Agreements have been made for the publication of 60 Icelandic books in Germany by fall 2011 through the “Fabulous Iceland” project, which is promoting Icelandic literature in connection with Iceland being the honorary guest at the 2011 Frankfurt Book Fair.
Andri Snaer Magnason. One of the authors who have been well received in Germany. Photo by Páll Stefánsson.
In recent months the project’s leaders have been systematically working to facilitate the publication of Icelandic books on the German market in collaboration with Icelandic publishers and writers, as stated on the project’s website.
Many of Germany’s leading publishers, such as Suhrkamp Verlag and Fischer Verlag, will participate in this project and a total of 35 German publishers are known to be planning the publication of Icelandic literary works in the next year and a half.
About half of the books to be published in Germany are fiction: novels or collections of short stories. In addition, 14 scholarly works are to be published, including books on Icelandic history and literary history, five volumes of poetry, three children’s books and eight volumes of the Icelandic Sagas.
But this is far from being a comprehensive list, as a number of German publishing houses are considering more Icelandic books for publication.
“This is an indication of a remarkable interest in the Frankfurt Book Fair’s guest of honor at this early stage of preparations,” commented Simone Bühler, a spokesperson for the Book Fair.
This keen interest may be attributed to several factors: many Icelandic writers are already well-established in Germany, Germans have long been interested in Iceland and its culture, and Iceland’s role as guest of honor at the 2011 Frankfurt Book Fair has attracted the attention of publishers.
Click here to read more about Icelandic literature in Germany and the Frankfurt Book Fair.
