Iceland, Norway, Finland, Denmark; Estonia/Latvia/Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, et. al.

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Today, a smorgasbord of Norse and Eastern European culture:

Finland, but seriously: Finland's Education System Explained, and a comparison to U.S. Education here. Informative article about Finish writers can be found here and a link to some poetry samples.

Iceland and some writers from Iceland:
  • Halldor Laxness won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1955 and since we're studying mysteries and crime fiction, here's a page devoted to Icelandic Crime Writers and an article about Icelandic Poetry. Click on their links and learn about them on your own time. Some of their literature can be found in the packets this week.
Our focus today will briefly be on:
For those of you interested in Norse mythology (or mythology) and Vikings, here are a few interesting links:
Look here to read about some of the following famous authors.
New Swedish, Norwegian, and Danish film blockbusters:

Recently, filmmakers such as the Danish: Niels Arden Oplev:
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played With Fire, and the Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest  based on the novels of the late Stieg Larsson
Here's a short, cute Danish film: Little Man for those of you who interested in film and film writing.

And now, an introduction to the Baltic States, Baltic States: Culture and images from the Baltic States:
Estonia: Estonian Literature
Latvia: Famous Latvian Authors/Filmmakers
Lithuania: Famous Lithuanian Writers
Belarus: Belarusian Writers
Ukraine: Ukrainian Authors

HOMEWORK: Complete the handout regarding the sites listed here for these countries. Turn in your homework next class (Wednesday) as participation credit. Keep reading And Then There Were None.

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