In Translation: June Fiction and Poetry

It’s summertime here in ‘Murica, so if you’re headed to the beach, be sure to bring these fantastic books from Iran, France, Cuba, and Israel with you. Also if you’re headed to the pool. Or the park. Or the cafe. Or really anywhere. Enjoy!

Proustiennes edited & abridged by Jean Frémon, translated by Brian Evenson (Fence Books, 80 pages, June 21)

Here Frémon distills some of Marcel Proust’s most beautiful prose into “Proustiennes,” inviting us to delve (back) into the extraordinary À la recherche du temps perdu and belle époque Paris.

In Translation: May Fiction and Poetry

I say this every month, but I’m really excited about these new translations, you guys. We have some Tamil poetry co-translated by Ravi Shankar (RAVI SHANKAR!), a work of fiction-not-fiction from Spain, a novel by a Romanian Nobel laureate, and the story of a troubled childhood in Morocco. Dig in!


The Autobiography of a Goddess by Andal, translated by Priya Sarukkai Chabria and Ravi Shankar (Zubaan Books, 176 pages, May 15)

This is an exciting new collaborative translation of the work of 8th-century Tamil poet Andal. A “powerful expression of female sexuality in the Indian spiritual tradition,” Autobiography of a Goddess includes the Thiruppavaii, thirty pasuram sung before Lord Vishnu, and the erotic Nacchiyar Thirumoli.

In Translation: April Fiction and Poetry

Yes, April is the cruelest month because I have a list of new translations here for you, which means that your TBR pile/shelf/bookcase is going to get larger and more unwieldy. You’re going to have to live until you’re 800 or so just to read all the books you already have (don’t worry, I feel your pain). And so, without further ado, I bring you fiction from Japan, Portugal, and Cameroon, and poetry from Austria.

The Yellow Sofa by José Maria de Eça de Queirós, translated by John Vetch (New Directions, 128 pages, April 18)

Acclaimed Portuguese writer and diplomat Eça de Queirós (1845-1900) wrote twenty books in his lifetime, among them The Yellow Sofa, a story about marriage and forgiveness in the face of betrayal. His work has been compared to that of Dickens, Flaubert, and Tolstoy.

In Translation: February Fiction and Poetry

Looking for some fabulous titles in translation to get you through the February doldrums? Well, look no further than these works of fiction and poetry from India, France, Austria, and Germany. You. Are. Welcome.

The End of Days by Jenny Erpenbeck, translated from the German by Susan Bernofsky (New Directions, 320 pages, February 8)

Now out in paperback, Erpenbeck’s award-winning novel The End of Days follows one woman as she dies five different times. Each death occurs at a different moment in the 20th century, allowing Erpenbeck to explore the nexus of the personal and the historical.

 

In Translation: January Fiction and Poetry

This first “In Translation” post of 2016 is brought to you by Denmark, Japan, Russia, and Finland, and by 208, which is the number of pages in THREE OUT OF FOUR of the books I’ve highlighted here. That was not done on purpose. I’m still trying to figure out what it means.

This Should Be Written in the Present Tense by Helle Helle, translated by Martin Aitken (Soft Skull Press, 208 pages, January 12)

Danish writer and literary prize-winner Helle Helle brings us the story of Dorte, a 20-year-old girl leading a double life in an effort to figure out who she really wants to be. Considering Helle’s popularity in her home country (Denmark) and around the world, This Should Be Written in the Present Tense is one to watch for.

In Translation: December Fiction and Poetry

I don’t know about you, but it’s December and it’s cold and all I want to do is sit on a sofa chair drinking hot chocolate while reading a book. Wondering what you should read this month? I’ve got some suggestions, and they’re comin’ atcha from Egypt, Georgia, India, and Algeria. Enjoy!


Drumbeat by Mohamed El-Bisatie, translated by Peter Daniel (The American University in Cairo Press, 128 pages, December 30)

Winner of the Sawiris Foundation Award for Egyptian Literature, Drumbeat offers us a compelling look into the very heart of a stratified society and its relationship to sports and national pride.

In Translation: November Fiction and Poetry

Well, it’s November, and here in the U.S. that means Thanksgiving and holiday shopping. So what better way to pass the time while your relatives tell the same old boring stories and drag you to the mall to do the same old boring shopping than with some awesome fiction and poetry in translation from Austria, Spain, Estonia, and Serbia?! You know what, I even give you permission to read at the table during Thanksgiving dinner. You’re welcome.


Fata Morgana by Svetislav Basara, translated by Randall Major (Dalkey Archive Press, 210 pages November 27, 2015, Series: Serbian Literature)

From Serbian author and ambassador Svetislav Basara comes a collection of stories that respect no rules of time or space. Centered on the life of one writer during the communist and post-communist periods in the former Yugoslavia, Fata Morgana explores the impact of civil war and issues of mortality.

In Translation: October Fiction and Poetry

It’s finally October, so obviously you’re thinking about upcoming works in translation and what to get me for my birthday (wait, it’s also Halloween and pumpkin spice latte season??). Anyway, here’s some eye-catching fiction and poetry from Curaçao, Italy, Moravia, and Indonesia for you to check out. BTW, Home is currently sitting on top of my TBR pile, patiently waiting while I read Toni Sala’s intriguing novel The Boys (Two Lines Press). Looking forward to it!


The Roar of Morning by Tip Marugg, translated by Paul Vincent (Yale University Press, 144 pages, October 20; Series: The Margellos World Republic of Letters)

Caribbean mysticism meets Latin American magical realism meets Dutch colonial Calvinism?? SIGN ME UP. In this highly acclaimed work by Dutch-Caribbean author Tip Marugg, one man spends the night thinking over his past in Curaçao and Venezuela before his planned morning suicide (makes me think of The Floating Opera). Colonialism, sexual awakening, and illness plague his memories, and promise us a captivating read.

Random Recommendation Guest Post: Monograph by Simeon Berry

This recommendation comes from Joseph Spuckler. You can follow him on his Evil Cyclist's Blog, and on twitter @evil_cyclist.


Monograph (2015) by Simeon Berry

"Written in narrow sections that blur the distinction between flash fiction and prose poetry, between memoir and meditation, Monograph veers from the elliptical to the explosive as it dissects the Gordian knot of a marriage’s intellectual, sexual, and domestic lives. Invoking Raymond Chandler, Pythagoras, Joan Didion, and Virginia Woolf as presiding spirits, Simeon Berry curates the negative space of each wry tableau, destabilizing the high seriousness of every lyric aside and slipping quantum uncertainty into the stark lineaments of loss." 

Rachel's Random Recommendation #49: Night & Horses & the Desert: An Anthology of Classical Arabic Literature

Night & Horses & the Desert: An Anthology of Classical Arabic Literature (1999) ed. Robert Irwin

"Spanning the fifth to sixteenth centuries and societies that range from Afghanistan to Spain, this anthology is a testament to the astonishing grandeur and variety of classical Arabic literature. ...In Night & Horses & the Desert we encounter the dashing Byronic poetry of Imru’ al-Qays and a treatise on bibliomania by Al-Jahiz, possibly the only writer to have been killed by books. There’s a sorcerer’s manual from 11th century Spain and an allegory by the mysterious “Brethren of Purity,” in which animals argue their case against humanity. Encompassing piety and profanity, fables and philosophy, this volume is a thrilling and invaluabe introduction to one of the world’s great bodies of literature."

In Translation: August Fiction and Poetry

Summer’s almost over and how did that happen?? Well, what better way to cheer yourself up about that fact than by thinking about the new fiction and poetry in translation out this month! August offers us novels from Denmark, Egypt, and Korea, and poetry from Mexico.

What are you reading in translation?


Rock, Paper, Scissors by Naja Marie Aidt, translated by K.E. Semmel (Open Letter Press, 450 pages, August 11)

From Open Letter Press comes Naja Marie Aidt’s debut novel about families and destructive secrets. When Thomas and Jenny’s father dies, Thomas uncovers a secret from his father’s criminal past that turns his own world upside down. I for one am really looking forward to checking out this novel from the winner of the Nordic Council’s Literature Prize.

In Translation: July Fiction and Poetry

Comin’ atcha this month is a batch of mouth-wateringly awesome books in translation: a haunting tale from Mozambique, a fictionalized account of violence in 1950s Lebanon, poems from a brilliant but tragic Peruvian poet, and a Spanish thriller in the style of Graham Greene. I know, right?! Enjoy!

Confession of the Lioness by Mia Couto, translated by David Brookshaw (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 208 pages, July 14)

A biologist by profession, Couto is also one of the most respected writers in Mozambique and Portuguese-speaking Africa. He’s also received numerous literary awards, including the 2014 Neustadt International Prize for Literature. Cuoto’s Confession of the Lioness is a haunting story about the women of a remote village who are being hunted by “ghostlike lionesses.” Are these animals real or are they being conjured by these women in response to community-ingrained oppression? Confession is a fascinating exploration of the conflict between modernity and ancient traditions.

Rachel's Random Recommendation #42: Inventions of the March Hare by T. S. Eliot

Inventions of the March Hare: Poems 1909-1917 (1996) ed. Christopher Ricks

If you're an Eliot fan, you MUST pick up a copy of Inventions. Within are a ton of previously unpublished early poems, along with drafts of "Prufrock" and some risqué pieces (tee hee!). Trust me, it's worth every penny.

Rachel's Random Recommendation #41: Howl by Allen Ginsberg

Howl and Other Poems (1956) by Allen Ginsberg

"Allen Ginsberg's Howl & Other Poems was originally published by City Lights Books in the fall of 1956. Subsequently seized by U.S. Customs and the San Francisco police, it was the subject of a long court trial at which a series of poets and professors persuaded the court that the book was not obscene."

Here's a taste:

I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness,
     starving hysterical naked,
dragging themselves through the negro streets at dawn looking 
     for an angry fix,
angelheaded hipsters burning for the ancient heavenly
     connection to the starry dynamo in the machinery of night,
who poverty and tatters and hollow-eyed and high sat up smoking 
     in the supernatural darkness of cold-water flats floating 
     across the tops of cities contemplating jazz...