Wasteland with Words. A Social History of Iceland (London: Reaktion Books, 2010). 272 pages.
The book is written as an attempt to explain how Icelandic culture was formed through a long process of literary practice from the beginning of the settlement in the ninth century up to modern times. It is also an analyses of a island culture which successfully takes the steps into the twentieth century without loosing its cultural identity. That success story ends with the meltdown of the banking-, economic-, and the political system in 2008. The focus of the book is on the people of Iceland, how they managed to survive in a relatively hostile environment thorough the centuries and become, for a while, one of the wealthiest countries in the world. The resent sequence of events in 2008 are explained in the light of the historical development in Iceland. This is an experiment in social- and/or microhistorical studies, in which he strives to deal with a long period of time using the methods of microhistory.
See an introduction from the publisher:
Iceland appears to many a country shrouded in mystery and legend, and marked by contradiction: a part of Europe, and yet separated from it by the Atlantic Ocean; seemingly inhospitable, and yet home to more than 300,000 souls.
Wasteland with Words explores the evolution and transformation of Icelandic society and culture, investigating the literary and historical factors that created the rich cultural heritage enjoyed by Icelanders today. Sigurdur Gylfi Magnússon presents a wide-ranging and detailed analysis of the island’s history, examining how a nineteenth-century economy based on the industries of fishing and agriculture – one of the poorest in Europe – grew to become a disproportionately large economic power in the late twentieth century, while retaining its strong sense of cultural identity. The recent economic and political collapse of the country is also assessed, in the light of the historical development of the island. With a focus on the lives of individual Icelanders throughout, the book seeks to chart the vast changes in this country’s history through the impact and effect on the Icelandic people themselves.
Wasteland with Words is a comprehensive study of the island’s social and historical development, from tiny fishing settlements to a global economic power. It will appeal to anyone interested in or studying this most enigmatic of islands, and also to those interested in cultural and social history as a whole.