History: A Mess

Sigrun Palsdottir is a writer and historian. Born in Reykjavik in 1967, she completed a PhD on the history of ideas at the University of Oxford in 2001, after which she was a research fellow and lecturer at the University of Iceland. She first came to prominence as a writer of historical biographies: the acclaimed THora biskups (2007, e. Thora: A Bishop's Daughter) and Ferdasaga (e. Uncertain Seas) in 2010. Her first novel, Kompa (e. History: A Mess), was released in 2016 and her second, Delluferdin (e. Embroidery) in late 2019. History: A Mess was nominated for the Icelandic Women's Literature Prize in 2016. Sigrun received The European Union Prize for Literature (EUPL) 2021 for Delluferdin (e. Embroidery).Lytton Smith is a poet, professor, and translator from the Icelandic. His most recent translations include works by Kristin Omarsdottir, Jon Gnarr, Ofeigur Sigurdsson, Bragi Olafsson, and Gudbergur Bergsson. His most recent poetry collection, The All-Purpose Magical Tent, was published by Nightboat. Having earned his MFA and PhD from Columbia University, he currently teaches at SUNY Geneseo.

"Its ambition is met with resounding success every step of the way." WILLOW HEATH, BOOKS AND BAO -- "Palsdottir writes with the hand of a mystery author and the mind of a postmodernist, teasing out her protagonist's problem while playing with literary forms, fragmenting timelines, and injecting fierce irony." PUBLISHERS WEEKLY -- "Absolutely brilliant from beginning to end." ICELANDIC NATIONAL TELEVISION