Hildur Knútsdóttir

Born in Reykjavík in 1984, Hildur Knútsdóttir has written books for both children and adults. The settings of her novels are inspired both by everyday events and by things of an uncanny and unfamiliar nature – and sometimes she mixes these worlds together with an unexpected outcome.

Her first novel, Sláttur (Beat), was published in 2011. The fantasy Vetrarfrí (Winter Holiday), was awarded the Women’s Literature Prize (Fjöruverðlaunin) in 2015, and its sequel, Vetrarhörkur (Winter Rigours) received the Icelandic Literature Prize in 2016. Doddi: Bók sannleikans (Doddi: The Book of Truth), which she wrote in collaboration with fellow writer Þórdís Gísladóttir, was nominated for both the Women’s Literature Prize and the Reykjavik Children’s Book Award in 2017. Hildur was also nominated for the Icelandic Literature Prize for her novel Ljónið (The Lion) in the category of children's and young adults’ books in 2018 and the book was awarded the Reykjavik City Children's Book Prize in 2019. In 2020 Hildur received the Booksellers Literary Prize for her novel Skógurinn.

Hildur holds a B.A. degree in Literature and Creative Writing from the University of Iceland. She lives in Reykjavik.