Description

‘Immediate, intimate and never less than captivating’ – Guardian

From the bestselling author of Burial Rites comes an inspirational memoir about her travels in Iceland, an extraordinary country that has forged a nation of storytellers.

When she was seventeen years old, Hannah Kent travelled to Iceland from Australia. She’d never seen snow before, didn’t speak a word of Icelandic. All she knew was that she wanted to have an experience – to soak up something of the world.

Soon she found herself isolated in a remote part of Iceland in a dark winter. It was a gruelling experience, but she quickly fell in love with the country: with its brutally beautiful landscapes and with its people. On returning home, with images of Iceland’s towering glaciers and windswept tundras in her dreams, Hannah began to write.

Now, as a mother and a wife, she looks back to that extraordinary year in Iceland.

‘[A] gripping memoir . . . lyrically written . . . riveting’ – The Sunday Times

Praise for Burial Rites:

‘Outstanding’ – Madeline Miller
‘Gripping, intriguing and unique’ – Kate Mosse
‘One of the best Scandinavian crime novels I’ve read’ – Independent
‘Remarkable’ – The Sunday Times
‘A must-read’ – Grazia

Publisher Review

Iceland feels personified in this memoir . . . immediate, intimate and never less than captivating . . . [a] behind-the-scenes view of the artist at work. . . . an absorbing memoir that will appeal to existing readers of Kent’s work, and will undoubtedly see new ones seek out her earlier writing in all its mystery and glory * Guardian Australia * A lovely memoir about the curious path she took to becoming a writer . . . [a] tender account of how Iceland captivated her and forged her literary career * The Booklist * This memoir of Kent’s visit to Iceland as a teen details the source of her connection and her relationship with a country that now fetes her . . . Basking in the Northern Lights, she wonders if she can fit light on to paper * SA Weekend * Kent has drawn on her talent for lyrical language and a box full of diaries, notebooks and correspondence to create evocative descriptions of Iceland. She immerses readers in the culture * Saturday Age * [Hannah Kent] still hears from Icelanders who share stories they think might inspire her . . . which makes [her] wonder: what would have happened if she’d been sent on exchange somewhere else? * The Big Issue * [Always Home, Always Homesick] is at least as lovely as Burial Rites, and maybe more gorgeous still, for it features Kent not as she is now – wife, mother, celebrated writer – but as a shy schoolgirl who wanted nothing so much as to know the world, and maybe one day write about it * The Weekend Australian *