Night Watch (1990)
1990
193 pages
Fiction
Modern Classics
Nina appears to be a successful modern woman – sophisticated, intelligent, and confident. But her success is overshadowed by doubt and despair. As she sits at her mother’s deathbed, perennial questions arise in her mind. Fragments of present and past realities are woven together in the course of the story, which carries a poignant message for our times.
“The novel is innovative, but retains a poetic beauty … Frida A. Sigurdardottir describes in a lyrical style our need for history and narratives, and exposes the difficulty of achieving an unequivocal expression of life and art.” AWARD COMMITTEE FOR THE NODIC COUNCIL’S LITERARY PRIZE 1992
Reviews
“[Night Watch] is a book that has no equal in recent Icelandic literature.”
MORGUNBLADID DAILY
“The reader follows the narrow path that the author has cleared – captivated by the threat of mortal danger, enthralled by the genius, understanding and knowledge that the author possesses and transmits so plainly and unpretentiously.”
MORGUNBLADID DAILY
“Beautiful, terrifying and enchanting family saga about six generations of Icelandic women.”
BERLINGSKE TIDENDE, DENMARK
“... this really is a first-class novel, dealing with the role of women in Iceland over the years but also how we come to terms with our family and our past as well as with who we think we are. ... a really excellent novel, which tells of the three night vigil of Nina, who is watching her mother die. While she is watching, she thinks of her own life and her relationships with her family and lovers but, more particularly, she thinks of her forebears, primarily the female ones. ... Sigurdardottir writes superbly and tells her stories very well ...”
THEMODERNNOVELBLOG.COM
“The novels of Frida A. Sigurdardottir ... could easilly be described as detailed “life writings” which are told from the point of view of main characters who have reached a turning point in their lives, look back and try to reflect upon their lives as a whole. ... Night Watch is the story of four generations of women, this is a story that emphasises the lives of women, female values, female solidarity and discord.”
SOFFIA AUDUR BIRGISDOTTIR, BOKMENNTIR.IS
“The book does not attempt to give the illusion that we can fully understand our ancestors’ reality: it questions while also being experimental. In this book, Frida A. Sigurdardottir lyrically describes our need for history and narrates and illustrates how difficult it is to trace a single truth about life and art.”
ALLTHINGSNORDIC.COM
Rights Sold
FinlandGummerus
NorwayEmilia
SwedenRabén/Prisma/Arleskar
DenmarkRhodos
UKMare’s Nest
Germany/Austria/SwitzerlandSteidl Verlag/Saga Verlag
LithuaniaLeidykla Vaga
Czech RepublicMladá Fronta/Praha
ChinaChina Radio International Press