
Judith
rated it:
In my dotage, I find I have less patience than I once had, and I didn't have the patience for this one. Sorry THE and Dagny. I risk your wrath and dismay at your recommendation of this Nobel Prize-winning author's book. I generally like all things Icelandic, but this one just didn't do it for me.
Aug 11, 2011
"Not as immediately rewarding as The Fish Can Sing, but I suspect will bear rereading in a couple of months: definitely some images that stick with me - the author trudging across a bog in the rain towards the end - but overall a bit too oblique to penetrate very deeply."
May 11, 2010
Steve
rated it:
The first time I read this it left me cold, but coming back to it a few years later I can't say why -- this time it was hilarious, with a terrific deadpan absurdity and brisk pace. I especially liked the way the narrator, charged by his Bishop to write a report on the strange goings-on at the glacier, struggles to leave out his own opinions and judgements while recording such ridiculous events and characters. It creates so many layers of distortion and doubt that it calls into question religion,
More...
Mar 08, 2011
Richard
rated it:
A tentative four... I am not a fan of magic realism, but / and this is a very quirky exercise in MR avant la lettre. There is something completely charming in Laxness' wry humor about these strangely ludicrous and ludicrously strange events.
Feb 16, 2010
Jess
rated it:
An emissary to the bishop goes to a town in the Icelandic interior, under a glacier, to find out what the heck is going on. The result is absurdist, madcap, and mercifully short.
Apr 09, 2010
Aimee
rated it:
Too bad I have to give it any star. As my friend Sharon said "friends don't let friends read 'Under the Glacier'". It was bad & didn't make any sense to me. Blah
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Jan 17, 2009
Kate
rated it:
I was way out of my depth in reading this book, but it was still an interesting experience. Also, going back and reading Susan Sontag's introduction after finishing helped put it in some sort of framework and let me understand it a little. I might try one of his other books sometime.
Oct 04, 2010
Bryony
rated it:
This is a quirky and often bizarre book that has a very humourous take on Icelandic life and values in the middle of nowhere.
