Ágúst Borgþór Sverrisson

Reykyavik Shorts
Review of the Comma Press paperback edition (August 2021)

Average [3.8] so rounds up as a strong [4]
The Book of Reykyavik provides an excellent variety of short stories centred around the world of the city of Reykyavik, Iceland. It is part of Comma Press' Reading the City/A City in Short Fiction series along with titles such as The Book of Khartoum: A City in Short Fiction, The Book of Cairo: A City in Short Fiction, etc.

The stories tend to lean towards nordic melancholy, which is ok by me with me with my Estonian heritage background. The themes are often about people being distanced from partners, family or even their homeland, but still making an effort to seek connection. Almost all of the authors were new to me except for Sjón who provides an excellent Foreword and Kristín Eiríksdóttir (Story #6) whose A Fist or a Heart (Orig 2017/Trans 2019) I had previously enjoyed in both its audiobook and paperback editions, which was also translated by Larissa Kyzer.

1. Island by [author:Friðgeir Einarsson|15033151] translated by [author:Larissa Kyzer|13504072]. ** An ex-pat returns home to Reykyavik for his mother's funeral and discovers that he has become completely unassimilated from its culture.
2. The Gardeners by [author:Einar Már Guðmundsson|259485] translated by [author:Victoria Cribb|2790834]. ***** A trio of brothers, give up on farming life and move to the city to become landscape gardeners. They move in with a recluse scholar who yearns for a quiet place to do his Icelandic poetry translations and who also communicates with the dead. The humour in this one made it a standout.
3. Keep Sleeping, My Love by [author:Andri Snær Magnason|689347] translated by [author:Lytton Smith|2793731]. **** Leaving his lover sleeping, a man sneaks off in order to search for something to rekindle their relationship.
4. Home by [author:Fríða Ísberg|14147972] translated by Larissa Kyzer. *** After a night of partying, a woman walks home through the deserted streets of Reykyavik in fear of possible assaults.
5. Two Foxes by [author:Björn Halldórsson|4917552] translated by Larissa Kyzer. **** An insomniac, whose marriage has grown distant, awakes and goes for a cigarette on a balcony. He observes two foxes going off into the dawn.
6. Without You, I'm Half by [author:Kristín Eiríksdóttir|4463051] ***** translated by Larissa Kyzer. A man reminisces about his past relationships while staying at home to duck out of going to a party where he suspects he is being set up with his friend's girlfriend.
7. Reykjavik Nights by [author:Auður Jónsdóttir|2779806] translated by [author:Meg Matich|15365076]. *** A writer describes her wild one night stand to her publisher friend.
8. Incursion by [author:Þórarinn Eldjárn|2711715] translated by [author:Philip Roughton|814415]. **** The inhabitants of a new apartment complex built on a torn down sawmill site believe that the building is haunted by the ghosts of its previous workers and machines.
9. When His Eyes are on You, You're the Virgin Mary by [author:Guðrún Eva Mínervudóttir|3373650] translated by Meg Matich. **** An odd encounter with a man becomes even odder with a subsequent encounter with a washroom attendant.
10. The Dead are Here with Us at Christmas by [author:Ágúst Borgþór Sverrisson|4410764] translated by Lytton Smith. **** A young boy is resentful of having to go with his mother to his brother's gravesite for a Christmas candle ritual. The story leaves the sense of being an actual childhood memory written in adulthood.

I read The Book of Reykyavik due to its selection for the 2021 Borderless Book Club for which it was the initial July 29, 2021 selection. Due to a publication delay, it was replaced by The Book of Venice in the final selection.

Trivia and Links
The Comma Press blog features an interview with translator Larissa Kyzer (who translated 4 of the 10 stories in The Book of Reykyavik) which you can read here.… (mehr)