Old story #61185
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An old story. A novel by Kristín Sigfúsdóttir.
Kristín Sigfúsdóttir was born on July 13, 1876, in Helgastöðir, Saurbæjarhreppur, Eyjafjörður, and grew up there. Her parents were poor farmers who could not afford to send their children to school, so Kristín was only homeschooled. Kristín wrote her memoirs up until her confirmation age, and they reveal how much she was interested in literature and poetry from a young age.
Kristín read all the books she could get her hands on and began composing poetry early. Like many women at that time, she wrote her poems secretly. In her youth, Kristín wrote plays that she rehearsed for performances in the countryside, and people came from all over to see them. These plays are now all lost because Kristín burned the manuscripts after the performances.
In 1901, Kristín married her countryman Pálmi Jóhannesson and they started farming in Eyjafjörður. For the most part, they lived in Kálfagerði, which is where she was sometimes known. When Kristín got married, she was determined to give up all her poetic endeavors and try to establish herself as a farmer. As it turned out, the following years did not leave much time for writing. Kristín and Pálmi had six children in fourteen years, and during that time Kristín only wrote folk poems and occasional verses. It was not until the children were grown that she began writing again in earnest. It began with the story "Digra Gudda" which she wrote at the insistence of her son, who was in need of material for a country newspaper that young people in the countryside handwritten and circulated. This was in the late 1920s and from then on Kristín began to write more stories.
Kristín wrote the play Mother-in-Law in 1920. It premiered at Saurbær in Saurbæjarhrep early in 1923 and then performed at Þverá in Öngulstaðahrep and in Akureyri. The play was well received everywhere and the reception led to its publication in book form in the autumn of 1923. It was Kristín's first book, but in the following years two novels, a collection of short stories and two other plays were published.
Kristín became a nationally known and popular writer. At first, she was well received by reviewers, who were particularly impressed by the fact that the author was a poor and uneducated peasant woman. This reception encouraged her to continue writing, but in a letter to Jón úr Vör she writes: "It did not escape me, however, that the reviews were written out of pity for my difficult situation." Over time, the reviews of Kristín's work became harsher and more unforgiving, and in 1927, Steindór Sigurðsson wrote in a review of the novel Gesti in Nýjar kvödvákur XX: "I am afraid that Kristín Sigfúsdóttir has begun to write too much." These words from the reviewer are most puzzling, because in the same review he writes that "the limit of genius [is] marked on every page." Whether it was the referee's words or something else, Kristín Sigfúsdóttir's writing career took a break after her second novel, Gömul saga, was published in two volumes in 1927 and 1928. It was not until ten years later that she resumed writing and wrote the play Melkorku, but it reportedly progressed slowly and poorly. The play first appeared in her collection of works, which was published in three volumes in 1949-1951.
In addition to the books, Kristín's stories were published widely in magazines, and she wrote a number of plays that never made it to print. (www.skald.is)
Kristín Sigfúsdóttir was born on July 13, 1876, in Helgastöðir, Saurbæjarhreppur, Eyjafjörður, and grew up there. Her parents were poor farmers who could not afford to send their children to school, so Kristín was only homeschooled. Kristín wrote her memoirs up until her confirmation age, and they reveal how much she was interested in literature and poetry from a young age.
Kristín read all the books she could get her hands on and began composing poetry early. Like many women at that time, she wrote her poems secretly. In her youth, Kristín wrote plays that she rehearsed for performances in the countryside, and people came from all over to see them. These plays are now all lost because Kristín burned the manuscripts after the performances.
In 1901, Kristín married her countryman Pálmi Jóhannesson and they started farming in Eyjafjörður. For the most part, they lived in Kálfagerði, which is where she was sometimes known. When Kristín got married, she was determined to give up all her poetic endeavors and try to establish herself as a farmer. As it turned out, the following years did not leave much time for writing. Kristín and Pálmi had six children in fourteen years, and during that time Kristín only wrote folk poems and occasional verses. It was not until the children were grown that she began writing again in earnest. It began with the story "Digra Gudda" which she wrote at the insistence of her son, who was in need of material for a country newspaper that young people in the countryside handwritten and circulated. This was in the late 1920s and from then on Kristín began to write more stories.
Kristín wrote the play Mother-in-Law in 1920. It premiered at Saurbær in Saurbæjarhrep early in 1923 and then performed at Þverá in Öngulstaðahrep and in Akureyri. The play was well received everywhere and the reception led to its publication in book form in the autumn of 1923. It was Kristín's first book, but in the following years two novels, a collection of short stories and two other plays were published.
Kristín became a nationally known and popular writer. At first, she was well received by reviewers, who were particularly impressed by the fact that the author was a poor and uneducated peasant woman. This reception encouraged her to continue writing, but in a letter to Jón úr Vör she writes: "It did not escape me, however, that the reviews were written out of pity for my difficult situation." Over time, the reviews of Kristín's work became harsher and more unforgiving, and in 1927, Steindór Sigurðsson wrote in a review of the novel Gesti in Nýjar kvödvákur XX: "I am afraid that Kristín Sigfúsdóttir has begun to write too much." These words from the reviewer are most puzzling, because in the same review he writes that "the limit of genius [is] marked on every page." Whether it was the referee's words or something else, Kristín Sigfúsdóttir's writing career took a break after her second novel, Gömul saga, was published in two volumes in 1927 and 1928. It was not until ten years later that she resumed writing and wrote the play Melkorku, but it reportedly progressed slowly and poorly. The play first appeared in her collection of works, which was published in three volumes in 1949-1951.
In addition to the books, Kristín's stories were published widely in magazines, and she wrote a number of plays that never made it to print. (www.skald.is)