Icelandic Roots Book Club February Gathering

February‘s IR Book Club with Guest Karen Gummo

Confessions of an Immigrant’s Daughter by Laura Goodman Salverson

Born in Winnipeg on December 9, 1890, Icelandic Roots members can locate the author in the Icelandic Roots database as Lára Gudmundsson IR# I22876736. Her parents emigrated from Reykjavík in 1887. Laura won the prestigious Canadian Governor General’s literary award in 1939 for Confessions of an Immigrant's Daughter.

This book describes her family’s struggles and experience in her life in various parts of Canada and the United States. Luckily for us, McGill-Queen’s University Press republished it in 2023, as it is the perfect topic for our book club. As we discussed last month, our fascination in our ancestry research is not fueled by a need to nail down statistics. It is a quest to discover firsthand stories that help us better understand the events and challenges experienced by our ancestors, which have shaped our lives and those that went before us. It is also a reminder of the importance of writing down our own stories to preserve them for future generations.

Early on in the novel, Laura learns about the stories of the Hidden People from her uncle, which is just one example of how the Icelandic culture is instilled in Laura, even though she never lived there. Her introspective life was very much affected by years of fragile health that kept her at home, carefully observing the world around her. It seems that the Goodmans were always packing up their belongings and moving from one province to another, or one state to another, which gives the story a wide view of life in a variety of circumstances.  When you realize everything that Laura’s parents lost, and how many times they started over, you get a solid understanding of the strength and determination of facing hardships that transpired in her lifetime, and the events that led her to her publications and life as a writer.

Karen Gummo during her 2023 presentation at the INLNA Convention in Banff, Alberta

I would not have discovered this wonderful book if it was not for our guest, Karen Gummo. Not only has she read most of Laura’s books, but she has also done extensive research. This includes connecting with Laura’s niece Jo Peterson, who shared a memoir written by Laura’s husband, George Sr, written one year after Laura’s death in 1970.

I met Karen at the Icelandic National League Convention of North America held at the Banff Centre in May of 2023. It was there that she gave one of her storytelling performances. It was called " Torment and Triumph,  Laura Goodman Salverson and Winnifred Eaton Reeve, Two Immigrant Daughters”. It is based upon a real-life rivalry prompted when Laura’s first novel, The Viking Heart, which received both local and international attention in 1923. Karen was then invited to perform this again at the new museum at the University of Iceland in Reykjavík, and I am sure this will be among one of the topics you will want to ask her about.

When I first approached Karen about being our guest for the book club, I suggested we read The Viking Heart, as I had a copy of it, and she was very keen. (Interestingly enough, a photocopy of The Viking Heart book cover, and a picture of Laura Salverson are featured in the month of July in the Icelandic National League of North America 2026 calendar entitled: “Celebrating the Legacy”.) “But Karen also suggested a book that was more was recently re-published, making it so much more accessible than my original idea. I am indebted to Karen, because Confessions of an Immigrant’s Daughter is one of those books I could not put down, and would like to buy for a dozen friends.

In closing, I should also give credit to Karen for telling me about and giving me contact information for Laura’s granddaughter, Julie Salverson and her book A Necessary Distance: Confessions of a Scriptwriter’s Daughter. Julie will be our guest at our next Icelandic Roots Book Club in March. Both February 5th and March  5th meetings will be at 7 pm CST, and hopefully our loyal member from the UK will be able to stay up again for those conversations after midnight in her time zone!