News
Sixty Icelandic books for publication in Germany
The Sagenhaftes Island/Fabulous Iceland project has in recent months been systematically working to facilitate the publication of Icelandic books on the German market, in collaboration with Icelandic publishers and writers
Already it is clear that contracts have been concluded, or binding agreements made, on the publication of sixty Icelandic books in the period from the autumn of 2010 to the autumn of 2011. Many of Germany's leading publishers, such as Suhrkamp Verlag and Fischer Verlag, will participate in this project, and a total of 35 German publishers are known to be planning publication of Icelandic works over that period.
About half the books to be published in Germany are fiction: novels or collections of short stories. In addition fourteen scholarly works are to be published, including books on Icelandic history and literary history, plus five volumes of poetry, three children's books, and eight volumes of Old Icelandic sagas.
But this is far from being a comprehensive list, as a number of German publishing houses are considering more Icelandic books for publication, so many more titles are likely to be added to their lists in the near future.
“This is an indication of a remarkable interest in the Frankfurt Book Fair's Guest of Honour, at this early stage of the preparation,” comments Simone Bühler, a spokesperson for the Book Fair. This keen interest may be attributed to several factors: many Icelandic writers are already well-established in Germany; Germans have long been interested in Iceland and its culture; and Iceland's role as Guest of Honour at the 2011 Frankfurt Book Fair has attracted the attention of publishers.