The Engleson Files

When it comes to Christmas characters, no figure is a horrifying as Grýla, the Icelandic child-eating, bloodthirsty troll. Now, Grýla (as the Icelandic children have been taught through the ages) is best known for her ability to hear naughty children from far away. Since her two husbands, Boli and Leppalúði, are bedridden and cannot help support her during the hectic Christmas season, it is she who must do the work of gathering up all the naughty children and preparing them for her famous Yuletide stew. So, in Iceland, it is custom that children place a used shoe on their windowsill every night eleven days before Christmas and await gifts from each of her 11 children, the Jólasveinar; and, if a certain child has been naughty, she will then have that child stolen and brought back to her lair for dinnertime preparation. Oh yes, I am sure Grýla has scared the you-know-what out of a few Icelandic kids over the past hundred or so years, and I definitely think it keeps kids in line more than, “and he knows if you’ve been bad or good, so be good for goodness sake,” which is why, tomorrow, Magnus Bjorn will officially be introduced to Grýla and her 11 Jólasveinar. Magnus, I am sorry, but your life will never be the same. Merry Christmas son!