Independent People
by Halldór Kiljan Laxness
|
|
| published
| 1997
by Vintage
|
| binding
| Paperback |
| isbn
|
0679767924
(isbn13: 9780679767923)
|
| pages
| 512 |
| date added
|
02-07-07
|
|
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bookshelves:
20th-century-classics,
icelandic-literature
Read in January, 2005
recommends it for:
Anyone who loves literature
No less than the best book I have read so far in my life. Laxness has been called the Icelandic Hardy or Steinbeck, or as I see on this site, the Icelandic Gabriel García Márquez. There are elements of truth in all these, but none does him justice. Don't think of Laxness as the Icelandic version of someone else; think of him as a fantastic (Nobel Prize-winning) author, who just happens to be Icelandic.
Independent People tells the story of Bjartur of Summerhouses, his family (especially his...more
No less than the best book I have read so far in my life. Laxness has been called the Icelandic Hardy or Steinbeck, or as I see on this site, the Icelandic Gabriel García Márquez. There are elements of truth in all these, but none does him justice. Don't think of Laxness as the Icelandic version of someone else; think of him as a fantastic (Nobel Prize-winning) author, who just happens to be Icelandic.
Independent People tells the story of Bjartur of Summerhouses, his family (especially his daughter, Asta Solillja) and the 'world war' they wage against the harsh Icelandic landscape in which they live and the demons, imaginary or otherwise, that inhabit it. Bjartur has spent 18 years scraping together enough money to buy his own croft (a croft that is supposedly haunted by a ghost destined to bring failure to all who try and farm there) and is determined at all costs to live like an independent man, and that his new wife Rosa will be an independent woman. He is stoical beyond belief, often frustrating the reader to tears with his stubborn refusal to deviate from his principles, to the detriment of his wives and children. Set in the late 19th and early 20th century, superficially this is a book about sheep farming and drinking coffee, but in reality it is a journey into the 'labyrinth of the human soul'. Issues such as social change, isolation, poverty, wealth, religion, superstition, suffering, justice, love, socialism, capitalism, war, death and of course independence are masterfully explored. In short: humanity. With a good dose of sheep as well.
The writing is simply first class: lyrical at times and yet not heavy-going: simple and wry and filled with black humour, weaving Icelandic folklore and child-like imagination into a world of grim hardship. Laxness is a true poet. Independent People is an epic tragedy, filled with melancholic despair and great suffering (physical and emotional), but to me the book was not depressing, despite the fact that it did, and still does, make me cry. The story and the writing are beautiful and contain moments of great joy, humour and love alongside the tragedy, giving the novel a bitter sweetness that is sometimes overwhelming. The characters are in turns frustrating, endearing, abhorrent, amusing, tragic and heroic, but they are always fascinating and memorable. Literature at its best: I can't believe that anyone could come away from this untouched. I have read several other Laxness novels, but this is undoubtedly his masterpiece. It is a travesty that it is so little known; Independent People is one of the great modern classics. ...less
Read in January, 2008
Hardship and frontier sagas have their own man vs. nature fan club, whose meetings I rarely attend. When you overlay the whole elemental drama with an exposition of the honest, working man’s helplessness in the face of the manipulative rich people who advance capitalism and modernity, a grim sub-genre emerges. It was done perfectly with “The Grapes of Wrath” and a guild of other page-fillers have knocked out an unnecessary pile of novels that tell similar tales ad nauseum.
Certainly, L...more
Hardship and frontier sagas have their own man vs. nature fan club, whose meetings I rarely attend. When you overlay the whole elemental drama with an exposition of the honest, working man’s helplessness in the face of the manipulative rich people who advance capitalism and modernity, a grim sub-genre emerges. It was done perfectly with “The Grapes of Wrath” and a guild of other page-fillers have knocked out an unnecessary pile of novels that tell similar tales ad nauseum.
Certainly, Laxness’ creation is distinguished by its Icelandicness; but if you aren’t dying of curiosity to experience the peculiar iteration of peasants getting screwed that Iceland has to offer and you generally don’t enjoy long, deliberate, earthbound books of this variety, keep away.
Of course, like most people who win the Nobel Prize for literature, Laxness is not a sloppy wordsmith or a bad story teller. “Independent People” occasionally distinguishes itself with unexpected invention and artful character development. The wry, paper thin humor, the farmer colloquies, a few touching and insightful glimpses into childhood imagination, the humanized animals and the description of Iceland’s response to World War One, were all well-wrought, unique and pleasurable.
The articulation of the book’s lamentably stubborn protagonist Bjartur of Summerhouses as the man who thinks, “Possibly his best course would be to marry the bitch, so that he could have full leave to tell her to shut up; or at the least go to bed with her, as she herself was suggesting in her own starchy fashion;” and the man who does this: “He floundered madly about in the snow, thumping himself with all his might, and did not sit down again till he had overcome all those feelings of the body that cry for rest and comfort, everything that argues for surrender and hearkens to the persuasion of faint-hearted gods” is consistent, believable and, eventually, frustrating. Bjartur’s tendency to self-justify with references to Icelandic hero legends and complex, traditional poetry, is also a wonderful counterpoint to his expertise in the various disgusting ailments of sheep.
The jury is sort of out on this book. It is an absolute success at being what it is and the historical perspective that I gained on Iceland in its nearly 500 pages is not something I will forget; but, this isn’t my sort of book. I’d rather recommend it to my grandfather.
Somehow, I have to add that it reminds me of Knut Hamsun’s “Growth of the Soil,” (the last book I recommended to my grandfather) which is nothing like “Hunger,” which is Hamsun, the Nazi’s, most commonly read work in translation. If you enjoyed “Growth of the Soil,” “Independent People” will be a superior treat.
...less
Read in February, 2008
Emily randomly picked up this book for me in Powells a few years ago, and, after seeing it on our shelf, Brian selected it for book club. I don't know if I ever would have bumped into it on my own, which makes me understand Brad Leithauser's comment in the introduction that discovering "Independent People" makes you feel supremely lucky. What are the odds of stumbling upon an almost 500-page, densely woven, Icelandic novel from the 1940s, and further, what are the odds that it would ...more
Emily randomly picked up this book for me in Powells a few years ago, and, after seeing it on our shelf, Brian selected it for book club. I don't know if I ever would have bumped into it on my own, which makes me understand Brad Leithauser's comment in the introduction that discovering "Independent People" makes you feel supremely lucky. What are the odds of stumbling upon an almost 500-page, densely woven, Icelandic novel from the 1940s, and further, what are the odds that it would be so incredible? I absolutely loved this story of stubborn sheep farmer Bjartur of Summerhouses and the myriad villagers and family members who surround him (and whom he spends most of his life ignoring, scorning, or resenting). Not only does Laxness paint a clear picture of rural Iceland in the early twentieth century, but he also invents some of the most memorable characters I've ever encountered. Most of the relationships involve misunderstandings and flawed attempts at communication, and in this way they are entirely human; the interactions between little Nonni and his grandmother, and Bjartur and his daughter, Asta Sollilja, are the ones that most affected me. I finished the book at school and actually had to stop reading it until my planning period, so I wouldn't alarm the kids by crying. Other reviews I've seen of "Independent People" say it is really about sheep; I disagree. More than anything else, this novel illustrates the cruelty humans inflict on one another--both willingly and unwillingly--and the love that can surprise and ultimately redeem even the proudest of hearts....less
Read in July, 2007
recommends it for:
anyone who likes crudely fashioned wooden cups
This book is amazing. It's not just good - though it is - but it amazes me. It's odd. It has a strange rhythm to it, sort of a lilt, like a witch's chant in some dark woods. It has witches in it, and sheep, and men, and dreams of far-off countries and houses and more sheep. It has people in it too. People that you fall in love with though they've done nothing to deserve it and couldn't care less, which only makes you love them more.
The book is a saga set in Iceland around WWI, follow...more
This book is amazing. It's not just good - though it is - but it amazes me. It's odd. It has a strange rhythm to it, sort of a lilt, like a witch's chant in some dark woods. It has witches in it, and sheep, and men, and dreams of far-off countries and houses and more sheep. It has people in it too. People that you fall in love with though they've done nothing to deserve it and couldn't care less, which only makes you love them more.
The book is a saga set in Iceland around WWI, following a man named Bjartur from the purchase of his first farm through the next fifty-odd years of his relentless, and often ridiculous, struggle to be what he considers an independent man. There are women and children and people that die and sheep that die and hunger and poverty and politicians. There are also silk stockings and snuff tobacco and the flowers of one's life. And there is poetry too, lots of it.
A dream-like quality pervades the book, despite the brutal realities of the characters' lives. Because it's set in a little town in a little country far-away from other places and other people, everything seems simplified. Things are really far from simple; there are simply fewer things to think about. And though nothing wraps up cleanly, hearts remain unmended, and pain is certainly not erased by the end of the book, Halldor Laxness's little world is enchanting....less
bookshelves:
fiction,
iceland
Read in January, 2008
recommends it for:
lovers of icelandic history; those who like detailed writing
Despite the reviews below, this book is not about sheep.
Independent People is about the complex intersection of pride and poverty. It is the story of the fiercely strong and intelligent everyman who has little to show for their successes yet holds their successes with high esteem. It is also about how one's endless struggle to be self-sufficient can make one bitter, senseless, hypocritical and cold.
This book is not about sheep at all. Main character Bjartur is preoccupied with sheep...more
Despite the reviews below, this book is not about sheep.
Independent People is about the complex intersection of pride and poverty. It is the story of the fiercely strong and intelligent everyman who has little to show for their successes yet holds their successes with high esteem. It is also about how one's endless struggle to be self-sufficient can make one bitter, senseless, hypocritical and cold.
This book is not about sheep at all. Main character Bjartur is preoccupied with sheep because being a sheep farmer is what helps him remain self-sufficient and independent. He defines himself as an independent man who has worked off all his debts to have a small farmhouse and a flock of sheep.
Laxness' writing is incredibly detailed, making this Icelandic saga-styled novel a bit arduous to read at times; but all the same, it is this detail is what makes the story so rich. Take this quote, for instance:
"And when the spring breezes blow up the valley; when the spring sun shines on last year's withered grass on the river banks; and on the lake; and on the lake's two white swans; and coaxes the new grass out of the spongy soil in the marshes - who could believe on such a day that this peaceful, grassy valley brooded over the story of our past; and over its spectres?"
As someone previously wrote in their review, every sentence is like a new story, full of lush imagery and genuine meaning. Absolutely lovely....less
Read in April, 2008
If there were half stars, this would be 3.5. The writing is wonderful, and the way that Laxness captures the landscape and people is truly impressive (when I started the book, we were in Iceland, and I was reading it aloud to my wife as we drove through the same harsh landscapes that he describes, which benefited both our experience of the book and of even the most barren countryside). That said, Bjartur of Summerhouses is one of the most frustrating main characters I've ever encountered, and by...more
If there were half stars, this would be 3.5. The writing is wonderful, and the way that Laxness captures the landscape and people is truly impressive (when I started the book, we were in Iceland, and I was reading it aloud to my wife as we drove through the same harsh landscapes that he describes, which benefited both our experience of the book and of even the most barren countryside). That said, Bjartur of Summerhouses is one of the most frustrating main characters I've ever encountered, and by about halfway through the book, you just want to give up on the guy for chasing away pretty much everyone important in his life, all in the name of his obsession with being an "independent man." He wears his tragic flaw so unwaveringly, so explicitly, that he walks a narrow line between being a well-drawn character (because some people are ruled by such a single, dominant trait) and a caricature. The book drags a bit during the occasional scenes of occasional dialogue, which usually center around politics, business, or sheep, but still does a fairly good job of maintaining a forward motion. Several of the supporting characters are of interest, but a number of them drop suddenly out of sight, never to be heard from again. Granted, this accurately reflects how things happened in the lives of the characters, but as a reader I'd like a little bit more closure on at least a few more people....less
Read in April, 2008
recommended to Anna by:
Erin
The first third of the book is so filled with misery as to be off-putting, but has sufficient points of light to keep one reading until the second 'book', when little waves of beauty and tenderness come lapping up to comfort you through the harsh Icelandic winter. There are, for instance, passages transcribing the inner lives of children that are heartbreakingly acute, and with great tenderness you are lead along with the characters until their actions seem inevitable and right, even as you dre...more
The first third of the book is so filled with misery as to be off-putting, but has sufficient points of light to keep one reading until the second 'book', when little waves of beauty and tenderness come lapping up to comfort you through the harsh Icelandic winter. There are, for instance, passages transcribing the inner lives of children that are heartbreakingly acute, and with great tenderness you are lead along with the characters until their actions seem inevitable and right, even as you dread the consequences.
In general, Laxness is unusually respectful, and interested in, the richness of human consciousness as it exists in the context of poverty and deprivation. He doesn't indulge the common novelistic habit of assuming that people are somehow less complex, their suffering more straightforward, maybe even less painful, when they live in difficult conditions and have few emotional and intellectual resources. These are lives lived with nuance, even on the edge of survival, eating "refuse fish".
This book really is an epic, though it covers less than thirty years in one man's life. I envy someone about to read it for the first time, and I can see that it will be a book I will re-read....less
bookshelves:
iceland-fiction
Read in June, 2007
I read this book during a vacation in Iceland, which is where my grandmother was born. The bleak landscape we drove through helped bring the book to life, and the book made me feel I had a better understanding of both my grandmother and the people we ran into along the way in Iceland. I found the book hard to get through - its main character is such a dour, unpleasant person, and there is so little relief of anything good happening to anyone. Bleak is the word. On one stretch of road that went h...more
I read this book during a vacation in Iceland, which is where my grandmother was born. The bleak landscape we drove through helped bring the book to life, and the book made me feel I had a better understanding of both my grandmother and the people we ran into along the way in Iceland. I found the book hard to get through - its main character is such a dour, unpleasant person, and there is so little relief of anything good happening to anyone. Bleak is the word. On one stretch of road that went hundreds of kilometers of scrubby mountains, we came across a picnic table sign (these are scattered all along the road that goes around Iceland, a green sign showing a picnic table and a pine tree, although there's rarely an actual tree at the spot) where the attraction was an informative sign about Halldor Laxness that explained this spot had inspired this book. Wow.
Independent People has lots of incidental information about the culture that helped me get a better picture of my great-grandmother's situation when she decided to emigrate to Canada....less
Read in March, 2008
recommends it for:
Vikings, farmers, unwed teenage mothers, fathers of unwed teenage mothers
Sometimes its hard to get up for the greats, you know? I mean, I dig literature, but sometimes you want to read some Calvin and Hobbes, or some Robert E. Howard, or possibly some paranormal romance about "the lonely ones," doomed to jaded, dusty centuries as wampyrs...I'm just kidding. If you read books about vampires, you deserve it when your children become goths.
But it was tough for me to plow through Independent People. Bjartur is about the least sympathetic protagonist sinc...more
Sometimes its hard to get up for the greats, you know? I mean, I dig literature, but sometimes you want to read some Calvin and Hobbes, or some Robert E. Howard, or possibly some paranormal romance about "the lonely ones," doomed to jaded, dusty centuries as wampyrs...I'm just kidding. If you read books about vampires, you deserve it when your children become goths.
But it was tough for me to plow through Independent People. Bjartur is about the least sympathetic protagonist since that piece of pig excrement from "A Clockwork Orange." Fortunately, I did plow through, because somehow, as the book fades away, as gloriously bittersweet as any Iceland sunset (I've never seen an Iceland sunset, but I think we can all agree it's gloriously bittersweet) it leaves you sorrowing for all the condemned little people on the planet, breaking their backs and hurting the people they love in order to be free.
And Bjartur does what he can, at the end, to set things right.
It's the hardest thing, to write a truthful book with a happy ending. This is a truthful book that comes as close as a humanist can to a happy ending. Definitely worth the power-through....less
bookshelves:
1001-books,
literatur-nobelpreis,
romaneab1900
Read in May, 2008
It has been a long time since I have read a book that has meant so much to me. This reading experience literally transported me to the harsh landscape of Iceland and I was right there with the characters. Bjartur, the lonesome farmer, self-proclaimed independent protagonist is a man full of mistery. It is easy to hate him but yet I think one needs to take into consideration the more than harsh circumstances. Ultimately, his aim to be independent and to raise an independent family is a noble one ...more
It has been a long time since I have read a book that has meant so much to me. This reading experience literally transported me to the harsh landscape of Iceland and I was right there with the characters. Bjartur, the lonesome farmer, self-proclaimed independent protagonist is a man full of mistery. It is easy to hate him but yet I think one needs to take into consideration the more than harsh circumstances. Ultimately, his aim to be independent and to raise an independent family is a noble one although one doomed to failure. The most compelling figure of the novel was, for me, Asta Solillja, the daughter and yet not the daughter of Bjartur. The relationship between those two is one that I was following with the greatest compassion, anger and regret throughout the novel.
As I said, it has been a long time since a novel has touched my heart in the way "Independent People" has done. Laxness is for sure one of the great writers of the 20th century and one worthy of the nobel-prize for literature. I am looking forward to reading more from this extraordinary man and to get transported once more to this strange and astonishing place called Iceland....less
Read in January, 2008
This is an amazing book. It captures the essence of the rugged moorland icelandic shepherds life with brutal realism, ironic hilarity, poetical whimsy, and biting political commentary. This book really has it all, captures life in all its comic tragedy while giving a window into a world where sheep diarrhea is a primary topic of conversation. This is truly a book like no other. I spent the first 20 pages trying to decide if the author had his tongue in his cheek or had the earnestness of a missi...more
This is an amazing book. It captures the essence of the rugged moorland icelandic shepherds life with brutal realism, ironic hilarity, poetical whimsy, and biting political commentary. This book really has it all, captures life in all its comic tragedy while giving a window into a world where sheep diarrhea is a primary topic of conversation. This is truly a book like no other. I spent the first 20 pages trying to decide if the author had his tongue in his cheek or had the earnestness of a missionary, and he is constantly dancing between different narrative positions.
There are moments when the book simplifies into straightforward political propaganda, almost grabbing the reader by the lapels. but as I sympathize with the politics i didn't particularly mind...and these sections are punchy and short anyway. Of course the whole book is radically political in it's way, but only in as much as any honest accounting of the lives of the oppressed must support a case for radical change:Just do the math ....less
bookshelves:
fiction
Has a copy to sell/swap
—
Read in July, 2007
recommends it for:
serious readers
To properly appreciate and read this book, on must hunker down on the cold heath, be it your home or abroad, ignore the heat or embrace the cold, and read each line as if it was the first.
Some books can be consumed whole, reading sentences, paragraphs, pages, all at once, your consciousness able to swallow great chunks and extract nutrition. But Laxness' book is not of this nature, it is the opposite - the larger chunks you swallow, the slower you must read, because on a fast reading you hav...more
To properly appreciate and read this book, on must hunker down on the cold heath, be it your home or abroad, ignore the heat or embrace the cold, and read each line as if it was the first.
Some books can be consumed whole, reading sentences, paragraphs, pages, all at once, your consciousness able to swallow great chunks and extract nutrition. But Laxness' book is not of this nature, it is the opposite - the larger chunks you swallow, the slower you must read, because on a fast reading you have to repeat whole pages and chapters in order to understand.
Yes, Independent People is best appreciated with a moist and slow eye. Each sentence and paragraph is subtle poetry, lyrics of a Norse life, a great vivid imagining of a hard peasant. To read this book is no light undertaking, but nothing could be easier, for Laxness taps into essential, sharable truth....less
Read in August, 2006
This book is about sheep. And being cold. If you think about sheep, the reality of them, they're kinda dirty, kinda creepy, look a little like weird demon creatures. Same goes for a lot of things in this book. There ARE weird demon creatures and creepy men/women/children; some die spitting blood into the snow while some survive reindeer rides through ice-cold rivers in the middle of a night where time seems to have stopped; people dream long or briefly and inevitably lose their dreams; gnarled o...more
This book is about sheep. And being cold. If you think about sheep, the reality of them, they're kinda dirty, kinda creepy, look a little like weird demon creatures. Same goes for a lot of things in this book. There ARE weird demon creatures and creepy men/women/children; some die spitting blood into the snow while some survive reindeer rides through ice-cold rivers in the middle of a night where time seems to have stopped; people dream long or briefly and inevitably lose their dreams; gnarled old farmers argue about ovine minutiae; and of course everything is dirty and cold.
This book takes place in Iceland, where it is apparently a national treasure. Or is it the author who's a national treasure? I forget.
I have to give this book five stars because although I can't say for certain whether "I loved it," it is certainly amazing....less
Read in January, 1997
I read this in about 1997, on the recommendation of a friend. I read somewhere that there is an essential "Icelandic" feel to this book. Since I don't have an idea of what is Icelandic or not, I can only say that it seems to me to be a clear and sparely told story of hard people in a hard land. They have to be hard to survive killing cold, poverty, and a social system that is set up to grind the little people into the ground.
So many details spoke to another view of the world, a non-E...more
I read this in about 1997, on the recommendation of a friend. I read somewhere that there is an essential "Icelandic" feel to this book. Since I don't have an idea of what is Icelandic or not, I can only say that it seems to me to be a clear and sparely told story of hard people in a hard land. They have to be hard to survive killing cold, poverty, and a social system that is set up to grind the little people into the ground.
So many details spoke to another view of the world, a non-European/North American view. When WWI started, the Icelanders suddenly found their wool to be very valuable, so the war was a good thing for them. Everyone was better off and had the feeling that if the Europeans kept fighting and killing each other it would be very good for Iceland.
If you are looking for neat resolutions or a feel-good folk tale, this isn't for you.
If you ever saw the lovely movie Pelle the Conqueror, and liked it, you may enjoy this book....less
Read in December, 2007
As many people will tell you, this book is about sheep. I discovered this book on my trip to Iceland, and only recently got through it. It's a long, slow read; wonderfully satirical; at times brutal and horrific; but always beautiful. It's easy to see why this won a Nobel Prize -- Laxness' use of language is masterful. Despite the slow-going, this is well worth the read. The main character's redemption (and the climax of the book) is such a simple, subtle scene you could almost miss it... a...more
As many people will tell you, this book is about sheep. I discovered this book on my trip to Iceland, and only recently got through it. It's a long, slow read; wonderfully satirical; at times brutal and horrific; but always beautiful. It's easy to see why this won a Nobel Prize -- Laxness' use of language is masterful. Despite the slow-going, this is well worth the read. The main character's redemption (and the climax of the book) is such a simple, subtle scene you could almost miss it... and yet simultaneously so heart-wrenching that you can't. You *know* Bjartur, and you *know* the struggle and what it took him to get there.
Someone reminiscent of "One Hundred Years of Solitude," but this book stands solidly on its own, as independent as its people....less
Originally published in 1946 and out of print for decades, this book by the Nobel Prize-winning Icelandic author is a huge, skaldic treat filled with satire, humor, pathos, cold weather and sheep. I read this book because it was highly recommended. It took me FOREVER to finish it, and, truthfully, I couldn't stand the main character. And then . . . it stayed with me for a long, long, long while. And I wanted to reread parts of it. It's poetic in an Icelandic saga kind of way. A great achievement...more
Originally published in 1946 and out of print for decades, this book by the Nobel Prize-winning Icelandic author is a huge, skaldic treat filled with satire, humor, pathos, cold weather and sheep. I read this book because it was highly recommended. It took me FOREVER to finish it, and, truthfully, I couldn't stand the main character. And then . . . it stayed with me for a long, long, long while. And I wanted to reread parts of it. It's poetic in an Icelandic saga kind of way. A great achievement. And yet, I'm giving it only four stars because it took me FOREVER to finish it. Oops. Said that already....less
Read in March, 2006
recommends it for:
everyone with patience for books and characters.
This is one of the books that, while reading it, I didn't really like it at all. I couldn't stand the main character, Bjartur, I hated the way he treated everyone around him, the story was depressing and slow and I just couldn't stand it. But as I got nearer to the end of the book, I started loving it more and more, and by the end, it had grown on me so much, it had become one of my favourite books.
So if you start reading it and feel like me about it, don't give up just yet. Try to get throug...more
This is one of the books that, while reading it, I didn't really like it at all. I couldn't stand the main character, Bjartur, I hated the way he treated everyone around him, the story was depressing and slow and I just couldn't stand it. But as I got nearer to the end of the book, I started loving it more and more, and by the end, it had grown on me so much, it had become one of my favourite books.
So if you start reading it and feel like me about it, don't give up just yet. Try to get through it because it might be very well worth it. ...less
bookshelves:
favorite-novels,
literature
Read in January, 2004
This book fights it out with two others for the #1 spot in my hierarchy. It's deep, describing utter rural poverty and the transition from one socio-economic era to the next. This is one of those books that elucidates interior lives so well that you can really identify with the characters, while creating a social landscape around them that is vivid and concrete. I often describe it to friends as a "perfect" book because I didn't have any of those moments in the book that felt like hum...more
This book fights it out with two others for the #1 spot in my hierarchy. It's deep, describing utter rural poverty and the transition from one socio-economic era to the next. This is one of those books that elucidates interior lives so well that you can really identify with the characters, while creating a social landscape around them that is vivid and concrete. I often describe it to friends as a "perfect" book because I didn't have any of those moments in the book that felt like humps to get over. ...less
recommends it for:
everyone
I have been in the process of reading this book for a very long time. It is not a book that makes you feel warm and happy all over. It is not a book that can be read quickly. It is about survival and pride and I think in the end what it costs someone when these two things become the only thing that matters. Oh, and it is set in Iceland. Iceland rules.
** ** **
I finished it. Whew. All I can say after finishing this is I am glad I have such an easy life. Puts thin...more
I have been in the process of reading this book for a very long time. It is not a book that makes you feel warm and happy all over. It is not a book that can be read quickly. It is about survival and pride and I think in the end what it costs someone when these two things become the only thing that matters. Oh, and it is set in Iceland. Iceland rules.
** ** **
I finished it. Whew. All I can say after finishing this is I am glad I have such an easy life. Puts things in perspective....less
Read in October, 1997
This book is thick and long. It is in fact a prose Icelandic epic. The advantage of this is that the story is very textured and every detail wrought. Often times however, whole sentences are repeated in this effort and since little of the story is boldly heroic a reader's attention often drifts. Neither rich nor poor come off well in a book that seems to question why we live at all. Even the last scene seems ambivalent about life's ultimate worthwhileness. This book is very much a labour to read...more
This book is thick and long. It is in fact a prose Icelandic epic. The advantage of this is that the story is very textured and every detail wrought. Often times however, whole sentences are repeated in this effort and since little of the story is boldly heroic a reader's attention often drifts. Neither rich nor poor come off well in a book that seems to question why we live at all. Even the last scene seems ambivalent about life's ultimate worthwhileness. This book is very much a labour to read....less
book data (includes all editions)
avg rating
(all editions):
4.27 (303 ratings)
avg rating
(this edition): 4.28
(278 ratings)
number of reviews: 80
other editions
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Independent People (Panther)
isbn: 1860467768
[close]
Independent People (Hardcover)
isbn: 0844669490
[close]
Independent People (Paperback)
isbn: 1860466869
quote
"And when the spring breezes blow up the valley; when the spring sun shines on last year's withered grass on the river banks; and on the lake; and on the lake's two white swans; and coaxes the new grass out of the spongy soil in the marshes - who could believe on such a day that this peaceful, grassy valley brooded over the story of our past; and over its spectres?"
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