I had the pleasure of sitting down with Andri Snær Magnason, an award winning writer of novels, poetry, plays and films. He is also a very active environmental activist. We chatted about his fascinating literary career, how he chooses topics to write about, and so much more.

Because we talked for about one hour and forty five minutes, I decided to break up the episode into two parts. You’ll hear me say in the beginning that I want to speak with Andri about Reykjavík being a UNESCO City of Literature. However, we don’t get to that until the second part because he had so many interesting stories to tell. Some of them include J.R.R. Tolkein, J. Robert Oppenheimer, and the Codex Regius, just to name a few.

Also, I am excited to announce that Andri’s latest book, The Casket of Time has been published in English and is now available for your reading pleasure. It is a young adult Sci-fi novel that weaves together time travel and an environmental crisis for what looks like a captivating read.

I’ve been reading The Story of the Blue Planet, another one of his books. When I am finished with that one I’m looking forward to diving into the one above and his other books.

Below is a picture of the Bónus supermarket pig that Andri and I talk about during the interview.

1. You come from a family of doctors and nurses. What made you become interested in literature and in becoming a writer?

2. What inspires you to write your poetry and books?

3. The Icelandic Sagas and many other literary works from various authors, including yourself, have intrigued people all over the world. Why do you think people find Icelandic literature to be so fascinating?

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I hope you enjoyed listening to this interview. I release a new podcast episode every week. Make sure you are subscribed to the All Things Iceland podcast

Þakka þér kærlega fyrir að hlusta (og að lesa) og sjáumst fljótlega

Thank you kindly for listening (and reading) and see you soon!