Heidi Herman's Blog, page 7

Meet the Yule Lads: Þvörusleikir

Meet Þvörusleikir, in Icelandic his name is pronounced like "Thuer' a slaker".  In English, he's known as Spoon Licker.   It doesn't matter if the spoon is caked with cookie dough, fish stew, kleinur dough or even mysuostur, Spoon Licker will snatch it up.

As one of the Yule Lads, he's the fourth to arrive for the holidays, showing up on December 15th.   In the upcoming series, Spoon Licker is trapped in a cave and relies on his troll bothers to rescue him - and that's before the REAL adventure begins!   Follow the story starting October 17th on Facebook.com/yuleladslegend and Twitter @YuleLadsLegend. A 20-part story written by Heidi Herman and illustrated by Colleen Stiles.
#Iceland#Fairytale
#Christmas




  

Meet the Yule Lads: Stufur

Icelandic Yule Lad StufurMeet Stufur, in Icelandic his name is pronounced like "Stew' fer". In English, he's known as Stufur or Stubby  Stufur's favorite place is the kitchen.  He just loves to scrape all the crusty parts from the frying pan.

As one of the Yule Lads, he's the third to arrive for the holidays showing up on December 14th. Right now, he and his troll brothers are getting themselves into a real mess! A run-in with the Lake Lagarfljot Monster Worm is just the beginning of a pre-Christmas adventure.Follow the story starting October 17th on Facebook.com/yuleladslegend and Twitter @YuleLadsLegend. A 20-part story written by Heidi Herman and illustrated by Colleen Stiles.

 #Iceland
#Fairytale
#Christmas

Meet the Yule Lads: Giljagaur

Meet Giljagaur, in Icelandic his name is pronouned like "Gil' ya gur".
In English, he's better known as Gully Gawk.

He loves cow's milk and will sneak into the barn and drain the milk pails dry. He also likes to hide in gullies and sneak up on the cows!

As one of the Yule Lads, he's the second to arrive for the holidays on December 13th - but what is he doing now? He and his troll brothers are getting themselves into a mess! "Yule" never believe what happens!

Follow the story starting October 17th on Facebook and Twitter @YuleLadsLegend. A 20-part story written by Heidi Herman and illustrated by Colleen Stiles.

Meet the Yule Lads: Stekkjastaur

Meet Stekkjastaur, in Icelandic is pronouned like "Stek ja' stir". In English, he's better known as Sheep Cote Clod. He loves sheep's milk but he's pretty clumsy when running because he has stiff knees. As one of the Yule Lads, he's always the first to arrive for the holidays on December 12th - but what is he doing now? Follow his adventures with his 12 troll brothers starting October 17th!

Follow the story on Facebook and Twitter @YuleLadsLegend. A 20-part story written by Heidi Herman and illustrated by Colleen Stiles.

Homestyle Icelandic Cooking for American Kitchens

We are happy to share the news our new cookbook of Icelandic recipes is now available!  Homestyle Icelandic Cooking for American Kitchens can be purchased on Amazon.com.  A joint effort between Heidi Herman, and mom Ieda Herman, this is a great group of Icelandic recipes,Whether you’re looking to connect with your roots, try something new or already love Icelandic cooking, this book is a must for your cookbook shelf.  This is a collection of traditional everyday Icelandic recipes, translated with step-by-step instructions.  We have gathered all the simple classic favorites that truly reflect the home-style Icelandic flavors and heritage.
Terta (Vínarterta), Kleinur, Black Bread (Rúgbrauð), Fishballs (Fiska Bollur), Browned Potatoes (Brúnar Kartöflur), Pastries (Vínarbrauð), Icelandic Pancakes (Pönnukökur), and much more!



  

Welcome to Fall!

Gully Gawk, Icelandic Yule LadFall is upon us again and the winter approaches.  It has been a busy summer!  I am very pleased that the cookbook is finished.  "Homestyle Icelandic Cooking for American Kitchens" will be available October 1st at Amazon.com and my website, www.heidiherman.com.

And now, I am very excited to be introducing a new 20-installment short story on the Yule Lads entitled "Yule Lads-Mayhem at the North Pole".  A small segment of the story will be posted on Facebook and Twitter every other day starting October 17th running through the week of Thanksgiving.  Be sure to follow the Yule Lads!

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/YuleLadsLegend/
Twitter:  @Yuleladslegend

Folklore or Fairy Tale? You tell me!

I truly do love fairy tales and folklore and mythology. 

I love researching the stories and filling in the gaps that are often present in the Icelandic tales.  This is where I spend most of my time.  It is interesting to compare the fairy tales which often begin with "Once Upon A Time" and end with "They Lived Happily Ever After".  These fairy tales are most often a light romance story with some mean or evil presence that is overcome.  Good wins, bad loses.  These are fantastic optimistic stories that hopefully teach the lesson that the good guy always wins.  In fairy tales, if not in real life. 

This is rarely the case in the Icelandic stories.  So much so that I hesitate to call them "Fairy Tales" and they are so much more of "Folklore", a precursor to the modern Urban Legend perhaps.  The Icelandic stories are more along the lines of fables, teaching a lesson or issuing a warning.  So many stories of trolls or horrible ogres have them living in treacherous cliffs or near waterfalls.  It is no wonder parents would spin terrifying stories to encourage wandering children to stay far away from those hazards!  Other stories tell of blessings or gifts bestowed upon those hospitable to strangers who were Hidden Folk in disguise.  The alternative of being inhospitable or rude to the Hidden Folk resulting in misfortune was too big a risk.  Every Icelander learned early on to be pleasant and helpful "just in case.". Seeking favor or avoiding misfortune, either way it instills a very positive attitude of being neighborly and helpful to everyone, close friends as well as strangers.

I am including one of these stories in my upcoming collection of Folk Tales - The Field Hand, that tells the tale of a young man out to make his fortune and his kindness sharing a meal with a mongrel dog leads to a reward that makes all the difference in his life.

Proud to be Icelandic!

I am so proud of our team and such an outstanding showing at the Championships in Europe. 

Their teamwork, focus, skill, powerfully upbeat attitude and unfailingly good sportsmanship are true hallmarks of the Icelandic spirit.  As I have researched and read so many stories, I realize these virtues are something that are taught as a basic part of Icelandic culture.  Positive outlook, support of others and always looking at the bright side - like the celebration after the game with France.  Not a defeat to be lamented, but an amazing success that they achieved the standing to play that game. 

Arriving home, they were celebrated by the entire country with a welcome suited to any returning Viking!  That being said, I have become distracted by many things which has delayed the release of the Folk Tales book.  On the bright side, one of the distractions has been the development of an Icelandic cookbook, which should be ready for publication later this Fall.

Heathlands & Hummocks & Hidden Folk

This week, I have again been working on the Icelandic Fairy Tales collection and have enjoyed one story in particular.  "The Field Hand" is a wonderful, wandering story that has a little life lesson on the benefits of being kind.  As I worked on it, the visual had me remembering last year's trip to Iceland.


Fog rolls in quicky!I easily recalled watching in amazement how alive the fog can seem, how sometimes it may seem to creep on bony fingers over the mountain tops and other times it overtakes the landscape, seeming to fly in like a fire devouring a forest.  So driven was the progress it seemed that it was being moved by an unseen force.  I also recalled on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula there is a beautiful Fishermen's Garden where you can stand with the Ocean at your back and the mountain-tops covered by the glacier in front of you.  Remembering this area, it became easy to imagine the heathlands and hummocks and quite believable that they may be home to hidden folk. 

The start of the story goes like this:

A young man named Dreki was from the Sudurnes, which is the southern peninsula of Iceland.  One summer, he traveled to the North to find work as a field hand.  His travel was uneventful until he reached the heathlands.  The heathlands is an area of very rocky ground, where little can grow except a heath moss.  It is very dry and ground is covered in hummocks, which are lumps and mounds that are often home to the Hidden Folk.  As Dreki passed into the heathlands, a heavy fog descended upon him that was so thick, he soon lost his way.   The dense fog was followed by sleet and cold, so Dreki decided to stop for the night and pitched his tent.  After his camp was set up, he dug into his pack, pulled out his food and began to eat.  While he was enjoying his meal, a rust-colored dog entered the tent, all wet and hungry-looking.  The southerner was surprised to see a dog in such a place where he expected no living creature.  And so ugly and outlandish was the animal that the man was a bit frightened of it.  Nevertheless, he gave the dog all it wanted to eat.  The mutt wolfed down the food and then left, disappearing into the fog.   Dreki may be in for a supernatural encounter!  Or, has he had one already?   Read the whole story in my upcoming book on Icelandic legends & fairy tales which is set to be released this summer.  Follow my blog for more stories and details.
      
 

Midsummer Night when New Tales are Told

Jónsmessa
Midsummer Night, The longest day of the year, is endowed with great mystical powers.  It is the time of the midnight sun, when no corner of the country gets dark.  The clouds come down low to touch the land - or the fog rolls in off the ocean - or is it something else entirely?  


According to Icelandic folklore, cows gain the power of speech for the night, and seals can take a human form.  I have chosen this date as the perfect time to release my next work, a collection of Icelandic myths, folklore and fairy tales I have rewritten and updated for today's audience.  This new book will be available on Amazon and with a Kindle version, suitable for young readers and will make great bedtime stories.    I am very excited to share with you these very old but new tales.  Some will seem vaguely familiar but others will be completely new and delightful.  I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I have enjoyed learning them and bringing them into the modern century.