The Little Horse

This creative, beautifully constructed novel reimagines the final days of this Icelandic hero, providing a wonderful new perspective on the politics and culture of the period.

Snorri Sturluson was an Icelandic politician, writer, and historian living during the twelfth century. He was a man of great political influence, and his writings are still researched and valued today. Snorri was killed on September 22, 1241, in Reykholt, where he lived the last years of his life, and The Little Horse is a novel about his final five days.

Snorri, knowing his end is near, begins to write a saga of his own life. He wants to refute all those who oppose him in Norway and Iceland and defend himself against rumors that he is power-hungry and a deceitful womanizer. He is haunted by the fear that his son Or kja will turn against him, and waits to meet Margaret, the woman he loves, who challenges him in every possible way. Meanwhile, assassins in the distance prepare to carry out their orders to end his life.

Thorvald Steen is a Norwegian writer who has published a wide range of novels, plays, collections of poems, short stories, children’s books, and essays. His novel Lionheart is also published by Seagull Books. James Anderson’s literary translations from the Norwegian include Berlin Poplars, by Anne B. Ragde; Nutmeg, by Kristin Valla; and several books by Jostein Gaarder.