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Always Home, Always Homesick
Not yet published
Expected 6 Nov 25'In my brief breath of life, might I find a way to fit light to paper?'
In a land of ethereal beauty, within a culture soaked in myth, a young woman discovers the story that will change her life.
In 2003, seventeen-year-old Australian exchange student Hannah Kent arrives at Keflavík Airport in the middle of the Icelandic winter.
That night she sleeps off her jet lag and bewilderment in the National Archives of Iceland, unaware that, years later, she will return to the same building to write Burial Rites, the haunting story of Agnes Magnúsdóttir, the last woman executed in Iceland. The novel will go on to launch the author's stellar literary career and capture the hearts of readers across the globe.
Always Home, Always Homesick is Hannah Kent's exquisite love letter to a land that has forged a nation of storytellers, her ode to the transcendent power of creativity, and her invitation to us all to join her in the realms of mystery, spirit and wonder.
In a land of ethereal beauty, within a culture soaked in myth, a young woman discovers the story that will change her life.
In 2003, seventeen-year-old Australian exchange student Hannah Kent arrives at Keflavík Airport in the middle of the Icelandic winter.
That night she sleeps off her jet lag and bewilderment in the National Archives of Iceland, unaware that, years later, she will return to the same building to write Burial Rites, the haunting story of Agnes Magnúsdóttir, the last woman executed in Iceland. The novel will go on to launch the author's stellar literary career and capture the hearts of readers across the globe.
Always Home, Always Homesick is Hannah Kent's exquisite love letter to a land that has forged a nation of storytellers, her ode to the transcendent power of creativity, and her invitation to us all to join her in the realms of mystery, spirit and wonder.
272 pages, Hardcover
First published April 29, 2025
173 people are currently reading
2141 people want to read
About the author
Hannah Kent
14 books4,241 followersHannah Kent's first novel, the international bestseller, Burial Rites (2013), was translated into 30 languages and was shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction and the Guardian First Book Award. It won the ABIA Literary Fiction Book of the Year, the Indie Awards Debut Fiction Book of the Year and the Victorian Premier's People's Choice Award, and was shortlisted for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award.
Hannah's second novel, The Good People was published in 2016 (ANZ) and 2017 (Feb, UK; Sept, North America). It was shortlisted for the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction, the Indie Book Award for Fiction and the ABIA Literary Fiction Book of the Year. It has been translated into 10 languages.
Hannah’s original feature film, Run Rabbit Run, will be directed by Daina Reid (The Handmaid’s Tale) and produced by Carver and XYZ Films. It was launched at the Cannes 2020 virtual market where STX Entertainment took world rights.
Hannah co-founded the Australian literary publication Kill Your Darlings, and is a Patron for World Vision Australia. She has written for The New York Times, The Saturday Paper, The Guardian, the Age, the Sydney Morning Herald, Meanjin, Qantas Magazine and LitHub.
Hannah lives and works on Peramangk country near Adelaide, Australia.
Hannah's second novel, The Good People was published in 2016 (ANZ) and 2017 (Feb, UK; Sept, North America). It was shortlisted for the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction, the Indie Book Award for Fiction and the ABIA Literary Fiction Book of the Year. It has been translated into 10 languages.
Hannah’s original feature film, Run Rabbit Run, will be directed by Daina Reid (The Handmaid’s Tale) and produced by Carver and XYZ Films. It was launched at the Cannes 2020 virtual market where STX Entertainment took world rights.
Hannah co-founded the Australian literary publication Kill Your Darlings, and is a Patron for World Vision Australia. She has written for The New York Times, The Saturday Paper, The Guardian, the Age, the Sydney Morning Herald, Meanjin, Qantas Magazine and LitHub.
Hannah lives and works on Peramangk country near Adelaide, Australia.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 159 reviews
July 14, 2025
I pat myself on the back for having the foresight to wait for a library copy of the audiobook to read in tandem with my hardcover copy. The audio is perfection for Kent's mellifluous speaking voice, accents and pronunciation, while the hardcover contains the photos, the spelling and has the beautiful dustjacket that can sit proudly on my bookshelf. I've read a handful of excellent memoirs in recent months, and this one is right up there at the top of the pile - I didn’t want it to end.
Covering her initial year in Iceland as a 17/18yo Rotary exchange student and her first exposure to the story of Agnes Magnúsdóttir, through several return visits and the writing of her phenomenally successful debut novel, Burial Rites, and ending with a visit in 2023 to appear as a guest at the Reykjavik International Literary Festival, Kent's love for her second home shines through on every page. It seems only fitting that a country with such a strong and important literary tradition was so instrumental in shaping the writer that she has become.
Highly recommended to readers who enjoy memoir, adventure and/or peeking behind the literary curtain.
Covering her initial year in Iceland as a 17/18yo Rotary exchange student and her first exposure to the story of Agnes Magnúsdóttir, through several return visits and the writing of her phenomenally successful debut novel, Burial Rites, and ending with a visit in 2023 to appear as a guest at the Reykjavik International Literary Festival, Kent's love for her second home shines through on every page. It seems only fitting that a country with such a strong and important literary tradition was so instrumental in shaping the writer that she has become.
Highly recommended to readers who enjoy memoir, adventure and/or peeking behind the literary curtain.
May 31, 2025
Interesting memoir of Hannah Kent's time in Iceland as a Rotary exchange student as a 17 year old, followed up by her return visits to research for her eventual bestseller Burial Rites. I loved the first half about her initial visit, first time leaving Australia or seeing snow, so a real game changer. The details in the second half about her research were not so interesting for me. The people she meets during her initial visit and follow ups are wonderful. Library ebook 3.5 stars for me
June 9, 2025
This is such evocative storytelling transporting me right alongside Hannah Kent during her many trips to Iceland starting from her first sojourn as an exchange student at the age of 17. Her deep love for the land and people shining through every page. It’s also a great companion piece to her novel Burial Rites which goes into detail of how the book came into existence. So so beautiful!
May 4, 2025
I love this author's work. I found this chronicle of her writing journey, which began in teens, enthralling. By necessity, an autobiography must be in fairly bland style rather than this author's trademark mystical language.
Read
May 9, 2025Such a beautiful memoir: a love letter to a country and its people, a formative experience, a companion to Burial Rites, a look at a writer’s life. Kent tells the story of her year exchange in Iceland as a teenager with such care and attention. The second half of the book details her research, writing and promotion of Burial Rites, a novel I adored. Despite having read it more than 12 years ago, it came flooding back. Kent’s deep love for Iceland is palpable even as she grapples with the language and at times the food and customs. Kent’s a superb writer and her prose here is lovely. The inner world may be the perogative of the novellist as Kent writes but the memoirist also needs a handle on their own interiority. I listened to this on audio, read by Hannah herself and she really brings the Icelandic language to life. I love memoirs read by the author and this was particularly moving and beautiful. Highly recommend.
August 23, 2025
“I am suddenly, acutely aware of how we are outlasted by the words we write.”
Always Home, Always Homesick is a memoir by award-winning, bestselling Australian author, Hannah Kent. She describes how, at a very young age, she first realised that she wanted to be a writer, and the inspiration she drew from a year as an exchange student in Iceland. She details how the welcome of her first host family lacked warmth, how learning the language was an enormous challenge until she moved in with a family with children, and how the landscape, climate and society were a huge culture shock.
Homesickness, which she tried to hide, featured large until she was eventually able to communicate better in Icelandic, joined a theater group, and was able to make friends. But the story of Iceland’s last execution captured her attention, and remained in her mind, eventually to become the subject of her first novel. By the time she has to leave, she feels that “My bones have knitted with this place. There is a quiet exchange of marrow between us now.”
Doing a creative writing course, she felt drawn back to Iceland, to research the story of Agnes Magnusdottir. Researching the case from afar had limitations, and when she returned to Iceland, she noted “I have always accepted that historical records might contain mistakes, but now I see they can be positively error-riddled. Records suddenly seem fallible, filled with prejudice, insistent on singular truths. History, I decide, is prismatic, multi-faceted. It needs to be regarded from many angles. “
She details the researching, the unexpected help from different quarters, the writing, the eventual publishing, the aftermath, and the reaction her novel stimulated in Iceland. The number of connections and coincidences is almost eerie. Her observations about Iceland, to which she applies her unmatched talent for descriptive prose, are fascinating:
“I have discovered that Icelanders sometimes speak on the in-breath, especially when in agreement. They literally do not stop talking to take a breath. I didn’t know it was possible to do this. I have never attempted to speak while inhaling, but now I practise it in my bedroom so that one day I might sound like a local. Instead of projecting my voice into the world, I inhale words from the air, as though they were always there, suspended around me, and only needed breath to form. It is a curious sensation, to finish speaking with my lungs full.”
“I lose myself in thought, watching the mountains and valleys and hills undulate as we curve around them, the shining ribbons of river capturing all available light and carrying it out to sea. The sudden endlessness to my vision makes my mind feel as though it is unfurling, as though there is room enough within me now to hold more. More beauty, more feeling. The earth seems an offering to the higher power of the sky, and I wonder whether this country is more light than anything else. It wraps around the horizon.”
“I can understand why ghosts have a strong presence in Iceland. Even in my few months of living here, I have seen how the wind moves the snow along the ground at night, like a spirit looking for rest. How sometimes the mountains seem to possess faces, and how the wind can sound like a crying child. Iceland feels like a place where ghosts abide. There is another air here. The boundaries feel permeable somehow.” Mesmerising.
Always Home, Always Homesick is a memoir by award-winning, bestselling Australian author, Hannah Kent. She describes how, at a very young age, she first realised that she wanted to be a writer, and the inspiration she drew from a year as an exchange student in Iceland. She details how the welcome of her first host family lacked warmth, how learning the language was an enormous challenge until she moved in with a family with children, and how the landscape, climate and society were a huge culture shock.
Homesickness, which she tried to hide, featured large until she was eventually able to communicate better in Icelandic, joined a theater group, and was able to make friends. But the story of Iceland’s last execution captured her attention, and remained in her mind, eventually to become the subject of her first novel. By the time she has to leave, she feels that “My bones have knitted with this place. There is a quiet exchange of marrow between us now.”
Doing a creative writing course, she felt drawn back to Iceland, to research the story of Agnes Magnusdottir. Researching the case from afar had limitations, and when she returned to Iceland, she noted “I have always accepted that historical records might contain mistakes, but now I see they can be positively error-riddled. Records suddenly seem fallible, filled with prejudice, insistent on singular truths. History, I decide, is prismatic, multi-faceted. It needs to be regarded from many angles. “
She details the researching, the unexpected help from different quarters, the writing, the eventual publishing, the aftermath, and the reaction her novel stimulated in Iceland. The number of connections and coincidences is almost eerie. Her observations about Iceland, to which she applies her unmatched talent for descriptive prose, are fascinating:
“I have discovered that Icelanders sometimes speak on the in-breath, especially when in agreement. They literally do not stop talking to take a breath. I didn’t know it was possible to do this. I have never attempted to speak while inhaling, but now I practise it in my bedroom so that one day I might sound like a local. Instead of projecting my voice into the world, I inhale words from the air, as though they were always there, suspended around me, and only needed breath to form. It is a curious sensation, to finish speaking with my lungs full.”
“I lose myself in thought, watching the mountains and valleys and hills undulate as we curve around them, the shining ribbons of river capturing all available light and carrying it out to sea. The sudden endlessness to my vision makes my mind feel as though it is unfurling, as though there is room enough within me now to hold more. More beauty, more feeling. The earth seems an offering to the higher power of the sky, and I wonder whether this country is more light than anything else. It wraps around the horizon.”
“I can understand why ghosts have a strong presence in Iceland. Even in my few months of living here, I have seen how the wind moves the snow along the ground at night, like a spirit looking for rest. How sometimes the mountains seem to possess faces, and how the wind can sound like a crying child. Iceland feels like a place where ghosts abide. There is another air here. The boundaries feel permeable somehow.” Mesmerising.
May 8, 2025
Hard for me to put into words how much I connected with this book. Having spent a bit of time in Iceland myself and having a very dear Icelandic friend, I found myself colouring the story in with my memories of our own roadtrip on the ring road. Only Hannah Kent could write a memoir so mystical and poetic. I listened to the audiobook and I am really looking forward to reading the physical book when I buy it this weekend while seeing Hannah at the Melbourne Writers Festival. Ugh this one is going to stay with me forever. <3
September 1, 2025
Beautiful storytelling and so interesting.
This offers so much insight into Hannah Kent's story Burial Rites about Agnes Magnúsdóttir, as well her connection to Iceland.
Another fantastic read for #AussieAugust2025
This offers so much insight into Hannah Kent's story Burial Rites about Agnes Magnúsdóttir, as well her connection to Iceland.
Another fantastic read for #AussieAugust2025
August 2, 2025
If you haven’t read Burial Rites, you will want to after reading the author’s account of how she came to the story, how she researched it, and how it has never left her since.
I loved Burial Rites and so I was delighted to learn that Hannah Kent has written more about its subject. Agnes Magnusdottir and Fridrik, a young man, were beheaded when found guilty of the murder of their master, Natan Ketilsson, and Petur Jonsson, in 1830. It was the last execution in Iceland.
Hannah Kent first went to Iceland as a teenage exchange student, a huge adventure for an Australian who had never before left the country. She describes how she learned to speak Icelandic so that she fitted in better. This period in her life led to a lifelong love of Iceland and its people and a fascination with Agnes’s story. The depth of research she undertook to write the book is remarkable, although she never stops reminding everyone that her book is a work of fiction, not a history. She wanted to write from Agnes’s perspective which is not one that seems to have been taken account of previously. At times, I thought she was being quite fanciful, rather overdramatising her experiences, but she is steeped in Icelandic culture now and Icelanders are steeped in the past and in otherworldly phenomena so I suppose she is channelling that.
A very interesting and enjoyable read and recommended especially to anyone who enjoyed Burial Rites and/or to anyone who enjoys Hannah Kent’s writing in general.
With thanks to NetGalley and Pan MacMillan for a review copy.
I loved Burial Rites and so I was delighted to learn that Hannah Kent has written more about its subject. Agnes Magnusdottir and Fridrik, a young man, were beheaded when found guilty of the murder of their master, Natan Ketilsson, and Petur Jonsson, in 1830. It was the last execution in Iceland.
Hannah Kent first went to Iceland as a teenage exchange student, a huge adventure for an Australian who had never before left the country. She describes how she learned to speak Icelandic so that she fitted in better. This period in her life led to a lifelong love of Iceland and its people and a fascination with Agnes’s story. The depth of research she undertook to write the book is remarkable, although she never stops reminding everyone that her book is a work of fiction, not a history. She wanted to write from Agnes’s perspective which is not one that seems to have been taken account of previously. At times, I thought she was being quite fanciful, rather overdramatising her experiences, but she is steeped in Icelandic culture now and Icelanders are steeped in the past and in otherworldly phenomena so I suppose she is channelling that.
A very interesting and enjoyable read and recommended especially to anyone who enjoyed Burial Rites and/or to anyone who enjoys Hannah Kent’s writing in general.
With thanks to NetGalley and Pan MacMillan for a review copy.
July 14, 2025
Insightful, intriguing and introspective.
I stumbled upon this memoir almost by accident—and nearly passed it by. With a growing stack of unread books demanding my attention, I hesitated. After all, what could an author so early in her career possibly have to reflect on? But curiosity won out—particularly my fascination with how an Australian writer managed to craft such a remarkable work of historical fiction set in Iceland.
I’m so glad I gave in.
What unfolded was an intimate, thoughtful exploration of Hannah Kent’s life—woven with honesty, humility, and a striking lack of pretence. Her reflections on family, travel, love, and the quiet complexities of becoming a writer add such rich context to her fiction. It never veers into self-congratulation; instead, it feels grounded and sincere, like sitting across from a friend who’s finally letting you into their world.
A beautifully introspective read that was more than worth setting aside my other books.
I stumbled upon this memoir almost by accident—and nearly passed it by. With a growing stack of unread books demanding my attention, I hesitated. After all, what could an author so early in her career possibly have to reflect on? But curiosity won out—particularly my fascination with how an Australian writer managed to craft such a remarkable work of historical fiction set in Iceland.
I’m so glad I gave in.
What unfolded was an intimate, thoughtful exploration of Hannah Kent’s life—woven with honesty, humility, and a striking lack of pretence. Her reflections on family, travel, love, and the quiet complexities of becoming a writer add such rich context to her fiction. It never veers into self-congratulation; instead, it feels grounded and sincere, like sitting across from a friend who’s finally letting you into their world.
A beautifully introspective read that was more than worth setting aside my other books.
April 13, 2025
I am not a big reader of memoirs; however, I have read and enjoyed all of Hannah Kent's books, especially Burial Rites, so I thought it might be interesting to get more insight into her journey. Always Home, Always Homesick was an informative and enjoyable read. I hadn't realised how young Hannah was when she first went to Iceland, so hearing about her life-shaping experiences there was fascinating. As a language-learner myself, it was also interesting to hear about her trials on that front. For those who enjoyed Burial Rites this memoir offers wonderful insight into how that book came into being, from first inspiration to all the research Hannah went back to do years later. Even if you have not read Hannah's works, this book still offers fun insight into an author's creative process, tied into her personal development and growth. I am giving it four stars.
I received this book as a free ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I received this book as a free ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
August 10, 2025
I was transfixed by this memoir of Hannah Kent's time in Iceland and the time she was writing Burial Rites. Wonderful
June 3, 2025
Read most of this in preparation for my first trip to Iceland. I related strongly to her experience as an Australian exchange student in a European country and the initial isolation induced by the cultural differences. Iceland is beautiful and mystical and Kent conveys it so well. I also think the title alone is beautiful!
I did enjoy the first half somewhat more than the second half which focuses more on the writing process of Burial Rites. I have read Burial Rites previously and liked it but didn't love it and this is likely why I was less invested in that part of the memoir. In saying that though, I would like to revisit Burial Rites at some point as I think I would connect with it more now.
After spending only 3 days in Iceland it captured my heart and I can't wait to return to experience more of its beauty.
I did enjoy the first half somewhat more than the second half which focuses more on the writing process of Burial Rites. I have read Burial Rites previously and liked it but didn't love it and this is likely why I was less invested in that part of the memoir. In saying that though, I would like to revisit Burial Rites at some point as I think I would connect with it more now.
After spending only 3 days in Iceland it captured my heart and I can't wait to return to experience more of its beauty.
May 4, 2025
There are not many writers that can craft words into crystal clear imagery but Hannah Kent does it without even trying. I LOVED Burial Rites and loved this memoir
June 21, 2025
Travel memoir ✅ by an excellent writer ✅ set in Iceland ✅. Went straight to the top of my TBR pile and did not disappoint. Loved every page. Lost a star because it brought back sad memories of being unsuccessful in my high school application / group interview to be an exchange student. I mean how did that happen??
As well as the fab stories of Iceland I loved the whole home/homesick theme and the repeated visits back, everyone a bit older but just as welcoming. (She has her very own George and Olive ❤️ )
On the last page she writes about the different versions of herself over the years that have visited : ok I’m going to use her words, why not:
I look back at the three hills and I see my past selves there … and as I leave I know that I am also remaining
Love it.
As well as the fab stories of Iceland I loved the whole home/homesick theme and the repeated visits back, everyone a bit older but just as welcoming. (She has her very own George and Olive ❤️ )
On the last page she writes about the different versions of herself over the years that have visited : ok I’m going to use her words, why not:
I look back at the three hills and I see my past selves there … and as I leave I know that I am also remaining
Love it.
July 6, 2025
Absolutely superb. Definitely need to go back and reread Burial Rites. Stunning.
May 28, 2025
Always Home, Always Homesick is not your usual memoir. It's an ode to Iceland, a memoir of place and people, of history and story. This is the story behind the story of Burial Rites. From the inspiration, the first tug of an idea, to its tenth anniversary since publication passing amidst the revelry of an Icelandic literary festival ball. Burial Rites is unpacked and shaken out, the threads of it all woven so tightly with Hannah's life from the age of seventeen. She lived and breathed it, and as indicated through this memoir, it appears she still does.
While I would never discourage someone from picking up this brilliant book, I do think it would make for a richer reading experience if you have read Burial Rites. Not necessarily recently, I read it over a decade ago, but without the context of that novel humming in the backgound of my mind whilst reading this, I wouldn't have had so many illuminating moments of connection throughout.
'I feel like a trespasser. I am an outsider, writing about a time I did not live in, a country that is not my own.'
The audiobook is read by Hannah Kent herself, and the effect was truly sublime, as though you are wrapped up in a booth together with steaming cups of tea, listening to her passion spill forth. It was a joy to listen to, and so inspiring, on so many different levels.
I am not a fan of memoirs, I even passed this by initially, but a friend was listening to it and urged me on. I'm so grateful to her for doing so. All the stars and then some.
While I would never discourage someone from picking up this brilliant book, I do think it would make for a richer reading experience if you have read Burial Rites. Not necessarily recently, I read it over a decade ago, but without the context of that novel humming in the backgound of my mind whilst reading this, I wouldn't have had so many illuminating moments of connection throughout.
'I feel like a trespasser. I am an outsider, writing about a time I did not live in, a country that is not my own.'
The audiobook is read by Hannah Kent herself, and the effect was truly sublime, as though you are wrapped up in a booth together with steaming cups of tea, listening to her passion spill forth. It was a joy to listen to, and so inspiring, on so many different levels.
I am not a fan of memoirs, I even passed this by initially, but a friend was listening to it and urged me on. I'm so grateful to her for doing so. All the stars and then some.
May 9, 2025
Spectacularly good, inhaled it in a day. A love story to Iceland and literature, and the way our various selves continue to exist within the layers of time, place and memory. Glorious ❤️
May 2, 2025
Always Home, Always Homesick is a memoir by bestselling Australian author Hannah Kent, focussing on her relationship with Iceland and the writing of her bestselling novel, Burial Rites. Hannah Kent first visited Iceland straight after high school at the age of 17 when she participated in a Rotary exchange student program for a year. Living with different host families, learning the language and adapting to the culture and wildly different landscape was a life changing experience for the author.
Occasionally she mentions differences in language and culture that made me laugh out loud. One of those was her description of eating whale blubber for the first time and her response when asked by her foster family whether she liked it:
"It's like..." I hesitate. "Like biting into a lipstick. Made of fish." Page 74
However, buried deep within the travelogue and culture shock is the genesis of Burial Rites. I read the historical fiction novel Burial Rites in 2014 and was incredibly moved by Agnes' story. Agnes Magnúsdóttir (daughter of Magnus) and a farmhand by the name of Fridrik were convicted of murdering two men in March 1828. Agnes was the last person to be executed in Iceland and was beheaded in January 1830. Hannah came across the site of Agnes' execution while visiting Iceland and later became consumed with the case.
In 2013, Hannah Kent was featured in a piece called No More Than A Ghost on Australian Story where she described her writing and research process for Burial Rites. She revealed that many bizarre and weird coincidences took place throughout the writing process and it was this I was hoping to learn more about.
Thankfully I didn't have to wait long, and Hannah disclosed the following very early on:
"I come from a line of women who sometimes do dream things that are other and strange and not quite dreams at all, and there have been times in my life when my sister and my mother and I have known things, avoided things, warned of things dreamed. We don't usually speak of it outside of our tight trinity. It spooks people. But we three know the feeling of these not-dreams and I recognise it in that northern sea, in the boom of its crashing waves and their spray against my face, and the hidden river running to meet it. I lick my lips and anticipate salt. I wait for a greater understanding." Page 2
The first half of the memoir is Hannah's experience as an exchange student and it did take a while before this element re-surfaced. During this period I was moved by the connections she was able to make, largely due to her dedication to learning the language. Just as in Burial Rites, the writing is evocative, introspective and enlightening and raised many points for the reader to reflect on.
It wasn't a surprise to read she was homesick for her Australian home in the early months, but years later Hannah found herself homesick for Iceland, leading to the title Always Home, Always Homesick.
Other than the whale blubber and hákarl (rotten shark), the descriptions of Icelandic food made my mouth water and I'd love to try the kleina (donut) and the porridge made from fresh cow's milk. Trying to recreate some of the recipes in her home kitchen in Australia years later, the author reflects:
"But the truth is that all this cooking is an act of grief. I am engaging in ritual, locating a place and people I miss deeply, trying to create a little of the culture I miss." Page 151
The second half of the book moves into Hannah's life beyond the year of exchange, into her studies, PhD and research about Agnes. I was amazed to learn the full extent of her research, including more time living in Iceland and the reference material she was able to dig up in the archives and by meeting and engaging with the locals.
It was here that the author began to mention Agnes' presence and guiding hand although I had the sense there was a lot more going on than she felt comfortable sharing in this memoir. Perhaps it was dialled back out of fear of isolating the reader or perhaps the publisher suggested it be toned down, but the mere fact that others Hannah met during her research (like the actress Maria Ellingsen who played the character of Agnes in a 1995 movie about the case) had their own interactions with Agnes makes me believe that an intuitive person like Hannah would have experienced more than she shared on the page.
As an example, in 1995 an Icelandic medium was urged by Agnes to guide a team to the burial location of two heads from the day of Agnes' execution so that they could be relocated. The remains were previously thought to have been buried in consecrated ground at a church but in truth were hastily disposed of near the site of her execution 165 years earlier.
Hannah's connection to Iceland has deepened over the years and she stayed in touch with her host families and friends and watched new generations born while time marched on in her own life too. Now married with children, the author manages to convey the importance of literature, storytelling and reading in Iceland and it's easy to see how this would have been a magnet to a young poet and writer from Australia.
I was also impressed to learn about Iceland's insistence on linguistic purism which extends to the naming of all babies born in Iceland. The Personal Names Committee must approve all baby names and if a name isn't included on the approved lists and if approval is sought for a name that doesn't reflect Iceland's structural and spelling conventions they're rejected by law. While this may sound rigid and inflexible to some, I can't help but admire a culture committed to protecting their heritage and ensuring their language is preserved generation to generation as the world continues to shrink.
All in all, Always Home, Always Homesick by Hannah Kent was a reflection on the trials and tribulations of being a writer, the wonder of language and our connection to the past. Containing next level nature writing - recommended for fans of Robert Macfarlane - in an almost square format that was a delight to hold in the hand, it's also about daring to step beyond your limits and the transformative discoveries and lasting bonds that can emerge as a result.
* Copy courtesy of Pan Macmillan *
Occasionally she mentions differences in language and culture that made me laugh out loud. One of those was her description of eating whale blubber for the first time and her response when asked by her foster family whether she liked it:
"It's like..." I hesitate. "Like biting into a lipstick. Made of fish." Page 74
However, buried deep within the travelogue and culture shock is the genesis of Burial Rites. I read the historical fiction novel Burial Rites in 2014 and was incredibly moved by Agnes' story. Agnes Magnúsdóttir (daughter of Magnus) and a farmhand by the name of Fridrik were convicted of murdering two men in March 1828. Agnes was the last person to be executed in Iceland and was beheaded in January 1830. Hannah came across the site of Agnes' execution while visiting Iceland and later became consumed with the case.
In 2013, Hannah Kent was featured in a piece called No More Than A Ghost on Australian Story where she described her writing and research process for Burial Rites. She revealed that many bizarre and weird coincidences took place throughout the writing process and it was this I was hoping to learn more about.
Thankfully I didn't have to wait long, and Hannah disclosed the following very early on:
"I come from a line of women who sometimes do dream things that are other and strange and not quite dreams at all, and there have been times in my life when my sister and my mother and I have known things, avoided things, warned of things dreamed. We don't usually speak of it outside of our tight trinity. It spooks people. But we three know the feeling of these not-dreams and I recognise it in that northern sea, in the boom of its crashing waves and their spray against my face, and the hidden river running to meet it. I lick my lips and anticipate salt. I wait for a greater understanding." Page 2
The first half of the memoir is Hannah's experience as an exchange student and it did take a while before this element re-surfaced. During this period I was moved by the connections she was able to make, largely due to her dedication to learning the language. Just as in Burial Rites, the writing is evocative, introspective and enlightening and raised many points for the reader to reflect on.
It wasn't a surprise to read she was homesick for her Australian home in the early months, but years later Hannah found herself homesick for Iceland, leading to the title Always Home, Always Homesick.
Other than the whale blubber and hákarl (rotten shark), the descriptions of Icelandic food made my mouth water and I'd love to try the kleina (donut) and the porridge made from fresh cow's milk. Trying to recreate some of the recipes in her home kitchen in Australia years later, the author reflects:
"But the truth is that all this cooking is an act of grief. I am engaging in ritual, locating a place and people I miss deeply, trying to create a little of the culture I miss." Page 151
The second half of the book moves into Hannah's life beyond the year of exchange, into her studies, PhD and research about Agnes. I was amazed to learn the full extent of her research, including more time living in Iceland and the reference material she was able to dig up in the archives and by meeting and engaging with the locals.
It was here that the author began to mention Agnes' presence and guiding hand although I had the sense there was a lot more going on than she felt comfortable sharing in this memoir. Perhaps it was dialled back out of fear of isolating the reader or perhaps the publisher suggested it be toned down, but the mere fact that others Hannah met during her research (like the actress Maria Ellingsen who played the character of Agnes in a 1995 movie about the case) had their own interactions with Agnes makes me believe that an intuitive person like Hannah would have experienced more than she shared on the page.
As an example, in 1995 an Icelandic medium was urged by Agnes to guide a team to the burial location of two heads from the day of Agnes' execution so that they could be relocated. The remains were previously thought to have been buried in consecrated ground at a church but in truth were hastily disposed of near the site of her execution 165 years earlier.
Hannah's connection to Iceland has deepened over the years and she stayed in touch with her host families and friends and watched new generations born while time marched on in her own life too. Now married with children, the author manages to convey the importance of literature, storytelling and reading in Iceland and it's easy to see how this would have been a magnet to a young poet and writer from Australia.
I was also impressed to learn about Iceland's insistence on linguistic purism which extends to the naming of all babies born in Iceland. The Personal Names Committee must approve all baby names and if a name isn't included on the approved lists and if approval is sought for a name that doesn't reflect Iceland's structural and spelling conventions they're rejected by law. While this may sound rigid and inflexible to some, I can't help but admire a culture committed to protecting their heritage and ensuring their language is preserved generation to generation as the world continues to shrink.
All in all, Always Home, Always Homesick by Hannah Kent was a reflection on the trials and tribulations of being a writer, the wonder of language and our connection to the past. Containing next level nature writing - recommended for fans of Robert Macfarlane - in an almost square format that was a delight to hold in the hand, it's also about daring to step beyond your limits and the transformative discoveries and lasting bonds that can emerge as a result.
* Copy courtesy of Pan Macmillan *
September 11, 2025
I had been wanting to read ‘Always Home Always Homesick for sometime. It was a rewarding read. Ms Kent writes clearly and with emotion. The first half of the book is a recall of her year as an Australian high school exchange student in Iceland. She has a mature attitude and sets out to gain an understanding of the culture, history, language and food. She has a successful and rewarding time.
The second half is an account of her researching and writing her first novel ‘Burial Rites’, which tells the story of Agnes Magnusdottir a servant in Northern Iceland who was condemned to death after the murder of two men and she was the last woman to be executed in Iceland in 1830.
One of my next reads will be ’Burial Rites’.
The second half is an account of her researching and writing her first novel ‘Burial Rites’, which tells the story of Agnes Magnusdottir a servant in Northern Iceland who was condemned to death after the murder of two men and she was the last woman to be executed in Iceland in 1830.
One of my next reads will be ’Burial Rites’.
July 2, 2025
A beautifully crafted memoir, written in three parts. Part one starts with Hannah at seventeen when she embarks on the trip of a lifetime as an exchange student to Iceland.
While there, she learns of Agnes Magnusdotti, the last person to be executed in Iceland in 1830. Kent's first novel, Burial Rites, tells the story of Agnes, her trial and its outcome.
Part two tells of the release of the book and the impact of the story in Australia and Iceland, while part three tells of Hannah going to Iceland to promote the book and of her reuniting with people and families she met twenty years prior.
A brilliant read.
While there, she learns of Agnes Magnusdotti, the last person to be executed in Iceland in 1830. Kent's first novel, Burial Rites, tells the story of Agnes, her trial and its outcome.
Part two tells of the release of the book and the impact of the story in Australia and Iceland, while part three tells of Hannah going to Iceland to promote the book and of her reuniting with people and families she met twenty years prior.
A brilliant read.
August 25, 2025
umm okay diva didn’t need to make me feel like that.. what a beautiful memoir
September 3, 2025
Made me cry. Home is so many places.
June 17, 2025
Does anyone use words as beautifully as Hannah Kent? I wanted to hug this book. It made me want to go stand on a volcanic snow field and look at the sky.
June 27, 2025
I'm not a huge reader of memoirs but I read Hannah Kent's most recent novel Devotion last year and loved the way she wrote so I decided to listen to her latest Always Home, Always Homesick. Boy was this an incredible listening experience and I loved that it was narrated by the author.
It tells the story of how as a seventeen year old she went on a yearlong exchange to Iceland and how this trip completely and fundamentally changes her life. Kent writes incredibly beautifully about her time there - the people, the landscape and her experience of making lifelong friends. Her main host family ends up becoming a second family to her and it was so moving to see these relationship develop and how they last over time. This year of her life was also instrumental in launching her writing career. The story of Agnes Magnúsdóttir, the last woman executed in Iceland, sparked her interest so completely that she becomes the central character in Kent's debut novel Burial Rites which has now become an international best seller.
The memoir chronicles her time is Iceland but also her experience writing Burial Rites and her personal and writing life since then. I loved how the latter half of the book helps us to see into her thought processes with her writing. This is not a comprehensive biography but a selective piecing together of her memories and experiences to tell the story of Hannah Kent the author.
The blurb for this book says that it is an "exquisite love letter to a land that has forged a nation of storytellers, her ode to the transcendent power of creativity, and her invitation to us all to join her in the realms of mystery, spirit and wonder." This is such a lovely summary of what was an incredible book. I was captivated!
I am now committed to reading Burial Rites and The Good People. Hannah Kent is a must read Australian author.
It tells the story of how as a seventeen year old she went on a yearlong exchange to Iceland and how this trip completely and fundamentally changes her life. Kent writes incredibly beautifully about her time there - the people, the landscape and her experience of making lifelong friends. Her main host family ends up becoming a second family to her and it was so moving to see these relationship develop and how they last over time. This year of her life was also instrumental in launching her writing career. The story of Agnes Magnúsdóttir, the last woman executed in Iceland, sparked her interest so completely that she becomes the central character in Kent's debut novel Burial Rites which has now become an international best seller.
The memoir chronicles her time is Iceland but also her experience writing Burial Rites and her personal and writing life since then. I loved how the latter half of the book helps us to see into her thought processes with her writing. This is not a comprehensive biography but a selective piecing together of her memories and experiences to tell the story of Hannah Kent the author.
The blurb for this book says that it is an "exquisite love letter to a land that has forged a nation of storytellers, her ode to the transcendent power of creativity, and her invitation to us all to join her in the realms of mystery, spirit and wonder." This is such a lovely summary of what was an incredible book. I was captivated!
I am now committed to reading Burial Rites and The Good People. Hannah Kent is a must read Australian author.
May 17, 2025
A fascinating memoir - both a very personal account, and a meditation on place, home, history and story.
June 30, 2025
So new niche book interest is books about exchanges, I think I could read about the awkwardness of being 16-17 and living in someone else’s house and eating their very specific family meals forever.
June 22, 2025
As I began Hannah Kent's memoir,
Always Home, Always Homesick
, I was reminded of her exceptional talent for writing about landscape.
And soon I was absorbed in the place she was describing - Iceland.
The memoir is focused on Kent's time as an exchange student in Iceland; how the country became her muse; and her subsequent years researching and writing her debut novel, Burial Rites. I could identify with so much of her experience as an exchange student, having done the same thing (to Germany) when I was sixteen. Kent says of Iceland -
I feel the same about Germany, and my exchange was unquestionably one of the most significant and formative experiences of my life. But enough about me! Kent's telling of her exchange experience and becoming an author unfold in parallel - both begin awkwardly. She initially finds the people in Iceland aloof and the language impenetrable -
But that shifts with a new host family, an encouraging teacher, and helping backstage with the local theatre group. On leaving Iceland after her year on exchange, she observes that her '...bones have knitted with this place...' and goes on to describe the feeling of grief associated with returning to her home in Adelaide (grief for a place is known as disenfranchised grief).
It is ultimately through writing that Kent finds her way back to Iceland, or rather, to incorporate Iceland's 'hold' on her.
There's lots more to this book - her experience of becoming a parent; the history of Iceland's deeply-held devotion to storytelling (including forms such as rímur) and the role of myth; her childhood ambition to become an author; the challenge and politics of writing about a place that is not your 'own'; and her struggle to remain true to the history of Agnes Magnúsdóttir (and to this end, Kent kept a quote from German Romantic-thinker, Novalis, in mind - 'Novels arise out of the shortcomings of history.').
I savoured every word of this beautiful memoir and feel a re-read of Burial Rites is in my near future.
4/5
And soon I was absorbed in the place she was describing - Iceland.
...the mountains and valleys and hills undulate as we curve around them, the shining ribbons of river capturing all available light and carrying it out to sea.
The sky lifts. Everything is drawing breath.
It is almost a parody of summer. It is the promised land illustrated in rhapsodic technicolour in a religious pamphlet. On the clearest days, the blue of the sky hollows me out with its vastness. I feel cleansed by it and, at the same time, subsumed by its enormity. I cannot fit it in. I cannot wrap my mind around it.
The memoir is focused on Kent's time as an exchange student in Iceland; how the country became her muse; and her subsequent years researching and writing her debut novel, Burial Rites. I could identify with so much of her experience as an exchange student, having done the same thing (to Germany) when I was sixteen. Kent says of Iceland -
Its memory is a constant background to what I am doing. No matter that I don't make frequent references to the country; it is an equally important part of my life for all that.
I feel the same about Germany, and my exchange was unquestionably one of the most significant and formative experiences of my life. But enough about me! Kent's telling of her exchange experience and becoming an author unfold in parallel - both begin awkwardly. She initially finds the people in Iceland aloof and the language impenetrable -
For a fleeting instant I think of the four exchange students from my district who went to France. Arseholes.
But that shifts with a new host family, an encouraging teacher, and helping backstage with the local theatre group. On leaving Iceland after her year on exchange, she observes that her '...bones have knitted with this place...' and goes on to describe the feeling of grief associated with returning to her home in Adelaide (grief for a place is known as disenfranchised grief).
It is ultimately through writing that Kent finds her way back to Iceland, or rather, to incorporate Iceland's 'hold' on her.
There's lots more to this book - her experience of becoming a parent; the history of Iceland's deeply-held devotion to storytelling (including forms such as rímur) and the role of myth; her childhood ambition to become an author; the challenge and politics of writing about a place that is not your 'own'; and her struggle to remain true to the history of Agnes Magnúsdóttir (and to this end, Kent kept a quote from German Romantic-thinker, Novalis, in mind - 'Novels arise out of the shortcomings of history.').
I savoured every word of this beautiful memoir and feel a re-read of Burial Rites is in my near future.
4/5
June 21, 2025
4/5⭐️
I was drawn to this book because Hannah Kent gives voice to a chapter of life I know intimately… being a high school exchange student. While she found herself in the stark, haunting beauty of Iceland in 2004, I was on my own exchange only two years later. Her lyrical, tender reflections transported me not only to Iceland, but back to my own transformative year abroad in Montana.
The title itself aches with truth. Once you’ve lived deeply in two places, you carry them both forever. You are always home, and always homesick, simultaneously. It’s a quiet, lifelong ache: the impossibility of being in two places you love at once, of belonging fully to both, and to the versions of yourself that came alive in each.
Kent captures the ache and awe of immersion in a foreign culture, the confusion of language, the thrill of snow, the quiet intimacy of strangers who become touchstones. Her reverence for Iceland’s landscapes and people made me fall in love with a place I’ve never been.
Though her fixation on the last woman executed in Iceland didn’t resonate with me as deeply, Hannah’s own human connections woven around that story did.
What kept me reading was the deep undercurrent of gratitude and searching. This book is not just a memoir, it’s an ode to becoming, to being shaped by the places and people we never expected would change us.
I was drawn to this book because Hannah Kent gives voice to a chapter of life I know intimately… being a high school exchange student. While she found herself in the stark, haunting beauty of Iceland in 2004, I was on my own exchange only two years later. Her lyrical, tender reflections transported me not only to Iceland, but back to my own transformative year abroad in Montana.
The title itself aches with truth. Once you’ve lived deeply in two places, you carry them both forever. You are always home, and always homesick, simultaneously. It’s a quiet, lifelong ache: the impossibility of being in two places you love at once, of belonging fully to both, and to the versions of yourself that came alive in each.
Kent captures the ache and awe of immersion in a foreign culture, the confusion of language, the thrill of snow, the quiet intimacy of strangers who become touchstones. Her reverence for Iceland’s landscapes and people made me fall in love with a place I’ve never been.
Though her fixation on the last woman executed in Iceland didn’t resonate with me as deeply, Hannah’s own human connections woven around that story did.
What kept me reading was the deep undercurrent of gratitude and searching. This book is not just a memoir, it’s an ode to becoming, to being shaped by the places and people we never expected would change us.
July 7, 2025
I really enjoyed this audiobook and highly recommend it. Hannah Kent does a great job of narrating her own book and it is so much richer for the Icelandic language and pronunciation that wouldn’t come across the same in written form. I loved Burial Rites and really enjoyed Hannah’s story and connection to Iceland. I enjoyed learning more about Iceland and its people. I found it interesting the stark differences with Australian culture. I love how books and literacy and writers are highly valued there and that crafts and hobbies such as knitting are common for many people and not just women. I found it very curious that many Icelandic people seem to be open to mysticism and alternative even psychic views that comprise some of their history in relation to Agnes (main character in Burial Rites based on a real person).
I would love to visit Iceland one day but it might just be too far away… and I don’t know if would have the same charm if only able to visit fleetingly and not able to speak the language and be as immersed in the culture. Though in saying that apparently English is much more widely spoken these days.
I went on school exchange the same year as Hannah Kent but to an English speaking country and had quite a different experience.
I would like to read more of Hannah Kent’s work.
I would love to visit Iceland one day but it might just be too far away… and I don’t know if would have the same charm if only able to visit fleetingly and not able to speak the language and be as immersed in the culture. Though in saying that apparently English is much more widely spoken these days.
I went on school exchange the same year as Hannah Kent but to an English speaking country and had quite a different experience.
I would like to read more of Hannah Kent’s work.
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