A Parish Chronicle

Laxness (1902–1998), the Nobel-winning author of Independent People, exhibits his interests in myth and the natural world in this humble tale of villagers defending their church from demolition. In 1884, Iceland is under home rule but shares a king with Denmark, and national church leaders convene in Reykjavík to determine whether they should follow the king’s order to demolish the decaying Mosfell Church. Known as the resting place of legendary Viking warrior Egil Skallagrímsson’s skull, the church stands in a barren area where life is “all about sheep.” As locals get wind of the news, a feud breaks out between rough-hewn farmer Ólafur Magnússon, who claims Egil as an ancestor, and the parish priests. Ólafur, supported by his sons, sets out to recover artifacts that have disappeared from the church. Meanwhile, a maid named Guðrún Jónsdóttir wanders into the fog and returns with a tale of a strange encounter with people who may be elf folk—or maybe they’re the ones looting from the church. Throughout, Laxness evokes his characters’ simple way of life with a seamless mix of folklore and quotidian details, such as Guðrún’s practice of baking bread in the geothermal-heated ground. Readers will be transported. (Feb.)