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Iceland

READING AND TRAVEL GUIDE

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Books for

With an Essential Reading Package featuring Independent People, a Longitude favorite.

Essential Reading

Item EXICL09. Buy these 4 items as a set for $73 including shipping, 15% off the retail price.
With free shipping on anything else you order.

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Independent People, An Epic

Independent People, An Epic

by Halldor Laxness

  • LITERATURE
  • 1997
  • PAPER
  • 480 PAGES
  • FAVORITE

Rich in local color, this great mock-epic by the Icelandic Nobel Prize-winner features the indelible Bjartur of Summerhouses, a hard-headed, independent-minded sheep farmer. (ICL01, $16.95)

Ring of Seasons, Iceland, Its Culture and History

Ring of Seasons, Iceland, Its Culture and History

by Terry G. Lacy

  • HISTORY
  • 1998
  • PAPER
  • 332 PAGES
  • COMING IN MAY

A longtime resident of Reykjavik, Lacy weaves tales of family life, anecdote, lore and history into this illuminating personal portrait of Iceland. (ICL03, $26.95)

Insight Guide Iceland

Insight Guide Iceland

by Insight Guides

  • GUIDEBOOK
  • 2011
  • PAPER
  • 360 PAGES

With wonderful photographs, maps and essays. (ICL04, $22.99)

Iceland Adventure Map

Iceland Adventure Map

by National Geographic Society

  • 2011
  • MAP

A detailed, double-sided traveler's map at a scale of 1:465,000 by National Geographic. (ICL05, $11.95)

 
Lonely Planet Iceland

Lonely Planet Iceland


by Deanna Swaney

  • GUIDEBOOK
  • 2013
  • PAPER
  • 360 PAGES
  • COMING IN JUNE

This concise guide to Iceland includes short essays on history, culture and attractions and plenty of practical travel information. (ICL06, $25.99)

Penguin Historical Atlas of the Vikings

Penguin Historical Atlas of the Vikings


by John Haywood

  • HISTORY
  • 1995
  • PAPER
  • 144 PAGES

The history of the Vikings told through a series of innovative maps and excellent photographs. This book traces the route of the 9th-century Viking merchants and explorers throughout Europe and on to the New World. (VIK02, $22.00)

The Vikings, Lords of the Seas

The Vikings, Lords of the Seas


by Yves Cohat

  • HISTORY
  • 2010
  • PAPER
  • 175 PAGES

An indispensable reference that fits in your pocket, this slim volume is packed with maps, archival photographs and illustrations. It tells of the Norse homeland, discoveries and settlements, and features a useful chronology and excerpts from the Viking Sagas. Part of the "Discoveries" series. (VIK01, $15.95)

Iceland, Land of the Sagas

Iceland, Land of the Sagas


by Jon Krakauer | David Roberts

  • TRAVEL NARRATIVE
  • 1998
  • PAPER
  • 160 PAGES

Krakauer and colleague David Roberts hike and climb around Iceland in this classic travel narrative, reissued as a paperback and featuring Krakauer's color photographs. The book interweaves the natural and cultural history of the island with the authors' own adventures. (ICL07, $24.00)

Last Places, A Journey in the North

Last Places, A Journey in the North


by Lawrence Millman | Paul Theroux

  • TRAVEL NARRATIVE
  • 2000
  • PAPER
  • 242 PAGES

Millman explores the culture and history of the Faroes, Iceland and Greenland in this often-hilarious account of his travels in the wake of the ancient Vikings. (ARC54, $15.95)

Letters from Iceland

Letters from Iceland


by W.H. Auden

  • TRAVEL NARRATIVE
  • 2002
  • PAPER
  • 256 PAGES

Written with fellow poet Louis MacNiece, this quirky, under-appreciated masterpiece captures the spirit of Iceland, its people and landscapes. (ICL49, $24.95)

Hrafnkel's Saga and Other Icelandic Stories

Hrafnkel's Saga and Other Icelandic Stories


by Herman Palsson

  • LITERATURE
  • 1971
  • PAPER
  • 137 PAGES

This collection of the most famous of Icelandic sagas includes stories with titles like Thorstein the Staff-Struck and Ale Hood. Dating from the 12th century, these tales vividly recreate the society of medieval Iceland. (ICL31, $14.00)

Jar City

Jar City


by Arnaldur Indridason

  • MYSTERY
  • 2006
  • PAPER
  • 288 PAGES

Indridason's first moody police procedural finds Reykjavik detective Erlendur Sveinsson investigating the brutal murder of a lonely pensioner, and the man's connection to the deaths of a number of young women. Made into a darkly superb film. (ICL27, $15.00)

The Sagas of Icelanders

The Sagas of Icelanders


by Jane Smiley | Robert Kellog

  • LITERATURE
  • 2000
  • PAPER
  • 544 PAGES

Nine sagas and six tales composed between the years 1000 and 1500, including an account of Leif Eriksson's voyage to North America, all newly translated. With an introduction by Jane Smiley. (ICL13, $26.00)

A Naturalist's Guide to the Arctic

A Naturalist's Guide to the Arctic


by E.C. Pielou

  • NATURAL HISTORY
  • 1994
  • PAPER
  • 327 PAGES

Our best-selling book on the Arctic, this guide covers the geography and climate, plants, birds and wildlife of the circumpolar north. (ARC03, $22.00)

Iceland

Iceland


by Einar Mar Jonsson | Guillaume Cannat | Patrick Desgraupes

  • NATURAL HISTORY
  • 2005
  • HARD COVER
  • 180 PAGES

The French landscape photographer Desgraupes captures the natural beauty of Iceland in 175 color-saturated photographs. (ICL38, $45.00)

The Control of Nature

The Control of Nature


by John McPhee

  • NATURAL HISTORY
  • 1989
  • PAPER
  • 272 PAGES

In the classic McPhee tradition, these sparkling essays explore our generally feeble attempts to combat all-powerful nature, including valient efforts by Icelanders to control the flow of a volcano across the harbor at Heimaey in the Westman Islands. (NAT01, $16.00)

Volcanoes, Fire From the Earth

Volcanoes, Fire From the Earth


by Maurice Krafft

  • NATURAL HISTORY
  • 1993
  • PAPER
  • 175 PAGES
  • HARD TO FIND ELSEWHERE

By the great French volcanologist (who died on the job on Mount Unzen in Japan in 1992), this pocket guide features hundreds of full-color paintings and traces the study of volcanoes from early myth and legend to modern science. (GEO06, $15.95)

Birds of Europe

Birds of Europe


by Lars Svensson

  • FIELD GUIDE
  • 2010
  • PAPER
  • 416 PAGES
  • FAVORITE

Featuring 3,500 glorious paintings by Killian Mullarney and Dan Zetterstrom, the second revised edition of this exquisite guide has been brought up to date with revised text and maps. (FG47, $29.95)

The Arctic, A Guide to Coastal Wildlife

The Arctic, A Guide to Coastal Wildlife


by Tony Soper

  • FIELD GUIDE
  • 2012
  • PAPER
  • 160 PAGES

An essential handbook for the ship-based traveler, this compact guide to the plants, marine mammals and birds of the circumpolar north features handsome watercolor illustrations and lively text. This new edition includes a section on the Bering Sea. (ARC85, $23.99)

More Recommendations

Here are some other groups of books that might be of interest

Longitude provides recommended reading for travelers in partnership with the leading tour operators and travel programs for hundreds of destinations worldwide. We've got the classic, new and hard-to-find books and maps to help you get the most out of your adventures.