The Fish Can Sing (Vintage International)
The Fish Can Sing (Vintage International)
The Fish Can Sing is one of Nobel Prize winner Halldór Laxness’s most beloved novels, a poignant coming-of-age tale marked with his peculiar blend of light irony and dark humor.
The orphan Alfgrimur has spent an idyllic childhood sheltered in the simple turf cottage of a generous and eccentric elderly couple. Alfgrimur dreams only of becoming a fisherman like his adoptive grandfather, until he meets Iceland’s biggest celebrity. The opera singer Gardar Holm’s international fame is a source of tremendous pride to tiny, insecure Iceland, though no one there has ever heard him sing. A mysterious man who mostly avoids his homeland and repeatedly fails to perform for his adoring countrymen, Gardar takes a particular interest in Alfgri
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A remarkable read,
Laxness’ book, “The Fish Can Sing” is a remarkable book. At first, it seems like a random series of vignettes about early 20th-century Icelandic life, full of detail and life, but appearing loosely bound at best. But by the end of the novel, the reader realizes he is in the hands of a master craftsman as the rich detail provided in earlier chapters come back to play important roles in the culmination of the book and its plot.
There’s an endless array of well-defined, complicated, and vivid characters. There’s the lavish countryside painted simply – evoking the same feeling you get from a good watercolor. Then there’s the plot, which is mysterious and complex, but leaves you with much to ponder.
A nod to the translator, Magnus Magnussen, because the prose is fertile and poetic. It’s unbelievably rich, yet brilliantly sparse. This is the way prose should be.
Laxness and Magnussen have given us a beautiful, soulful book. It’s a remarkable read.
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|A wonderful, wonderful book,
The Fish can Sing (or, as it is known in Icelandic, The Annal of Brekkukot) is one of Laxness’s finest and most intimate novels. It successfully weaves together several narrative threads: it is an orphan’s lyrical coming-of-age story, a tragic tale of a “world-famous” singer, and a brilliant description of Reykjavik at the beginning of the 20th century, with its quaint combination of old values (as represented by the storyteller’s grandparents) and and more modern influences. As in every Laxness book, the characters are colorful and imaginative, yet always true to life. This book is a gem.
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|A Masterpiece!,
This brilliant work amply demonstrates why its author, Halldor Laxness, won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1955(?). Without much of a plot–it portrays the maturation and awakening of a young man, Alfgrimur Hanson–”The Fish Can Sing” is nonetheless very rich in characterization and aptly depicts life in early 20th century Iceland. As an American who has lived in Iceland for the last two years, I have grown to appreciate Laxness’s insight into the character of the proud and independent Icelandic people. I have read two other Laxness books which I could find printed in English–”Under the Glacier” and “Independent People”–and although those are very good, “The Fish Can Sing” is outstanding and clearly my favorite. Humorous, though-provoking and ultimately very moving, this book is one which you will surely enjoy and not readily forget.
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