How Iceland Changed the World: The Big History of a Small Island

Written by Egill Bjarnason

Narrated by Einar Gunn

"[A] joyously peculiar book." -- The New York Times

‘Bjarnason’s intriguing book might be about a cold place, but it’s tailor-made to be read on the beach.’ –New Statesman

The untold story of how one tiny island in the middle of the Atlantic has shaped the world for centuries.

The history of Iceland began 1,200 years ago, when a frustrated Viking captain and his useless navigator ran aground in the middle of the North Atlantic. Suddenly, the island was no longer just a layover for the Arctic tern. Instead, it became a nation whose diplomats and musicians, sailors and soldiers, volcanoes and flowers, quietly altered the globe forever. How Iceland Changed the World takes readers on a tour of history, showing them how Iceland played a pivotal role in events as diverse as the French Revolution, the Moon Landing, and the foundation of Israel. Again and again, one humble nation has found itself at the frontline of historic events, shaping the world as we know it, How Iceland Changed the World paints a lively picture of just how it all happened.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Penguin Audio
• Release date: May 11, 2021
• ISBN: 9780593349564

Egill Bjarnason

Reikiavik (Islandia), 1988. Periodista islandés afincado en Reikiavik, su trabajo ha aparecido en medios como New York Times, National Geographic, Associated Press, Al Jazeera Online, AJ+, Lonely Planet y Hakai Magazine. Como becario Fulbright, realizó un máster en Documentación Social en la Universidad de California en Santa Cruz, donde también trabajó como ayudante de fotografía y estadística durante dos años. En la Universidad de California, no solo aprendió a dominar ciertas habilidades técnicas, sino también la importancia de la planificación, el compromiso y la agilidad. La idea de escribir Cómo Islandia cambió el mundo surgió cuando regresó a Islandia y empezó a trabajar como periodista independiente. Associated Press le propuso investigar y realizar una serie de necrológicas de islandeses influyentes. «Y eso me hizo pensar en el tema de mi libro: cómo Islandia ha influido en la historia del mundo», dijo Bjarnason. Así, pasó ocho años investigando y escribiendo esta obra, creando una narración que es a la vez accesible y compleja. Con el irónico sentido del humor que impregna su escritura, Bjarnason explicó cómo, en un país de solo 360.000 habitantes, los islandeses tienden a estar llenos de autosuficiencia, lo que fomenta la confianza y también la asunción de riesgos. Bjarnason está convencido de que la próxima aparición de Islandia en la escena mundial probablemente se centrará en soluciones medioambientales al cambio climático.

Reviews for How Iceland Changed the World

[vguy_6 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Best book I've managed to find about Iceland. Wide ranging, well informed, amusing, surprising.

[askelmore · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Best for:
Anyone with some interest in world history, or Icelandic history.

In a nutshell:
Author Bjarnason provides a condensed (and at times humorous) history of Iceland.

Worth quoting:
“…claim, respectively, that Icelander live for up to 150 to 300 years — because of the pure climate, or course. Which I’d say is fair reasoning: the human body is organic, and we all know that vegetables and other organic things last longer in the fridge.”

“Few countries are as vulnerable to global warming as Iceland. Glaciers have retreated by about 850 square miles since the end of the nineteenth century…”

Why I chose it:
I have a goal of spending one year living in Iceland. I visited in summer 2018 for four days and absolutely loved it, and have been trying to sort out how to return ever since.

Review:
Aside from transiting through the airport a handful of times, I didn’t get to properly visit Iceland until about four years ago. We stayed outside of Reykjavik, and visited a few of the amazing natural wonders, such as Gullfoss and where the continental plates meet. I’m pretty desperate to visit in the winter and see the Northern Lights. If you read my book reviews, you also know that I’m a fan of the crime novels that the nation has produced. So naturally when I saw this book I figured I would need to read it, and I’m so glad I did.

This is not a book of anecdotes or cute facts to share at parties. But it contains many of them. It’s a chronology that follows many hundreds of years of life on that very small island at the top of Europe, known to many outside of it as the place with the volcano that stopped air travel in 2010, or the place with the men’s football team that knocked England out of the Euros in 2016 (despite having a very tiny pool to draw players from). Maybe it’s known to you as the place where that Will Farrell / Rachel McAdams Eurovision movie was set, or where they filmed parts of Game of Thrones?

However you might know about Iceland, this book will likely teach you things you didn’t know. For example, did you know that a woman from Iceland reached North America about 500 years before that genocidal asshole Columbus? Or that Iceland played a role in the creation of Israel? That it featured in the space race and the Cold War?

Bjarnason is a great writer, making history interesting. I was able to picture every era and place he described, and I chuckled quite a few times as he wove his factual accounts with a little bit of humor. Books like this can be tricky to pull off, but he does it and does it well.

Recommend to a Friend / Keep / Donate it / Toss it:
Recommend and Keep

[breic-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Bjarnason does a good job putting the history of Iceland in the context of world history. Still, in picking this book I think I overestimated my interest in Iceland.

> unlike Hawaii, Iceland is located on a plate boundary sitting atop the fissure separating the Eurasian and the North American tectonic plates. These plate boundaries are constantly moving apart—2.5 centimeters per year—which causes volcanic activity in addition to the hot spot. Hence, Iceland is six times the size of Hawaii, with five times the number of active volcanoes.

> Iceland qualified for Marshall Plan aid after the war despite having gained two airports, hundreds of barracks to house the urban poor, and multiple bridges precisely because of the war. The Americans were, to many, a delightful alternative to Danish influence in the country, and in 1944 the country voted for complete independence.