The Norwegian Embassy in Iceland awarded the poet Gerdur Kristny the esteemed literary prize named after Alfred Anderson-Rysst. Gerdur received the award for her diverse and sometimes unexpected connections between Icelanders and Norwegians that she has created through her writings.
Among Gerdur Kristny’s books that have been published in Norway is Bloodhoof, which was released in a translation by Knut Ødegård in 2014. The work received significant attention and praise. The poetry book Drápa was published in 2016 and was chosen as one of the books of the year by Aftenposten that same year. Drápa was also on the newspaper Klassekampen’s list of the best books of the year. The poetry book Cow Seal was recently sold to the Cappelen-Damm.
The Alfred Anderson-Rysst Literary Prize was established in 1952 and is awarded annually to an author who writes in Nynorsk or an author who has contributed to cooperation between Iceland and Norway, or between the Faroe Islands and Norway. Among previous winners are Olav H. Hauge (1968), Knut Ødegård (1975), Jon Fosse (1992), Carl Jóhan Jenssen (1997), and Eivör Pálsdóttir (2015).
