Set in a small coastal town in Iceland in the 1920s, this is the story of a deacon's family who is also engaged in worldly matters and owns a fishing fleet. The oldest daughter, Thurithur, is married to the son of the manager of the Danish-owned store, while the younger daughter, Rannveig, is unmarried but intelligent and gifted with her hands. They are the best families in town and always referred to as The People and their home as The House. This delicately composed story is an ironic picture of the society of the time and a timeless parable of the tyranny of family repute.
