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Title: Iceland : Land of the Sagas by David Roberts, Jon Krakauer ISBN: 0-375-75267-6 Publisher: Villard Pub. Date: 06 October, 1998 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.56 (9 reviews)
Rating: 3
Summary: Not the Iceland I know
Comment: I am glad I got this book just for the text, which is excellent. But I'm surprised at rave reviews for the photos, which to me are absurd. They hardly explore Iceland's unique topography and instead turn it into a generic rugged Anywhere. Notice that in almost every photo there's some sign of habitation: a building, an animal,a person in a boat, etc. The thing that distinguishes Iceland is that there's NO ONE there. You can drive for hours, as I have along the coast on a road that's simply a leveling of the gravel, without seeing another car, building or even a road sign. It's creepy and exhilerating. It's the ideal place to be alone. The landscape is so unusual it reminds you of nothing familiar, nothing from your past. And except for rocky outcroppings, it's flat in a way that makes you feel you could be on the moon. I love Iceland, am obsessed with it, and go there as often as possible. For me it is a source of existential peace. For a true picture of the landscape, listen to the music of Sigur Ros, and investigate the photographs of artist Olafur Eliasson. Or go and take your own pictures. They'll be better than these.
Rating: 5
Summary: Not Just a Coffee Table Book
Comment: Another coffee table paperweight? Not by a long shot! I am planning a trip to Iceland and have been reading fairly intensively in the subject. When I began reading this book, I did not expect to learn much. What a pleasant surprise! I spent a whole Sunday poring through it and was surprised at how excellent the text is -- and how well Jon Kracauer's superb photographs supplements it.
David Roberts digs deep into the sagas, quoting from such relatively abstruse sources as GIMLI'S SAGA, GRETTIR'S SAGA, and BARD'S SAGA. The helpful bibliography lists a number of works I never knew existed, including a book by Sir Richard Francis Burton, the African explorer, about a summer he spent in Iceland as well as a number of rare travel books written by Europeans going back as far as the 18th century. One thing unique about this book is that Roberts and Kracauer visit many out-of-the-way places mentioned in the sagas, such as the almost inaccessible Isle of Drangey, where Grettir the Strong met his death.
If you hope to visit Iceland, get this book first. It will give you not only an excellent background in the sagas but an awe for this isolated land that is so close and yet so far.
Rating: 5
Summary: Nice Photographs--Neat Sagas
Comment: I ordered this book before coming to Iceland-- When I received the book I first was amazed by the Photography, it was outstanding. I couldn't wait until I was in Iceland so that I visit some of the places I saw in the book. (It looks even better in person-- no trick photography here) I also read about the sagas-- Sagas in Iceland are a very big part of the culture--No ifs ands or buts. They love telling stories about the sagas and thanks to this book I have been able to carry on some interesting conversations with the local Icelandic folks. Most sagas are rich with excitment. If you are looking for a book with great photos mixed with Icelandic culture-- Here's your book!
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Title: Lonely Planet Iceland, Greenland & the Faroe Islands (LONELY PLANET ICELAND, GREENLAND, AND THE FAROE ISLANDS) by Graeme Cornwallis, Deanna Swaney ISBN: 0864426860 Publisher: Lonely Planet Pub. Date: May, 2001 List Price(USD): $19.99 |
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Title: Insight Guide Iceland (3rd Ed) by Jane Simmonds, Insight Guides ISBN: 0887291767 Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Co Pub. Date: April, 2001 List Price(USD): $22.95 |
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Title: Iceland Travel Map by Globetrotter ISBN: 1843302764 Publisher: New Holland Publishers (UK) LTD Pub. Date: 01 April, 2003 List Price(USD): $8.95 |
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Title: The Sagas of the Icelanders: A Selection by Robert Kellogg, Robert Kellogg, Jane Smiley ISBN: 0141000031 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: 27 February, 2001 List Price(USD): $20.00 |
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Title: Iceland by Colin Baxter, Cathy Harlow ISBN: 1841070718 Publisher: Baxter Colin Photography Ltd Pub. Date: 29 June, 2001 List Price(USD): $29.95 |
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