Now that the Icelandic economy has collapsed, and culture is again more important than money, maybe someone can provide the names of a few more Icelandic authors than Arnaldur Indriðason and Halldór Laxness. See:
List of Icelandic writers - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
So, who is cosseted, pampered and overpaid, who is ascetic, noble and holy? Names. Max asks a pertinent question, and I hope we get answers.
I suspect that Sjón is important; there must be others.