BORGARBÓKASAFNIÐ
Valgeir Gestsson, a specialist at Grófin City Library, is an avid music lover with an insatiable curiosity for all kinds of subjects. Asked to recommend something to take on holiday, he suggests a handful of summery albums, along with Bill Bryson's A Short History of Nearly Everything.
A Short History of Nearly Everything is quite a substantial work of non-fiction and perhaps not the first book most people would think to pack for a summer holiday. Yet it's the one you recommend?
"Absolutely," Valli replies with a grin. "It's simply a brilliant and hugely entertaining book about the history of science." He says Bryson approaches the subject in a fascinating way, telling the stories of the people behind scientific discoveries and the curious ideas they pursued in every corner of the scientific world. "I previously read his book about William Shakespeare, and I just love his voice as a writer."
Valli adds that the Icelandic edition of A Short History of Nearly Everything is a large, beautifully produced hardcover packed with illustrations. On second thought, he laughs, he'd probably recommend taking the original English-language paperback on holiday instead. Fortunately, that edition is also available at Reykjavík City Library.
Are you generally drawn to non-fiction?
"Yes," he says. "I probably read non-fiction and fiction in roughly equal measure, if anything, I read a bit more non-fiction." After studying literature at the University of Iceland, he explains, he simply reached a point where he'd had his fill of novels and endless literary interpretations. He found himself wanting something more concrete, so he immersed himself in popular science books, particularly on physics and astronomy, devouring everything by Carl Sagan, John Gribbin and Stephen Hawking.
"Then a friend lent me a book that completely changed the way I see the world: QED: The Strange Theory of Light and Matter by Richard Feynman, published in Icelandic as Ljósið." He says he would recommend it to absolutely anyone. "If you read it," he says, "you'll never look at the world in quite the same way again."
You clearly enjoy digging into things.
Valli nods and laughs. "Yes, that's what I do for fun. And luckily, it also comes in handy at work." Alongside his other responsibilities at Reykjavík City Library, Valli manages the music collection at Grófin City Library. It's a role that suits him perfectly, he says, because he's been obsessed with music since he was young and listens to just about "everything under the sun". "I say just about, because nobody really likes every kind of music. There are definitely some things I find downright boring," he admits.
What kind of music do you listen to most?
"I usually rotate between black metal, jazz, trip-hop and chamber music," he says. "But if I'm honest, I probably listen to good old-fashioned dad rock more than anything else," he adds with a grin.
Any favourite artists?
"Oh, there are far too many to name," he laughs. "My daughter actually makes fun of me because I seem to have a new favourite band every other week. If I had to sum up my taste, I'd say I have a soft spot for bands with two guitars, a bass, drums and no unnecessary fuss. That said, I also love all sorts of music that definitely does involve a bit of fuss. Take Bach's organ music, for example."
What are you listening to these days?
"I always listen to full albums from beginning to end," Valli says. "That's where having a CD player in the car comes in handy, not to mention access to the incredible music collection we have here at the library."
He has just returned the debut Rage Against the Machine album to the library, which he says everyone ought to hear at least once.
"I'm heading to Sweden soon, so I've been getting into the mood with some Swedish summer music: The Cardigans, ABBA, Dungen, and of course bob hund, one of my all-time favourite bands," he says with a smile.
If you could only bring one album on holiday, what would it be?
"I'm going to see Queens of the Stone Age live in Stockholm, another one of my absolute favourite bands. They've released so many fantastic albums that I'd happily bring any one of them. If I had to choose, though, it would probably be Lullabies to Paralyze from 2005. It's an absolutely brilliant record, and we have it here in the music collection on both vinyl and CD."
Can you recommend a couple of albums for the summer?
"Some albums just feel like summer," he says. "The Boy with the Arab Strap by Belle and Sebastian is definitely one of them, so I can wholeheartedly recommend that. And then there's Eniga Meniga by Olga Guðrún Árnadóttir. It might just be the greatest Icelandic album ever made!"
Below is a list of Valli's recommended books and albums, all available at Reykjavík City Library.
Find out more about the library's book collection here, and browse our vinyl collection here.
Now that many Reykjavík residents are heading off on their summer holidays, or at least starting to plan them, it's the perfect time to stop by Reykjavík City Library and stock up on books, music, board games, or anything else you might want to pack in your suitcase or simply enjoy at home during the summer. But with so many treasures on the library shelves, what should you take with you? In our Heading into the Holiday series, we ask members of our staff to share their favourite picks from the collection, perfect companions for the summer holidays.