And the Wind Sees All by Guðmundur Andri Thorsson is a story about missed opportunities and tough choices and about tales never told. Recommended!
Location: set in Valeyri, a fictional fishing village north of Reykjavik in Iceland
And the Wind Sees All Synopsis
In this story we hear the voices of an Icelandic fishing village. On a summer’s day a young woman in a polka-dot dress cycles down the main street. Her name is Kata and she is the conductor of the village choir. As she passes, we get a glimpse of the villagers: a priest with a gambling habit, an old brother and sister who have not talked for years, and a sea captain who has lost his son. But perhaps the most interesting story of all belongs to the young woman on the bicycle. Why is she reticent to talk about her past?
Book Review
“The village has its own history, its characters, its legends. The characters and legends have long since gone and all that is left are people and events.” When I came across this quote on page 109 I could only agree with the statement. There is nothing mysterious about this book, nothing otherworldly about the people: they’re simply people with their own flaws and strengths, just like you and I. This is a story about missed opportunities and tough choices, about tales never told and being too late to turn the tide.
You slowly get the know the people of the village better and feel like you’re becoming one of them. It is impressive how the author can make you understand how each character came to be the way they are. None of them are living life to the fullest and many are miserable and not very optimistic about Iceland’s future. This is best illustrated by the sentence “We link our well-being too much to our consumption. We link our lives too much to our existence,” in the chapter When I’m Sixty-four, about a couple that grew apart. Throughout the book, the characters experience a feeling of flying and falling, often unconsciously, but for some slowly leading to understanding and acceptance. They all have someone to live for even if it is only for their shared memories.
Each chapter reads like a circle: the ending thoughts are the same as the beginning and also make appearances throughout the chapter. All chapters can be seen as short stories but they feel like one. A special mention for the opening chapter: I could read it again and again and never tire of it as I follow in the footsteps of the storyteller led by the mist coming in from the sea.
The story takes place in Valeyri, a fictional fishing village north of Reykjavik in Iceland. Via the stories of the villagers we also read about Reykjavik and other places. You can learn a lot about Iceland by reading this book: from the fishing industry as a big source of income and the stockfish drying on wooden racks to the Poles living in a block of flats on the outskirts of town and the differences between Reykjavik and rural areas.
Translated from Icelandic by Bjørg Arnadottir and Andrew Cauthery.
Interested?
You can get your copy of And the Wind Sees All from Amazon.
