Reviewer: Sharon Brunner
Helen Mitsios’ (Editor) “Out of the Blue: New Short Fiction from Iceland” offers a variety of the island’s personal realities concerning life, love, and family. Twenty Icelandic Authors wrote the stories, which are filled with mystery and culture. The stories took place in Iceland and other parts of the world, such as Denmark. The main characters were from Iceland. The island reputedly has a fairy-tale charm, and many of its inhabitants have explored the world of literature. It has a Nordic past complete with imagined ghosts, trolls, werewolves, and other creatures of Icelandic mythology. This book portrayed a variety of people and described their lives, such as a person who mowed grass, one who explored the world of poetry, and met a talented writer with insatiable sexual desire, and a CEO who changed his identity completely. This book reveals many realities of people who expand their mindsets from the mundane into a series of vivid dreams.
Primary themes of human nature were revealed throughout the book, such as love, hate, identity, jealousy, revenge, betrayal, and honor. One of the stories in the book included a father of a fragile girl who provided her with a happy experience of viewing whales on her last day before her fateful experience with a killer whale. The same man loathed his ex-wife, who had made her current husband miserable. A boyfriend disappeared while on vacation with his girlfriend in another story and then showed up as if nothing had happened. An art critic became jealous when her beau became disinterested in her. In the end, she had the last laugh. A mother and son got lost in a foreign land, and she trusted complete strangers to bring her to safety. Another story included a relationship that, after a period of time, became quite comfortable and predictable. A mysterious imaginary black dog appeared when least expected. Many human traits and characteristics, good and bad, were portrayed throughout the book in a sensational and thought-provoking manner.
The content of this book relates to my life in several ways. For example, I am in a very comfortable relationship with my current spouse. We have similar as well as different interests and enjoy spending time together. In the story “Afternoon by the Pacific Ocean” a couple of women enjoy baking and eating bread, and they settle down to a nice evening together. I have reinvented myself like the CEO in the last chapter. He explored his interests and decided to learn Latin, study astronomy, and bought approximately 3,000 books. I can certainly relate to being a bibliophile and have changed my identity completely from a federal reviewer, education coordinator, and professor to a writer. People usually evolve into different people as they age.
The book that came to mind while reading this book was “Icelandic Folktales and Legends” by Jacqueline Simpson, published in 1972. It focused on supernatural beings such as elves, ghosts, trolls, and mermen, which were rooted in Iceland’s mysterious landscape. The author provided expert commentary about beliefs, hardships and humor associated with Icelandic life. The stories were reflected in the harsh Icelandic environment, consisting of small farms with dangerous, dark, and mountainous scenery. The 1991 film “Children of Nature” came to mind when reading this book. After Thorgeir found himself unsatisfied with his life in a Reykjavik nursing home, he reconnects with Stella. They steal a jeep to return to their home in northwestern Iceland. Some of the stories in this book involve traveling and escaping unhappy situations. One of the main themes in the film was how older people cannot accept modernization, and the film brought to life the bond between humanity and nature. It was deeply moving and depicted death and life.
I recommend Out of the Blue: New Short Fiction from Iceland for its life lessons, because of its realistic personal relationship struggles, and for its reveal of the people of Iceland’s way of life. A man who treated women like objects ended up alone and penniless. A couple’s lives centered around music. He was a loner, and she ended up being more sociable. She played an electric guitar, and he played an acoustic guitar. She went away to attend a university and married someone else. Their personalities did not mesh well. Why would a woman trust strange men who appeared to be untrustworthy while lost in a foreign country? She ended up back with her husband, who loved her immensely. The Icelandic authors brought to life a deep venture into Iceland’s personal realities and dream-like imaginations.
Title: Out of the Blue: New Short Fiction from Iceland
Author: Helen Mitsios (Editor)
