In the Nordic countries, there are hardly any societal problems, but we writers are bloodthirsty people like anyone else, so we have to quench this thirst with literature. If you live in a mafia state with lots of violence on… — Hallgrimur Helgason Copy Share Image
“— It's Hlynur Bjorn Hafsteinsson, Bergporugotu, 8b, Reykjavik, Iceland. — Is there no postal code? — Oh yes. It's hundred and one Reykjavik. I'm the one.” — Hallgrímur Helgason Copy Share Image
... I stare into the fridge. Like a mirrored image of myself. Cold and empty, and the lights come on only when you open… — Hallgrimur Helgason Copy Share Image
Everything is very expensive in Iceland, so I got some things done in India in the two months I was here. I visited the… — Hallgrimur Helgason Copy Share Image
In Iceland, book lives matter in every sense of that phrase: The shelf-life of the book, the lives in the book, the life of… — Hallgrimur Helgason Copy Share Image
Thanks to the Jolabokaflod, books still matter in Iceland; they get read and talked about. Excitement fills the air. Every reading is crowded; every… — Hallgrimur Helgason Copy Share Image
Like many writers, I'm usually more interested in reading about authors than their actual works. We're more curious to know how they were written… — Hallgrimur Helgason Copy Share Image
I'm trying to write about serious issues, about Iceland's journey into modernity, about the soul of Iceland - on how people react when they… — Hallgrimur Helgason Copy Share Image
We have to save ourselves from ourselves. We have to minimize the effect our own politicians can have on our society. We have to… — Hallgrimur Helgason Copy Share Image
My three years in Manhattan were sort of my university years. I was learning by myself, and it was a tough time. That's when… — Hallgrimur Helgason Copy Share Image
Nabokov can be almost too delicate at times, but in 'Lolita,' he puts his aristocratic sensitivity to use in such a dark tale that… — Hallgrimur Helgason Copy Share Image
For us Icelanders, the Sagas are like the Bible, only much better. — Hallgrimur Helgason Copy Share Image
