What do you get when a story-telling priest from Eastern Norway collaborates with an illustrator from Iceland? Colourful children’s books about the history of Hemnesberget, that’s what!
Kim Astrup, who has served as a priest at Hemnesberget and elsewhere for over 30 years, has always had a keen interest in sharing exciting stories! Valva Guðríður Gísladóttir has been painting as long as she can remember; today she has her own gallery at Hemnesberget. Based on their shared fascination for the people and stories of the local community, they started creating a series of children’s books that retell exciting stories from the past. A third contributor has been graphic designer Hilde Sletten, who did the book design. So far, two books of these books have been published.
Their books are sold at goldsmith Merete Mattson’s store on the quay in Hemnesberget. If you’re lucky, maybe you will meet Jorunn there, a woman who can share firsthand stories of what happened during the German occupation. It’s also worth a closer look to see where this all happened. So take a walk through Hemnesberget, especially to historic Lapphella where Jorunn grew up.
