Declare Books In Pursuance Of Harmur englanna (Heaven and Hell Trilogy #2)
| Original Title: | Harmur englanna |
| ISBN: | 9979657669 (ISBN13: 9789979657668) |
| Edition Language: | Icelandic |
| Series: | Heaven and Hell Trilogy #2 |
| Setting: | Iceland |
| Literary Awards: | Independent Foreign Fiction Prize Nominee for Longlist (2014), International Dublin Literary Award Nominee for Longlist (2015) |
Jón Kalman Stefánsson
Hardcover | Pages: 316 pages Rating: 4.27 | 1446 Users | 196 Reviews
Details Based On Books Harmur englanna (Heaven and Hell Trilogy #2)
| Title | : | Harmur englanna (Heaven and Hell Trilogy #2) |
| Author | : | Jón Kalman Stefánsson |
| Book Format | : | Hardcover |
| Book Edition | : | Special Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 316 pages |
| Published | : | 2009 by Bjartur |
| Categories | : | Fiction. Historical. Historical Fiction |
Narrative Supposing Books Harmur englanna (Heaven and Hell Trilogy #2)
The epic journey of survival against all odds that moulds the identity of the nameless boy continues in this second installment of Stéfansson’s trilogy, setting the perfect foreground tone for the fiercest struggle between man and the hostile wilderness of the Icelandic remote lands. Divided in two main sections; the youthful main character ponders about the value of literature, getting more acquainted with it in the first part of the narration and missing it acutely in the second one, where the extreme weather conditions become the main protagonist of the story, befogging the voice of the omniscient narrator with inner monologue, tragicomic dialogue and the incantatory poetry that breathes life into the menacing yet wondrous presence of the landscape that consumes it all. The boundaries separating Heaven and Hell, Sky and Earth, the Living and the Dead, dissipate into a muddled blankness that evokes the oblivion of non-being. What is the use of printed pages in the face of the unbearable iciness that benumbs hearts and drowns men in the depths of the Polar Sea? Why read Milton, Shakespeare or Dickens if the whiteness of the snow will end up blinding those who dare to question, who dare to look out? And yet Jens the postman puts his life in danger to deliver letters, written words, at the end of the world, where angels weep tears of sorrow that coat slopes, gullies and ridges with whitewash made of gelid blizzards and biting snowflakes. Humanity is reduced to nothingness in front of the inexorable forces of nature that create and destroy in their wake. Surely, the hazardous trip that boy and man embark on together to make a special delivery is a metaphor for mankind's pursuit of answers to fight against absurdity, to infuse meaning into a seemingly pointless existence, presented through the dual prism of Stéfansson’s artistry. The inquisitive boy, whose unquenchable doubts nudge him to speak out, and the grumpy postman, who avoids words as if they were summoned by the same devil, will see their destinies irremediably intertwined in a mission that might shake the ground of their deeply rooted beliefs not only about the importance of words, but also about the fine line separating life from death, lust from love and reality from hallucination. Stéfansson is a poet, but the lyrical hues of his darkly sensuous prose is aerated with an outstanding understanding of the human psyche, moving shrewdly between realistic narrative, folklore and myth, blending the moralistic tale with the archetypal existentialist coming-of-age story. His painstaking eye for detail draws an incredibly nuanced portrait of the Icelandic people, their precarious life conditions and the unusual mixture of coarseness and sensitivity that constitutes their collective ethos. In a place where man’s angst, fear and impotence mean nothing against the undaunted harshness of nature, a place where his dreams, yearnings and minuscule joys don’t have the slightest impact on his untamable habitat; words might be futile or they might be the rescue team that melts petrified souls lost in the maelstrom of existence back into the throbbing pain of being alive. It’s only a matter of finding the courage to give them free entrance into the core of what makes us human.Rating Based On Books Harmur englanna (Heaven and Hell Trilogy #2)
Ratings: 4.27 From 1446 Users | 196 ReviewsCriticize Based On Books Harmur englanna (Heaven and Hell Trilogy #2)
Impressions through the clouded lens of snowflakes, the eponymous sorrow of angelsDeath, ever present, death. Lurking in the murderous winter landscape, the roof of Hell. Lurking in empty bellies and a cough that wont stop.Lingering in memories, dreams, and visions.The dead, entwine with the living, urging some to live, but luring others towards death. Does one betray the dead by continuing to live?How to bear the guilt of being alive and desiring life.By the anchoring bonds with family andWhereas Heaven and Hell, the first volume of the author's trilogy examining the relationship between the living and the dead in late nineteenth-century Iceland, focused on the ways in which the cold, deep, and unpredictable sea can turn the living into the dead, Stefánsson's second volume, The Sorrow of Angels, describes how the stark and unforgiving landscape of snowfields, glaciers, and mountains swept by storms can perform the same transformation. The saga of "the boy" is also a Bildungsroman
I read this book in English as an electronic ARC of a translation that will be available later this year. I loved this novel and will be keeping an eye out for more books from this author. This novel has that gloomy nihilistic tone that people make fun of with respect to Icelandic films, but here it is done very well, with lots of great, quotable philosophical tangents and an interesting glimpse at life in the disgusting cold of winter in Iceland.
As per my usual habit, I try not to read others reviews of books before I post my thoughts. Id rather not be distracted by their views, comments or relationship with a work. Of course this can be to me detriment as at times I completely miss some of the subtle nuances, themes, sub-plots and more. So please bear with me if Ive completely misread this novel and other (more scholarly types) have already pointed out a better version of my take on this book.The Sorrow of Angels is Jon Kalman
Its so beautifully written, you almost want to trade places with the characters despite their circumstances.
My expectations were set a bit too high after "Heaven and hell", the first book about The Boy. That was such a marvel of literary triumph that I simply lack words. This, the second volume, is a bit longer, it lacks the precise touch of part one and fails to hold me as firmly. It is, still, a very good book, where we follow The Boy and the Mail-man Jens on their dangerous journey across the Icelandic highlands, through an endless, and probably very symbolic, snow-storm. That is all. But
Jón Kalman Stefánsson's prose is like poetry. A splendid book.
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