The Daily Feather — No Man (or Country) Is an Island

In literary circles, Iceland punches far above its weight on the world stage. The tiny island nation has more writers per capita than anywhere else, with one in ten Icelanders publishing a book in their lifetimes, according to the Guinness Book of World Records. Arguably, the highest regarded Icelandic author is Halldór Laxness, winner of the 1955 Nobel Prize in Literature. In QI’s estimation, his novel, Independent People, is the greatest book you’ve (probably) never read. The plot revolves around stubborn sheep farmer Bjartur, whose sole goal in life is to be self-sufficient. Refusing to bend to any will in pursuit of his goal, while pure grit lifts him from poverty, pride and callousness threaten to destroy the relationships he prizes most, especially that with his daughter, Asta. Equally strong-willed and the sole soul capable of piercing her father’s thick outer shell to reveal his softer side, she and her father are all too frequently at odds. The novel’s central conflict centers on whether their contentiousness can be reconciled before it’s too late. American novelist Jane Smiley says she “can’t imagine any greater delight than coming toIndependent People for the first time.” We wholeheartedly concur.

In today’s globalized economy, no country can boast independence from the rest of the world. As with the tango, it takes two to trade. Last week’s release of the Census Bureau’s advance goods trade data for October saw both exports and imports sharply reverse after rising steadily through 2024.