Brynja Hjálmsdóttir is a poet and author from Iceland.
She is the 2022 recipient of the Ljóðstafur Jóns úr Vör poetry prize, and of the Vigdís Finnbogadóttir Encouragement Award. Her most recent book is the novel Friðsemd, a mysterious apocalypse comedy. The book came out in the fall of 2024 and was a critical success.
Okfruman (The Zygote), Brynja’s first book of poetry, was published by Una útgáfuhús in 2019. The piece received excellent critical response and was described by one reviewer as: “One of the most interesting poety books of the year […] You rarely come across such a strong debut”. Okfruman was nominated for The Icelandic Women’s Literary Award (Fjöruverðlaunin) and was awarded Poetry Book of the Year by The Icelandic Bookseller’s Choice Awards.
Her work has been translated into six languages and appeared in various literary journals and anthologies.
