''The Fish Can Sing'' () is a 1957 novel by Icelandic author

Halldór Laxness Halldór Kiljan Laxness (; born Halldór Guðjónsson; 23 April 1902 – 8 February 1998) was an Icelandic writer and winner of the 1955 Nobel Prize in Literature. He wrote novels, poetry, newspaper articles, essays, plays, travelogues and sh ...

, who was awarded the

Nobel Prize in Literature The Nobel Prize in Literature, here meaning ''for'' Literature (), is a Swedish literature prize that is awarded annually, since 1901, to an author from any country who has, in the words of the will of Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel, "in ...

in 1955.

Plot summary

The novel is set at the start of the twentieth century and deals with the orphaned boy Álfgrímur, his adoptive grandparents, and the small, tolerant community of misfits and eccentrics they gather around them at Brekkukot, their cottage in

Reykjavík Reykjavík is the Capital city, capital and largest city in Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland on the southern shore of Faxaflói, the Faxaflói Bay. With a latitude of 64°08′ N, the city is List of northernmost items, the worl ...

. As Álfgrímur begins to encounter the minor politicians, businessmen and social-climbers of the growing town of Reykjavík he starts to question his future as a fisherman's grandson, and is increasingly fascinated by Garðar Hólm, the celebrated Icelandic "world singer" whose sporadic returns to Iceland encourage Álfgrímur to pursue his own personal goals of self-expression. He discovers the true value of his boyhood experiences only as he sets out on a path that will take him away from them forever.

Trivia

The boy's name, Álfgrímur, is explained in the book as a compound of Álf (elf) and grímur (a poetic word for 'night') meaning 'he who spends the night with the elves'. The original name of the book in Icelandic is ''Brekkukotsannáll'' (Annals of Brekkukot). The book also had an admirable young lady named Blær, which is why Björk Eiðsdóttir chose this name for her daughter born in 1997, although it was officially a masculine name. In 2013, Björk and Blær won a court case for the right to use this name—see also Icelandic Naming Committee#Blær Bjarkardóttir Rúnarsdóttir

Translations

* The book was translated into Georgian as თევზის კონცერტი (''Tevzis k'ontsert'i'') by Rusudan Ghvinepadse and Manana Paitchadse.ლაქსნესი, ჰ, კ. (2017). ''თევზის კონცერტი''. თბილისი: ბაკურ სულაკაურის გამომცემლობა. .

References

1957 Icelandic novels Icelandic novels Novels by Halldór Laxness Novels set in Iceland Icelandic-language novels Novels about orphans Künstlerroman {{1950s-bildungsroman-stub