The Book of Reykjavik: A City in Short Fiction (Reading the City)

Iceland is a land of stories; from the epic sagas of its mythic past, to its claim today of being home to more writers, more published books and more avid readers, per head, than anywhere in the world. As its capital (and indeed only city), Reykjavik has long been an inspiration for these stories. But, as this collection demonstrates, this fishing-village-turned-metropolis at the farthest fringe of Europe has been both revered and reviled by Icelanders over the years. The tension between the city and the surrounding countryside, its rural past and urban present, weaves its way through The Book of Reykjavik, forming an outline of a fragmented city marked by both contradiction and creativity. Published with the support of the Icelandic Literature Center.

Becca joined Comma Press after her undergraduate degree at Lancaster University. Whilst at university she was the Editor of both Cake Magazine and Flash Journal. She is Engagement Manager at Comma Press, a trustee of Manchester Literature Festival and is also the co-editor of The Book of Tbilisi, The Book of Riga and The Book of Reykjavik. Þórarinn Eldjárn (b. 1949) is an Icelandic writer, particularly well known in Iceland for his humorous poetry books for children. Friðgeir Einarsson is the author of the critically acclaimed short story collection Thanks for Letting Me Know and the novel The Chairman of the Housing Association. Fríða ísberg (b. 1992) is an Icelandic author and poet based in Reykjavík. She has three books published; the short story collection Kláði (2018), which was shortlisted for The Icelandic Women's Literature Prize 2019 for Fiction, and poetry collections Leðurjakkaveður (2019) and Slitförin (2017) which won The Icelandic Booksellers Choice Award for Poetry 2017 and the Grassroots Grant from the Icelandic Literature Center 2017. Fríða is a member of the Icelandic poetry collective Svikaskáld (e. The Imposter Poets). She occasionally writes reviews for The Times Literary Supplement. Guðrún Eva Mínervudóttir (1976) was born in Reykjavik and spent her childhood partly in the city, partly in various villages around the country. In her youth she was a cow-herdess, sheep-minder and bartender. After publishing her first book in 1998 (While He Looks at You, You Are Virgin Mary) she became a full-time writer, surviving on book sales and state grants. She has now written and published nine novels and two collections of short stories. Since 2010 she has tought creative writing in The Iceland Academy of the Arts. Her work has been translated into several languages. Vera Júlíusdóttir is a translator and filmmaker. Her translations of Icelandic short stories appeared in elsewhere; stories from small town Europe and Decapolis that were published by Comma Press. Vera has lived in Minneapolis and London, and now lives and works in Reykjavik. Andri Snær Magnason (b. 1973) is an Icelandic writer. He has written novels, poetry, plays, short stories, and essays. His work has been published or performed in more than 30 countries. Einar Már Guðmundsson (born in Reykjavik in 1954) is an Icelandic author of novels, short stories, and poetry. His books have been translated into several languages Kristín Eiríksdóttir is an Icelandic poet and author. Eiríksdótter's debut novel, Kjötbærinn was published in 2004. This was followed by Húðlit auðnin in 2006 and Annarskonar sæla in 2008. Her first two books were a mixture of poetry and prose while her third was entirely poetry. Björn Halldórsson was born in Reykjavik, Iceland, in 1983. He studied English and American Literature at the University of East-Anglia in Norwich and has an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Glasgow. Along with working as a writer, translator and journalist, he has directed panels at festivals such as the Reykjavík Literature Festival and the PEN World Voices Festival in New York. His short stories have been published by literary journals in Iceland and the UK and have also appeared in translation in English, German and Italian. Auður Jónsdóttir (b. 1973) is one of the most accomplished authors writing in Icelandic today. She won the Icelandic Literary Prize for The People in the Basement and the Icelandic Women's Literature Prize for Secretaries to the Spirits. Both of these novels were nominated for the Nordic Council's Literature Prize. Auður latest novel, Grand Mal (Stóri skjálfti), became Auður's most successful novel to date and gathered a huge following among Icelandic readers of all ages. The People In The Basement, Deposit and Grand Mal are now all being adapted for the silver screen. ágúst BorgÞór Sverrisson is first and foremost a short story writer. His first stories were published in his hig