Treading a Fine Line: On Translating Tove Ditlevsen’s Gift, by Michael Favala Goldman

On Translation Browsing a Copenhagen airport bookstore, a translator picks up a book. The journey between that impulse and his eventual translation of the memoir into English was both emotional and serendipitous. In the summer of 2016 I was passing through Kastrup Airport in Copenhagen with my wife, on our way home after a visit with family. We stopped to browse the bookstore, and I noticed a reprint of a book by Danish author Tove Ditlevsen called Gift, which had first been published in 1971. I hadn’t read much of her work, but I knew she was a big name, so I bought it, even though the cover was strange, a psychedelic skull on a gray background. It did not take more than a couple of sittings to devour this memoir of Tove Ditlevsen’s life from the ages of about twenty-three to thirty-five. It chronicles her rise as a best-selling author, while she also had four failed marriages, two back-alley abortions, and a five-year near-fatal addiction to the opioid Demerol. I distinctly remember laying the book down after the final page and thinking to myself, I think this is a masterpiece. This was an intuitive judgment, not a conclusion I had come to after analyzing the text. But looking back now, I think what caused me to deem this work a masterpiece is the combination of Ditlevsen’s writing style, which is concise, honest, and ironic, combined with the content of her story, which through her many troubling experiences pulls back the... Continue reading at 'World Literature Today'

[ World Literature Today | 2021-04-06 13:12:22 UTC ]
News tagged with: #living room #bidding war #good candidates #small publisher #memoir

Other Publishing stories related to: 'Treading a Fine Line: On Translating Tove Ditlevsen’s Gift, by Michael Favala Goldman'


The Gifts Customers Give Us (shelftalker)

Moments of trust and connection from customers make the holiday spirit real for booksellers. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-12-16 13:00:34 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


20 Of The Best Books To Give As Gifts This Year

These are the best books to gift this holiday season, according to book lovers on Goodreads. Continue reading at The Huffington Post

[ The Huffington Post | 2019-12-13 17:33:40 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #holiday season #book lovers


65% of owners buy their pets holiday gifts. Here’s what to get your dog.

There really is something to that “four-legged family member” mindset. If you’ve made it to this article, you’re probably at least thinking about getting a gift for your pet these holidays. You’re not alone: A 2018 report from Nielsen found that 65% of pet owners bought their pet a birthday or... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2019-12-13 11:05:20 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #ve made #nielsen found #nielsen


Reporting from the front lines of the war against the Islamic State

Mike Giglio describes how various groups came together in the grinding fight against the militants. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2019-12-13 06:52:26 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #front lines #islamic state


ALA Midwinter 2020: On E-books, Librarians Must Hold the Line

As librarians gather in Philadelphia for the 2020 ALA Midwinter Meeting, the future of digital content in libraries remains uncertain. Librarians must stay engaged. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-12-13 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #librarians gather #stay engaged #libraries #digital content


Michaels Resigns as Macmillan Learning CEO

With Ken Michaels' departure, Macmillan Learning general manager, Susan Winslow, will lead the company with the group’s senior leadership team. They will report to Macmillan CEO John Sargent. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-12-13 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #ken michaels #macmillan


World Literature Today’s 75 Notable Translations of 2019, by Michelle Johnson

News and Events Michelle Johnson In 2019 WLT continued publishing fiction, poems, interviews, and essays in translation—publishing more than 50 pieces from languages ranging from Albanian to Zoque—along with pieces by translators about their work. In... Continue reading at World Literature Today

[ World Literature Today | 2019-12-10 14:32:34 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #ludmila ulitskaya #guzel yakhina #science fiction #man booker international prize #national book award


Michael Joseph pre-empts Klass' climate activist thriller

Michael Joseph has joined sister companies in the US and Germany in pre-empting an “astonishingly of-the-moment” thriller about a climate activist, Out of Time by author and Hollywood screenwriter David Klass. Rights to adapt the title have also been sold to Netflix. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-12-09 00:28:37 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #michael joseph #climate activist


Joni Mitchell figured out the perfect gift for the people who have everything

Her new book, “Morning Glory on the Vine,” brings together lyrics and drawings that she once gave to close friends. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2019-12-06 13:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #perfect gift #close friends


In Michael Eric Dyson’s new book, Jay-Z is the living embodiment of American ideals

The Georgetown professor’s “JAY-Z: Made in America” paints the rapper as the ultimate hustler in a nation built by hustlers and strivers. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2019-12-05 14:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #living embodiment


India in Guadalajara: ‘Translation is Part of Our Mental Makeup’

India has sent Spanish translations and more than 100 authors to Mexico’s Guadalajara International Book Fair as the show's guest of honor. The post India in Guadalajara: ‘Translation is Part of Our Mental Makeup’ appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2019-12-04 09:30:57 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #post india


The best books to read — and gift — in December

End-of-year titles, from wild science fiction to road-tripping memoirs, make promising presents. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2019-12-03 18:10:36 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #science fiction


The Guardian view on Amazon’s football coup: beware tech giants bearing gifts | Editorial

The US experience of watching sport online should ring alarm bells for those who prize the Premier League’s ability to bring people togetherIn the late 1960s, the American author and tech seer Richard Brautigan wrote lyrically of “a cybernetic meadow / where mammals and computers / live together... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2019-12-02 18:49:42 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #premier league #late 1960s #prime service #american author


OPEN CALL: Arabic-English Translation Workshop, Sharjah

As part of the Sharjah Market Focus at The London Book Fair in March 2020, the British Council have partnered with New Writing North, Kalimat Group and Sharjah World Book Capital to offer an Arabic-English/English-Arabic Translation Workshop in February 2020.This is an opportunity for up to six... Continue reading at British Council global

[ British Council global | 2019-12-02 14:33:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #literary professionals #arab world #track record #medical advice #world book #london book fair


SoA unveils shortlists for 2019's Translation Prizes

The shortlists for the Society of Authors’ 2019 Translation Prizes have been revealed, seeing 35 translated works from nine different languages put into the running for almost £20,000 in prizes. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-12-02 08:11:57 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Walker to publish Michael Rosen's family tale of the Second World War

Walker Books will publish Michael Rosen’s The Missing; The True Story of my Family in World War Two in January 2020. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-11-26 17:56:29 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #walker books #world war #true story


5 Small Press Audiobooks To Give As Gifts This Year

For book lovers, Small Business Saturday means a trip to the local independent bookstore, many of which invite local authors to hang out and make recommendations. If you’re an audiobook lover you can still support small businesses, and I don’t mean purchasing your audiobooks on compact disc. Ask... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2019-11-25 09:48:59 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book lovers #make recommendations #local indie #audiobook #small press


Border crossing: How translated fiction can open up the world

The new Elena Ferrante is just one of the exciting novels in translation coming next year. Lara Feigel talks to the UK editors who are rediscovering classics and finding new audiencesThere are voices that speak to us across oceans and centuries with more intimacy than the people who surround us... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2019-11-23 08:00:49 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #vigdis hjorth #long descriptions #translated works #neapolitan quartet #literary fiction #literary world


IDW Debuts Spanish Graphic Novel Line with Takei's 'They Called Us Enemy'

IDW kicks off its Spanish-language graphic novel publishing initiative with George Takei's bestsellilng graphic memoir 'They Called Us Enemy,' to be released in a Spanish edition in June 2020. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-11-21 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #george takei #publishing initiative #graphic memoir #graphic novel


Waterstones and Fourth Estate to launch The Mirror & The Light gift card

Waterstones and Fourth Estate will team up this Christmas to create a gift card celebrating Hilary Mantel’s eagerly-awaited The Mirror & The Light, the first time the chain has created a gift card for a specific title. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-11-20 19:54:20 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #fourth estate #gift card