As a part of the Nordwind festival – Andri Snær Magnason will read on the Volksbuhne in Berlin the 4th of December at 17:30. He will weave a story/lectures/performance through his work, from Bonus Supermarktgedichte to Traumland – using his work to reflect the idea that Iceland is a microcosmos of the world. Iceland is a human laboratory, 300.000 were left on an island and by understanding them we can get insight into many interesting things. Andri tells a story, taking us into the mythological wold of Bonus, into his work of fantasy and science fiction, back to Iceland where events were becoming larger than any science fiction, into the language that is used every day but nobody seems to understand – to the destruction of beautiful landscapes of Iceland – to Greenland where Alcoa wants to build a huge Aluminum smelter like they did in Iceland – to China – where 50% of the world Aluminum production went the last decade.

More here from the official announcement:

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Here is a radio program in German (and some Icelandic) by Johann Kneihs in the Austrian National Radio – ORF Ö1. The program is 40 minutes and goes through most of my work and background. From Dreamland, to Bonus Poetry to LoveStar and a lot more. Johann also visits an event that was part of the Reykjavik Art Festival – “The home performance”- when artists invited people to attend a performance at their home. The president of Iceland was a guest at my house. Here is a picture of me and the president from that event. Will not explain why he seems to be giving me cookies on the photo. Andri Snær is part of the Frankfurt festival. If you scroll down a bit – you will find his reading program.

Iceland is the guest of honor at the Frankfurt Bookfair so I will have some busy days in Germany from the 7th – 18th of October. Four of my books have now been published in Germany and one play will premier in November. My touring plan in October can be seen here.

Dreamland – Traumland has been published by Orange Press. Dreamland takes a look at Iceland as some kind of a microcosmos, a world in a nutshell, a small planet in itself. Dreamland tries to understand the worlds global problems by observing local problems in Iceland, where it is easy to observe things quite clearly – like living in a test tube. The American US Naval base wanted to leave Iceland – but we did not want to let them go. After fulfilling all the nations need for “clean” energy – the government marketed many of the most fragile and beautiful places in Iceland as a source of cheap energy for multinational corporations running the aluminum industry. If you want a relevant example we can take this waterfall – Aldeyjarfoss – from the Sagenhaftes marketing material – the waterfall is not yet protected.

Orange – Press has also Published Bónus Poetry. A mythological journey through a Bónus Supermarket. Two languages for the price of one – bilingual – in German and Icelandic. Bónus poetry remains one of the most sold volumes of poetry in the history of Icelandic publishing.

Click on the pink pig for the German website.

LoveStar - the paperback is coming out just in time for Frankfurt. LoveStar has been described as something like a mixture of Douglas Adams, Monty Pythons flying Circus, 1984 and the heartbreak romance of Nicolas Sparks. LoveStar won the DV literary award in Iceland and was chosen Novel of the Year by Icelandic booksellers. LoveStar was published by Lubbe – LoveStar is looking forward to meet it’s german audience looking for something more strange from Iceland than a normal crime plot!

And then it is The Story of the Blue Planet, Die Geschichte vom Blauen Planeten. The Blue Planet is the first and only children’s book to win the Icelandic literary award.

The story is published in german by Leipziger Kinderbuchverlag but has been published or sold to publishers in 25 languages. The play from the story will premier in Luzern in Swiss – November 30th.

And then two short stories will be published in Gaben des Himmels – an anthology of Icelandic short stories by Steidl Verlag. One of the stories has actually not been published in Icelandic yet. The book is called Gaben des Himmels and includes short stories by many good icelandic writers.

So I will be touring with my books, reading, speaking, signing the next weeks in Germany. As some will see here this portfolio is a bit strange. Poetry, children’s book, a play, literary science fiction and non fiction. If you are not interested in any of these subjects or have finished reading it all then you might like this CD with Icelandic folkmusic or you can watch Dreamland online here. The movie I co-directed, based on the book Traumland.

Andri Snær reading in Germany:

Köln, Heidelberg, Karlsruhe, Frankfurt, Mainz, Erlangen…

KÖLN / Freitag, 07. Oktober .2011 / 19:30 Uhr

Lange Nacht der isländischen Literatur

Island – ein Land der Gegensätze und Extreme. Seine Bewohner sprühen vor Kreativität. Das beweisen sechs Autorinnen und Autoren des Inselstaats im Nordatlantik: Andri Snær Magnason, Audur Ava Olafsdóttir, Hallgrímur Helgason, Sjón, Steinunn Sigurdardóttir und Yrsa Sigurdardóttir lassen die isländische Literatur in der Kölner Nacht gleißen. Mit Live-Musik.

Moderation: Angela Gutzeit, Arthur Bollason.

Veranstaltungspartner: Deutschlandfunk; Europäische Kommission – Generaldirektion Bildung und Kultur/Programm „Kultur“, Sagenhaftes Island

Fr. 07.10.11 / Beginn: 19:30 Uhr / Roter Saal / 11 EURO, 9 EURO ERM.

COMEDIA Theater, Vondelstraße 4-8, 50677 Köln

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Karlsruhe / Sonntag, 09. Oktober 2011 / 18:00 Uhr / Eintritt frei

Lesung und Gespräch mit dem isländischen Autor Andri Snær Magnason

ZKM / Zentrum für Kunst und Medientechnologie, Lorenzstraße 19, 76135 Karlsruhe, www.zkm.de

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Frankfurt / Montag, 10. oktober 2011 / 18:00 Uhr

LitCam Conference –

»Literacy and Sustainable Economic Growth«

Steigenberger Frankfurter Hof Am Kaiserplatz

http://www.litcam.de/litcam-konferenzen/konferenz-2011

Eintritt frei

Andri Snær Magnason nimmt teil an der LitCam Podiumsdiskussion zum Thema

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Heidelberg / Dienstag, 11. okt 2011 / 20:00 Uhr

Nacht der isländischen Literatur

Andri Snær Magnason liest mit Audur Ava Ólafsdóttir und Einar Már Gudmundsson

Deutsch-Amerikanisches Institut Heidelberg
Sofienstraße 12

69115 Heidelberg
www.dai-heidelberg.de

Eintritt: 12.00€, 10.00€ ermässigt, 8.00 € Mitglieder

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Frankfurt / Mittwoch, 12. oktober 2011 / 12:00 – 12:45 Uhr

Buchmesse, Forum Zukunft, Halle 4.0, D1339

Andri Snær Magnason spricht bei der Podiumsdiskussion zum Thema Branchenferne Finanzierung über seine »Bónus. Supermarktgedichte« (auf englisch). Moderation: Maria Zagar

Ein früher Coup von Andri Snær Magnason. Wer in Island war, kennt das rosa Schwein von Bónus, der größten Supermarktkette des Landes. 1996 konnte Andri den Inhaber des Lebensmitteldiscounters von einer verwegenen Idee überzeugen: Gedichte über das Einkaufen als Stapelware in den Märkten selber anzubieten anstatt im Buchhandel – das Bändchen mit dem Sparschwein, das einen sonst von der Einkaufstüte anlachte, erreichte Rekordauflagen. Lyrik für den Alltag – garantiert reimfrei!

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Mainz / Mittwoch / 12. oktober 2011 / 20:00 Uhr

Andri Snær Magnason liest. Traumland, LoveStar, Bonus Gedichte, Die Geschichte aus Die Blauen Planeten.

Walpodenakademie, Neubrunnenstraße 8

55116 Mainz

Eintritt:  8/6€

Veranstalter: Literaturbrüo Mainz e.V., orange-press

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Frankfurt Buchmesse / Donnerstag, 13. oktober 2011 / 15:30 – 16:00 Uhr

Halle 3.0, B 170

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Frankfurt / Donnerstag, 13. oktober 2011 / 19:30 / Eintritt frei

OPEN BOOKS

Römer 9

Römerberg 9

60311 Frankfurt am Main

Junge isländische Literatur präsentiert von btb, FVA und orange-press: Von Körperwahn und Liebe, arbeitslosen Bankern und der dunklen Seite der Wirtschaft erzählen Gudrún Eva Mínervudóttir, Guðmundur Óskarsson und Andri Snær Magnason. Moderation: Antje Deistler Deutsche Lesestimme: Johannes Kühn (angefragt)

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Frankfurt Buchmesse / Freitag, 14. oktober 2011 / 10:00 Uhr

Leseinsel der unabhängigen Verlage, Halle 4.1., D 128

Andri Snær Magnason und Undine Löhfelm lesen aus
»Traumland« und den »Bónus-Supermarktgedichten«.

Orange-press Stand: 4.1 G 132

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Frankfurt Buchmesse

Samstag, 15. oktober 2011

12:00-13:00 : Orange Press Stand 4.1 G 132

Signierstunde / Booksigning.

Andri Snær Magnason am Stand von orange-press

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15. oktober: 13:30-14:00: Icelandic Pavillion

Lesung mit Andri Snær Magnason »Traumland – Was bleibt, wenn alles verkauft ist? « und »Bónus – Supermarktgedichte«

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15. oktober: 16:00-17:00: Stand: Süddeutsche Zeitung / Halle 3.0, C159

Präsentation von Andri Snær Magnasons »Bónus. Supermarktgedichte« mit Eirikur Norddahl und Thordis Björnsdóttir

Ein früher Coup von Andri Snær Magnason. Wer in Island war, kennt das rosa Schwein von Bónus, der größten Supermarktkette des Landes. 1996 konnte Andri den Inhaber des Lebensmitteldiscounters von einer verwegenen Idee überzeugen: Gedichte über das Einkaufen als Stapelware in den Märkten selber anzubieten anstatt im Buchhandel – das Bändchen mit dem Sparschwein, das einen sonst von der Einkaufstüte anlachte, erreichte Rekordauflagen. Lyrik für den Alltag – garantiert reimfrei!

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Wiesbaden / Sonntag, 16.10.2011 / 18:00 Uhr

Kulturpalast Wiesbaden, Saalgasse 36

www.kulturpalast-wiesbaden.de

http://hessen-szene.de/zentren/programm.php5?gid=29

Andri Snær Magnason liest aus seinem Buch »Traumland – Was bleibt, wenn alles verkauft ist?«

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Köln - Montag, 17.10.2011 / 19:00 Uhr / Eintritt frei

Skandinavistik/Universität

Neues Seminargebäude, Albertus-Magnus-Platz, Raum 004, Universitätsstraße 35

Andri Snær Magnason liest aus seinem Buch »Traumland – Was bleibt, wenn alles verkauft ist?«

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ERLANGEN Dienstag, 18. oktober 2011 / 20:00 Uhr

Skandinavistik/Universität, Bismarckstraße 1, Haus B

Andri Snær reads from his work. Two short stories by Andri Snær Magnason are published in a new collection of Icelandic short stories from Steidl verlag: Gaben des Himmels.

Sound recorder Chris Watson came to Iceland record sounds and remember the one year anniversary of the eruption of Eyjafjallajökull. Andri Snær Magnason and other Icelanders are interviewed here in this BBC Radio 4 program. BBC introduction is here:

“12 months after Iceland’s ash cloud grounded global air transport, leading sound recordist Chris Watson reveals the secrets of one of Iceland’s more literary but no less famous volcanoes.

A boyhood Jules Verne fan, Chris will retrace the steps of Professor and Axel Lidenbrock from Reykjavik to his favourite place in the world – Snaefellsjokull – the glacier that contains the passage to the Centre of the Earth in Verne’s 1864 seminal work of Science Fiction. Along the way he’ll encounter communities affected by the 2010 eruptions of Eyjafjallajokull, talking to people who live within this geologically charged environment and meeting artists and musicians who have been inspired by their volcanic landscape.

Tying in with Verne’s theme of geographical exploration, to reach Snaefellsjokull – known to locals simply as Jules Verne’s Volcano – Chris will travel through one of Iceland’s most beautiful National Parks and will use his extraordinary recording techniques to reveal the natural sounds of this unique environment. The sounds of bubbling mud pools and sulphurous springs mirroring Jules Verne’s deep connection to the physical world.

Revealing interviews with leading figures from Iceland’s vibrant arts scene: including the keyboardist of Sigur Ros and best-selling Icelandic author Andri Snaer Magnason will combine with Chris’s recordings as he creates his own sonic adventure in the shadow of Jules Verne’s novel and Iceland’s volcanoes.

Producer: Rose de Larrabeiti
A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4.”

Andri Snær Magnason is in Budapest the 15th and 16th of April. The Story of the Blue Planet has been published in Hungarian. More information here:

http://www.koinonia.ro/?hir=35

The Nordic Library week starts next monday november 7th – with the theme Magiska Norden or – “The magical north”. This is possibly one of the largest single literary events in the world as participating libraries are more than 2000. From the very beginning the week has been opened with a special ceremony; the electric lights are switched off, the candles are lit and the same text is read out loud, at the same moment in all of the participating libraries.

The Blue Planet by Andri Snær Magnason is one of the books chosen for this event. The other books are “The Shamer’s Daugher” by Lene Kaaberbøl and  ”Let the right one in” by John Ajvide Lindqvist.

The Blue Planet has been published in more than 20 languages. It is published in Finland by Pieni Karhu. In Sweden by Kabusa böcker. In Denmark it was published by Gad, in Greenland by Atuakkiorfik. In the Faroe Islands by Bokadeildin. In Norway it is available as an audiobook by Karviland. The book has been translated to Norwegian by a young girl – so those that want to read it can contact me. The Library week reaches to the Baltic regions – so it is available in Estonia and Lithauenian. The play from the story has been staged in two large city theaters in Lahti and Vaasa in Finland.

The Blue Planet by Andri Snær Magnason will be one of three books to be read in the Nordic Library week, 8th – 14th of November 2010, taking place in more than 2000 libraries in all the nordic and many of the Baltic countries. The theme of the Nordic Library week this year is – “The magical north”. The other books in focus this week are from the Edda, and stories by John Lindqvist and Lene Kaaberbøl. The Blue Planet has been published in more than 20 countries and staged in 6 countries.  In the Göteborg Bookfair Andri will attend a seminar the 25th of September. More information in many languages can be found here.

At the screenings of Dreamland at the Toronto HotDocs Film Festival director Andri Snær Magnason gave out some bottles of pure volcanic ash from Eyjafjallajökull. The winners were those with the best questions at the Q&A. The bottles were signed by Jónsi that just performed in Toronto, Alex – Jónsi’s boyfriend and Andri. The idea comes from Dee Shanger – he is a member of the charity group, “Promoters Without Borders”. You can buy ash here at www.nammi.is and support the locals under the ash cloud. At the same site you can also buy Dreamland, the book in Icelandic and English, the film with English subtitles and voiceover and the soundtrack by Valgeir Sigurðsson.

 

February 28. 2010. Andri Snær Magnason’s Acceptance speech – at the Kairos Award Ceremony of the Alfred Toepfer Stiftung F.V.S in Hamburg. 

Dear Ladies and Gentlemen, my Dear Friends, Colleagues and my Dear Family og hæ – krakkar!

I would like to thank Mr. Christoph Stolzl and Mr. Halldór Guðmundsson for their kind words and all of you for this great honour.

I you ask an Icelandic child about Hamburg the first thing that will come to it’s mind is the word game that is often played when travelling in a car: “What are you doing with the money the lady from Hamburg gave to you?”. You must answer but you may not say “yes”, “no”, “black” or “white”. So you say: I bought a car. Was it red? Indeed – it was read? Not blue ?- No… Then you are out.  So it was funny when I told my children we would actually meet the lady from Hamburg. But we had to use the money on something very special – something between yes and no, black and white. Maybe that is the real space where art lives.

But why did I take this path in life? If you ask my psychologist he would say that it is because I have two mothers – they are identical twins – that creates a very good ground for a strange mind and some complexes – a douple öedipus to deal with for example. Despite sharing the same genes and upbringing – they have opposite veiws on everything. That I might have from my mothers, the ability to see things from two correct perspectives and never quite agree with myself. 

If you would ask my brother he would blame it on Lego – I hoped I would never grow up from Lego. But later I found out that Lego is quite like language – you have prefabricated parts but can build a whole world from them. But the cool thing is that language is bigger, more bricks – and endless colors. Even an old language spoken by very few people – like Icelandic, can be used to create almost anything. And then it can be translated to German or Chinese.

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