Halldór Kiljan Laxness, the only Icelandic Nobel Laureate, ever, wrote a book in 1934-35 called Independent People; had passed from print and nearly memory, until, in 1995, a glowing 15K word tribute appeared in the New York Review of Books. At which point the novel, and Laxness, came very much back into vogue and can (yay humanity!) still be found on the shelves of local B+N and the click-stacks of Amazon, here –

Independent People on Amazon.

Hm. Interesting, for it appears Amazon sells the hardcover for $876. We think we may have one or more of those around somewhere. Tho on Amazon it is a NEW hardcover, which we obviously don’t have. Ours are barely ‘hard’cover at all, more limp and bendable with time and use. As is so much of our lives these days: limp and bendable with time and use. Hey! Snap out of it! Beginning to sound soppy and sad sack as Jay Levine himself. Get a grip, men! Tally ho.

–Eds.