A hauntingly beautiful look into Hannah Kent’s journey from exchange student in Iceland to internationally bestselling author
Feature image credit: Pan Macmillan Australia
Dorothy Gale famously told us that there’s no place like home. But the truth is, at least for those who are lucky enough to travel, sometimes a foreign place strikes a strong chord. It might not fully replace the home you left behind, but for whatever reason, it imprints on your heart. And even as the years go on, it calls to you.
Hannah Kent explores this — and much more — in her new memoir, Always Home, Always Homesick. For the bestselling author who grew up in the Adelaide Hills, that foreign place imprinted on her heart is Iceland. After travelling to the far-flung Nordic country for an exchange program when she was a teenager, Kent came to think of the cold and mysterious island on the other side of the planet as home. She details a rocky start in the faraway location, well before it was a tourist hotspot, where language barriers meant that her interactions with locals were sometimes as icy as the landscape surrounding them. But once she got a better understanding of Icelandic and ended up with a caring host family, she made lifelong friends, along with a few discoveries that would change her life. The most notable was the story of Agnes Magnúsdóttir, the last woman to be executed in Iceland, which inspired Kent’s debut novel Burial Rites.
After beginning in Covid-era Adelaide, Always Home, Always Homesick sweeps us back to Kent’s childhood and her early experiences in Iceland, before shifting to the intense process she undertook to research and write her novel. It was translated into 30 languages and went on to win a slew of awards, including the Writing Australia Unpublished Manuscript Award in 2011, the Australian Literary Fiction Book of the Year in 2014, and the Booktopia People’s Choice Award, also in 2014. It was announced in 2017 that Jennifer Lawrence will star in the film adaption, set to be directed by Luca Guadagnino. But even as Kent reminisces on the experience of releasing such a successful debut, there’s no hint of arrogance or gloating in her writing — just a focus on the captivating path she travelled to bring Agnes’ story to life.
Even as someone who had not read Burial Rites before reading this memoir (and has now ordered a copy!), I found the documentation of her research process fascinating. Kent discusses not only the intricate sleuthing that’s required of good historical fiction, but also the creative challenges that inevitably arise: How does one accurately tell a story when so many factual details are lost to history? What is the role of a fiction author, and what responsibilities do they have to the descendants of real characters? The deep dive into these hurdles would make poignant reading for any creative, particularly as Kent discusses the sensitivities, introspection, and observation tendencies that many writers have in common. She also explores the way a story — and in this case, a place — can stick with you until you have no choice but to put it on paper.
The writing is lyrical and hauntingly beautiful, especially when Kent describes Iceland. While she paints a vivid picture of the rugged terrain, she also explores the sometimes brutal history of the country, as well as the role that literature plays in the local culture. The inclusion of the Icelandic sagas and their prevalence in local traditions helped to connect the dots between the author’s experiences in Iceland, her identity as a storyteller, and the events that inspired her to write.
Despite not usually being one for memoirs or literary fiction, and as mentioned, never having read Burial Rites, I devoured this in a day. It delves into thought-provoking ideas — even hinting at a few supernatural elements — and spans over a few decades, but it is never bogged down by extraneous detail or purple prose. Whether you’re a fan of Hannah Kent already, a creative who can relate to the frustrating process of bringing art to life, or simply someone whose heart is drawn to a faraway place, Always Home, Always Homesick deserves a spot on your shelf.
Reviewed by Vanessa Elle
Instagram: @vanessaellewrites
The views expressed in this review belong to the author and not Glam Adelaide, its affiliates, or employees.
Distributed by: Pan Macmillan Australia
Released: April 2025
RRP: $36.99
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