Dusk is a stirring book, rich with powerful and unexpected nature imagery. From the bright perspective of the child delighted by the white of a timeless mountain we are taken to the uncertainties and transitions of our time. A magnificent and gripping love letter to the land and glacier.

Steinunn Sigurdardottir is one of Iceland’s foremost poets, who has consistently maintained a direct and urgent conversation with the passing times through her poetry and writing. Dusk is her tenth book of poetry.

• Nominated for the Icelandic Literary Prize 2019

R E V I E W S

“One poetry book that had me spellbound and knocked the breath out of me was Dusk – written by the queen of Icelandic poetry … each poem is a masterpiece …”
HALLGRIMUR HELGASON, STUNDIN

FOUR STARS OUT OF FIVE
“A vigourous and vivid expression of the most urgent crisis of our times.”
OLINA K THORVARDARDOTTIR, FRETTABLADID DAILY

“Steinunn has a lot on her mind in her tenth poetry book, and she does not mince her words in these powerful and impressive poems. Many of them carry a dire criticism of the irresponsible behaviour of the human species towards the earth. This state of things is illustrated by the receding glacier, mourned by the poetess.”
EINAR FALUR INGOLFSSON, MORGUNBLADID DAILY

“Melancholy is … the basic melody sounding loud and clear in this latest poetry book by Steinunn, along with the anguish caused by what seems unavoidable: the glacier is melting because of a man-made global warming. Dusk may be described as a poem of grief, an elegy, as the rules applying to such literature seem apparent here, even though the “metrics” are modern and, above all, bear the mark of the poetess Steinunn …

In Dusk, a poetess speaks, one who wonders about life, death, and a cruel destiny. The poetess grieves the loss – our collective loss. However, Dusk, unlike the classical elegy, does not point out to any consolation in the end. On the contrary, the grieving poetess gives vent to her anger, as the cause of the collapse is to be found among men, greedy and careless, causing the global warming that will be the death of the “light-blue planet.” We know that in Dusk, Steinunn Sigurðardóttir is writing about the glacier Vatnajökull, its past, its present and the terrifying future and destruction. This subject is laced with autobiographical inserts, as the glacier is part and parcel of her life and memories ever since she was a child. …

The eulogy Dusk is a brilliant summit of the glacier poetry written by Steinunn Sigurðardóttir. Indeed, in the first poem of her first poetry book, Sífellur (1969), she mentioned the white mountain, and then time and time again in many a poem and novel. Even though the poetess claims not to know the art of “shouting a spell” there is a great deal of magic contained in this poetry, it may well be described as a kind of “Seeress Prophecy” even though there is little hope of the earth growing green, risen anew from the ocean.”
SOFFIA AUDUR BIRGISDOTTIR, STUNDIN

“ … a new view of the world, of its beauty and vulnerability …”
ELKE HEIDENREICH, SÜDDEUTSCHE ZEITUNG