The Icelandic Canadian - 01.09.2003, Qupperneq 43

Vol. 58 #1
THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
41
Hromundur Bordarson exhibits other
worldy strength and determination which
endears him to the locals. The characters
tend to be fatalistic about their circum-
stances in a very stoic, accepting way.
There is an innocence to these stories.
The innocence of the youthful storyteller.
There is also a very observant eye, one
which makes it possible for the storyteller
to describe in detail the surroundings and
the appearance of the people he encounters.
The stories seem like they are render-
ings of real events, because of the way the
errand boy says things, such as “I have
never heard of him since,” and “Mr. and
Mrs. Oswald were always kind to me,” and
“When I arrived in Winnipeg in 1882,
Eyvindur had left to go to the United
States,” and “The week before Whitsunday
in the spring of 1882 I said my last goodbye
to Mooseland Hills, Nova Scotia and set
out for Winnipeg.”
These stories were first published in
the Almanack (1907-10), Timarit (1932-44)
and Vorna2tur a Elgsheidum (1910). This
book is a translation of the second edition
of Vornastur a Elgsheidum, published in
Akureyri in 1970.
Borga Jakobson’s translation is flaw-
less. The English edition reads smoothly,
without any of the usual bumps found in
translation from Icelandic to English. She
has also opted to use the full range of letters
in the Icelandic alphabet, which, for this
reader at least, makes reading the names
easier. In the Introduction, she provides an
account of Johann Magnus’ life. I would
have liked to have had, in addition, a map
of the area of Nova Scotia, so that I could
follow the errand boy's long walks.
Born in the East of Iceland in 1866
(there is a memorial cairn to him near
Egilsstadir), Johann Magnus Bjarnason
emigrated to Nova Scotia with his parents
as a young boy. He attended school there,
but also worked as an errand boy. He later
worked, studied and taught in Winnipeg
and environs and retired to Elfros, SK. He
wrote throughout his life, novels, plays and
stories. It is through his works that many
Icelanders gained their understanding of
the immigrant experience in Canada. On
his seventieth birthday, he received the
Order of the Falcon from the Icelandic
government. He was also named an
Honorary Member of the Icelandic
National League of North America in
recognition of his work.
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