Reykjavík Grapevine - jul. 2022, Side 27

ers as general readers. The style
gives them a sense that reading
should be a journey, and reminds
them that it should be pleasant. I’m
trying to make language learning
fun.”
The best way to learn
Until Karítas’s stories were
published, it was common for
Icelandic learners to be recom-
mended children’s books in order
to be able to practise their read-
ing and comprehension skills.
However, Karítas says that this
approach is not always effective.
“Icelandic children’s books may
be about simple topics, but have
complicated grammatical struc-
tures that children learn early but
second language learners learn
later,” she explains. “Adult learners
might need that simple grammati-
cal linguistic structure, but they're
able to handle different topics.
They have a bigger world view.”
Another issue that Karítas has
seen in the teaching of Icelandic
is how it is almost always deliv-
ered through English, making the
process of learning very difficult
for those who come from different
backgrounds.
“It excludes people from other
language backgrounds who don’t
have strong English, like is the
case for some people from East-
ern Europe or the Middle East,”
she says. “Because of that I wanted
my writing to be inclusive, and the
best way to do that was to have only
Icelandic in the book.”
This includes the prologues of
both Árstíðir and Dagatal, which
are both written by non-native
Icelandic speakers. First Lady Eliza
Reid wrote the forward for Árstíðir,
while the intro for Dagatal was
written by Claudia Ashanie Wilson,
a prominent human rights lawyer.
A more tolerant
approach
Karítas believes that having strong
role models is an oft-overlooked
aspect to encouraging non-native
residents in Iceland that learning
the language is more than possi-
ble. Beyond that, she feels there
needs to be a broader cultural shift
in order for learners to feel more
comfortable in using their newly
adopted language.
“There's a lot of things the
government and employers could
do to facilitate easier access to
Icelandic language courses, reduc-
ing fees or eliminating them,” Karí-
tas says. “But it's also about society
being more tolerant.”
By any means, Karítas’s books
are a step towards making that
tolerance and understanding a
reality. Luckily for learners, she has
no plans to stop writing.
“I would definitely say I’m not
done yet,” she says with a wry smile.
“I have more ideas for stories to
come.”
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Karítas Hrundar Pálsdóttir
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