In a rural village in Iceland, a few hours from the capital of Reykjavík, the inhabitants cling to their lives and community while the world around them is changing. As in any small town, everyone knows each others' business and the story weaves in and out of many villagers' lives, exploring a range of human emotion, life-changing events, and turmoil. The village has its community dances, monthly astronomy lectures, and a new restaurant to amuse them and bring them together during the seasonal ebb and flow of daylight. As the town tries to retain its sense of community, a series of events unravels that change many of their lives forever, for better and worse. As the title hints, the Icelandic year is influenced heavily by the summer light and the coming of the near dark winter with little sunlight, which aptly reflects their shared joy and sorrow.
Summer Light, and Then Comes the Night was the winner of the Icelandic Literature Prize, originally published in 2005 and translated into English in 2020.
Did you know that Jólabókaflód (sometimes referred to as the Christmas Book Flood) is a tradition in Iceland of receiving a book and spending Christmas Eve reading it? Icelanders are serious about their reading and the country publishes more books per capita than anywhere else.
If this piques your interest, you can request it in print, or get the eBook or eAudiobook on Libby.
Joan
Information Services Supervisor
Cumming Library
#WeKnowBooks
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