Found in translation: the English-language writers who succeed abroad

Authors Donna Leon, Laura Kasischke and Simon Beckett ponder the happy mysteries of scoring hits with foreign-language readersFor the American writer Laura Kasischke, the first inkling of her second life in France came when a former student wrote to say her portrait was on the cover of Le Monde. Kasischke was teaching creative writing at a community college in Michigan, with two collections of poetry and a couple of novels already under her belt. But when her first novel appeared in France as À Suspicious River in 1999, it launched a spectacular literary career in translation that took her completely by surprise and is still going strong nearly two decades on.Today, Kasischke is better known in the US as a poet, winning prizes including the National Book Critics Circle award for her 2011 collection Space, in Chains – though she jokes that in the US no one is really well-known for their poetry.Europeans read serious fiction in great numbers, and it is common to hear people speak seriously about literatureI was boarding a plane when someone ran after me shouting my name. I thought there must be a problem with my ticketI think reading a translation is an act of faith Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2017-01-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #le monde

Other Publishing stories related to: 'Found in translation: the English-language writers who succeed abroad'


Found in translation: the English-language writers who succeed abroad

Authors Donna Leon, Laura Kasischke and Simon Beckett ponder the happy mysteries of scoring hits with foreign-language readersFor the American writer Laura Kasischke, the first inkling of her second life in France came when a former student wrote to say her portrait was on the cover of Le Monde.... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2017-01-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #le monde


Koos Prinsloo: the cult Afrikaans writer has been translated to English – here's a review

Challenging myths about heterosexual white South African men, Prinsloo published four books of short stories in 12 years. Continue reading at The Conversation

[ The Conversation | 2022-11-28 05:37:53 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #short stories


Lost to translation: how English readers miss out on foreign female writers

Only a third of books translated into English last year were by female writers. As Women in Translation month wraps up, we investigate why – and if things are changing• In their own words: 10 female translators on the work that inspires themWhen Argentinian author Samanta Schweblin’s first book,... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2017-08-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #books translated #female writers


Why Do English Language Pubs Lag on Translating Classics?

One of the greatest post-war Dutch novels, Gerard Reve's 'De Avonden' (or 'The Evenings'), which was originally published in 1947, is finally being translated into English. What took so long? Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-03-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #originally published


The English patient: bestseller Jin Yong’s long wait for English-language publication

It has been a long road to publication in the English language for Jin Yong, one of China’s most renowned writers, whose footprint on the nation’s cultural landscape is vast. But it may prove to have been worth the wait... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2018-08-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #long wait #english patient #long road #english language #cultural landscape


Bologna 2024: TikTok Pushes English-Language Book Sales in Europe

The growth of English-language book sales in continental Europe is on the rise, fueled by interest generated on TikTok and fed in large part by Amazon. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-04-16 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #continental europe #large part


First US Anthology Celebrates Literary Translators’ Work from Nineteen Languages, by The Editors of WLT

First US Anthology Celebrates Literary Translators’ Work from Nineteen Languages, by The Editors of WLT News and Events [email protected] Mon, 04/08/2024 - 14:33 The first US anthology celebrating the breadth of literary translators’ work debuts... Continue reading at World Literature Today

[ World Literature Today | 2024-04-08 19:33:31 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #deep vellum #anthology


London Book Fair: Translation and Arabic as a ‘Global Language’

On London Book Fair's final day, 'Translating in a Global Language' looked at vernacular dialects and Modern Standard Arabic. The post London Book Fair: Translation and Arabic as a ‘Global Language’ appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2023-04-21 17:27:58 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #final day


Sheikh Zayed Book Award: Funding for Nine Translations, Arabic Into Five Languages

Nine newly announced translations supported by the UAE's Sheikh Zayed Book Award have taken Arabic books into five languages. The post Sheikh Zayed Book Award: Funding for Nine Translations, Arabic Into Five Languages appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2023-01-03 20:39:38 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #arabic books #languages appeared #zayed book


Hamilton author had his children's book translated into a sign language, and says everyone should do it

Bruce Simpson self published Paislee and the Talking Tree, and put an American Sign Language version online. Members of the deaf community say such translations are still not that common with newer books and applaud the move. Continue reading at CBC

[ CBC | 2022-02-28 21:15:37 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book translated #sign language #children's book


Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre and Zayed Award Enter a UK Translation Partnership

The new partnership highlights the Sheikh Zayed Book Award's translation prize and funding and supports the UK's National Centre's work. The post Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre and Zayed Award Enter a UK Translation Partnership appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-01-20 02:10:35 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #translation prize #national centre #zayed book


1968 signs first English translation of Becker-Ho's 'immensely important' work

Radical left publishing house 1968 Press has signed the first English translation of Alice Becker-Ho’s “immensely important” The First Ghetto. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2021-12-13 18:56:30 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #english translation


Storytel extends into English language market with $135m Audiobooks deal

Streaming company Storytel has signed a deal to acquire Audiobooks.com from owner KKR for $135m (£101m), extending its reach into English language audio market. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2021-11-12 01:57:18 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Lost and Found in Translation: Storytelling and the Untranslatable, by Michał Rusinek

Essay Photo by Eileen Pan / Unsplash “Instead of a totalizing interpretation,” writes the author, translators should seek a dialogical one. “We have to leave space,” he writes, “for a story, an anecdote, a metaphorical footnote.” We all spend a... Continue reading at World Literature Today

[ World Literature Today | 2021-10-20 18:36:14 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #generally speaking #picture book


Evaristo and Faulks among writers calling for translator cover credits

Bestselling authors including Bernardine Evaristo, Sebastian Faulks and Preti Taneja have called on writers to ask their publishers for translator names to appear on book covers. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2021-09-30 06:26:35 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book covers


10 Arabic titles that should be translated into English

With Sharjah as London Book Fair’s guest of honour in 2022, the time is nigh – nay, now – for publishers to acquire Arabic titles for translation. But where to start? Unlike other languages such as Korean or Swedish, which have robust agenting infrastructure, very few Arab authors have agents to... Continue reading at British Council global

[ British Council global | 2021-06-29 14:19:46 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #saudi arabia #hisham matar #starting point #non-fiction title #book of the year #zayed book


Just 0.7% of GCSE English Lit students study writers of colour, PRH research shows

Research commissioned by Penguin Random House has revealed only 0.7% of English Literature GCSE students in England study a book by a writer of colour while only 7% study a book by a woman. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2021-06-28 22:57:04 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #research commissioned #english literature #penguin random house


Lawrence Block and P.G. Wodehouse: How two prolific writers found their voices

‘A Writer Prepares’ and ‘P.G. Wodehouse: Early Years’ demonstrate how hard work — and talent — paid off Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2021-04-28 06:45:01 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #early years


Olga Tokarczuk's 'magnum opus' finally gets English release – after seven years of translation

The Books of Jacob, praised by the Nobel prize judges and winner of Poland’s prestigious Nike award, will be published in the UK in NovemberThe magnum opus of Nobel laureate Olga Tokarczuk – a novel that has taken seven years to translate and has brought its author death threats in her native... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2021-02-26 15:00:18 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #native poland #olga tokarczuk #magnum opus #polish author #first novel


Raven Books lands Samira Sedira's English language debut

Raven Books is to publish People Like Them, the "brutal" English language debut of French Algerian novelist, actor and playwright Samira Sedira.  Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2021-01-15 06:48:48 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #raven books