Book Tips - Halldór Laxness

This is a historical novel of epic proportions.
/Tomislav, Serbia & Montenegro

The man's struggle for it's independence and it's obstination towards it.
/Sara Peres, Portugal

A grand epic about people's lives embedded in the history of Iceland. A brave and gripping tale about loss, preseverence. Never before has an author described in such beautiful detail the hardships of people. A book everyone should have read.
/Leo, Netherlands

Lyrical epic of a person who is almost too independent for his own good. The hardships endured by early 20th century Icelanders are told with almost breathtaking beauty. It gives a view into a world and way of life that is completely different from my own.
/Jonathan Leff, United States

His narrative is such that he tells us a wealth of life's good sense without ever stating the obvious - he is indeed a genius and certainly deserved the prize.
/Emma Kriel, South Africa

'World Light' simply blew me away. I was preparing a trip to Iceland and I decided to read an Icelandic novel. I think no other novel could have made me more eager to discover further the Icelandic culture. Laxness goes straight to the heart of human nature and, at the same time, paints a beautiful picture of an island on which people's lives were never quite easy. If you have an artistic side, or even only a dream of any kind, the character of Olafur Karason will mean the world to you although reading the book, and even afterwards. It touched me so much, I have been learning Icelandic for the past two months and, one day, maybe I can read Laxness' original words!
/Chloe St Jacques, Canada

'World Light' tells a story of a young man who wants to be a poet but is not very good at it. However he does not have much of a chance, and his short life is very sad. This affects me very strongly for some reason, that someone wants something very badly but cannot get it, and that each of his attempts is thwarted by the smallmindedness of other people. My friends think this book is depressing but I do not. I think it is very well written and worth reading, especially for other young people.
/Elizabeth, United States