Iceland: Land of the Sagas |
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Iceland: Land of the Sagas
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(Paperback - Oct. 6, 1998)
by Jon Krakauer and David Roberts
Sales Rank: 63138
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List Price: $24.00
$17.28
At Amazon
on 3-13-2010.
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Features
Cover Type: Paperback with 160 pages
Published by: Villard October 6, 1998
Written in: English
ISBN 10 Number: 0375752676
ISBN 13 Number: 978-0375752674
Book Dimensions:
11.4 x 9.6 x 0.6 inches
Weighs: 1.6 pounds
From Publishers Weekly
In an ingenious approach to a little-viewed land, journalist/outdoorsman Roberts and Krakauer ( Eiger Dreams ) examine Iceland today through its principal literary heritage. The harsh backdrop of the heroic tales featuring the fierce, gorgeous Gudrun Osvifrsdottirsp ok or courageous Burnt Njal is much the same as it was in the 13th century when the sagas, blending myth, history and fiction, were written. The most volcanic land in the world, with plentiful waterfalls and hot springs ("geyser" is from the Icelandic geysir ), the country is only four degrees from the Arctic Circle, yet, warmed by the Gulf Stream, possesses deep valleys and pastures to support indigenous populations of horses and sheep, as well as a quarter of a million people. In chapters such as "Of Monks and Vikings" and "Women and Winter," Roberts deftly looks at Iceland's history and culture while Krakauer's 100 arresting color photographs capture the land's topographical power. Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Reader ReviewsAnother coffee table paperweight? Not by a long shot! I am planning a trip to Iceland and have been reading fairly intensively in the subject. When I began reading this book, I did not expect to learn much. What a pleasant surprise! I spent a whole Sunday poring through it and was surprised at how excellent the text is -- and how well Jon Kracauer's superb photographs supplements it. David Roberts digs deep into the sagas, quoting from such relatively abstruse sources as GIMLI'S SAGA, GRETTIR'S SAGA, and BARD'S SAGA. The helpful bibliography lists a number of works I never knew existed, including a book by Sir Richard Francis Burton, the African explorer, about a summer he spent in Iceland as well as a number of rare travel books written by Europeans going back as far as the 18th century. One thing unique about this book is that Roberts and Kracauer visit many out-of-the-way places mentioned in the sagas, such as the almost inaccessible Isle of Drangey, where Grettir the Strong met his death. If you hope to visit Iceland, get this book first. It will give you not only an excellent background in the sagas but an awe for this isolated land that is so close and yet so far.
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Iceland: Land of the Sagas
Available from Amazon
Price: $17.28
Updated on 3-13-2010.
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