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The Pirate (2012)
Author: Jon Gnarr
“I was afraid of the loneliness, of always being alone and alienated, that no one would understand me or love me. Will I always be weird? Will I always be like an alien from another planet?”
The ginger haired boy Jon is standing at crossroads as he finishes elementary school and feels like a total outcast in society. Here he talks freely of his troubles and traumas in the Icelandic educational system, describes the cruel bullying he suffered at school, his period as a punk rock kid, ups and downs on the job market – and a disastrous career as a rock singer. But there is light at the tunnel; hope comes in the guise of Nina Hagen, Johnny Rotten, and Count Krapotkin – punk rock and anarchy bring the promise of a better and more exciting life.
Even though the narrative is full of humour, it is both sincere and heartbreaking as the author’s journey through the Icelandic educational system was painful and full of conflict – both physically
and mentally.
• Nominated for the DV Cultural Prize for Literature 2012
“He’s a bit of a genius, that Jon Gnarr.” KILJAN, NATIONAL TV