An exhibition about Guðrún Lárusdóttir opened at the National Library on Wednesday, May 9, 2018.
Guðrún Lárusdóttir was born in Valþjófsstaður in Fljótsdalur on January 8, 1880. Guðrún began writing early, was only 15 years old when she began publishing in Mínerva, a handwritten newspaper. At the same time, she must have translated material for the newspaper Framsókn á Seyðisfjörður. She had translated from Danish the Prophecies of the Savior by twenty years and the following year, Brother Thomas, a novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe, was published, translated from English. She was a constant writer – novels for young people and adults, short stories for children and teenagers, translated material and wrote for newspapers and magazines. Several of her books and stories were translated into Faroese and Danish, among others. Guðrún's novels amounted to twelve, seven of them in book form, the rest as serials in newspapers. A collection of Guðrún's various works was published in 1949, Lárus Sigurbjörnsson, Guðrún's eldest son, prepared it for printing. On the Way Home is one of her best-known books, and Lárus, at her request, made a play of the work in 1939, which was staged by the Reykjavík Theatre Company in 1940. Guðrún was elected a member of the Althing in 1930 and was sitting in parliament when she died at the age of 58 in a car accident on August 20, 1938. The car she was a passenger in crashed into the Tungufljót River, and she drowned along with her two youngest daughters.
Málfríður Finnbogadóttir is the author of the exhibition. The exhibition is part of the Independence Day program and will run until March 4, 2019.
Málfríður Finnbogadóttir tells the story of Guðrún Lárusdóttir here.
Málfríður Finnbogadóttir walks through the exhibition and talks about its individual elements.