Marjun Syderbø Kjelnæs in Icelandic
The novel Marta Marta by author Marjun Syderbø Kjelnæs was released in Iceland today in a publication by Ugla útgáfa. Hjálmar Waag Árnason has translated the book from Faroese into Icelandic.
When she was nineteen years old, Marta spent time at a kibbutz in the Jordan Valley. It was 1993, and she made a conscious effort to process her experiences in the context of the region's political and religious tensions. Now, thirty years later, when an Israeli friend visits her in the Faroe Islands, the Holy Land remains an open wound, more so than ever. Marta wonders why it is so difficult to see the situation for what it truly is.
Marta Marta was originally published by Ungu Føroyar last year and is featured in FarLit’s 2025 Books from the Faroe Islands Catalogue. The Icelandic translation is the first published translation of the book.
Kjelnæs is a versatile award-winning author. She holds a master's degree in Faroese language and literature and is also a trained nurse. Kjelnæs works full-time as a writer. She has published poetry collections, short stories, novels, song lyrics and children’s and YA books, and has also written manuscripts for film and theatre. Her work has seen multiple awards and nominations, including one nomination for the Nordic Council Literature Prize in 2023 and two nominations for the Nordic Council Children and Young People’s Literature Prize in 2013 and 2021 respectively. Kjelnæs’ literature has been translated into various languages, such as English, French, German, Danish, Norwegian – and Icelandic.
