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, El núcleo del disturbio came out in 2002, she was 24 years old, a fresh, female voice in a Latin American literary scene dominated by male greats: Jorge Luis Borges, Julio Cortázar, Mario Vargas Llosa, Gabriel García Márquez. Every good review was important, even if the praise was occasionally backhanded: one well-known Argentinian critic loved her debut and said that she wrote like a man.More than a decade later, she rolls her eyes. “That’s a compliment? It was so strange to me … and he was trying to be very nice, trying to cheer me up and push my career,” says Schweblin, now with a Man Booker International prize nomination under her belt. Related: In their own words: 10 female translators on the work that inspires them Related: The malice and sexism behind the ‘unmasking’ of Elena Ferrante Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2017-08-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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