Latest Previews (Forethoughts)
Forethoughts: Accabadora by Michela Murgia
Not only has this novel won six literary awards in its native Italy, it looks like it may feature old women, who go around the island of Sardinia clubbing people on their deathbeds.
Forethoughts: Atlas of Remote Islands by Judith Schalansky
I’ve had my eye on Judith Schalansky’s unique island-focussed atlas for a while now, and it’s time to find out whether it’s as good as it looks. If it is then I’m in for one heck of an armchair voyage.
Latest Reviews (Afterthoughts)
Afterthoughts: Atlas of Remote Islands by Judith Schalansky
Well written and beautifully presented, Atlas of Remote Islands is a perfect companion for anyone wishing to escape their dreary surroundings to indulge in a spot of remote island-hopping, where myth, oddity and disaster rule supreme.
Afterthoughts: Earth and Ashes by Atiq Rahimi
This may be a slender offering from Rahimi but don’t let it trick you into thinking that it has no depth. There’s lot of story packed into a small space, and it’s one which is as profound and as elegant as anything longer you may have read.
Translated Fiction News
Rafik Schami features in new Words Without Borders edition
The August edition of Words Without Borders is online now, featuring an interview with Syrian novelist Rafik Schami.
Independent Foreign Fiction Prize 2011 longlist announced
The longlist for this year’s Independent Foreign Fiction Prize was announced earlier today. Funded by Arts Council England, and administrated for the first time this year by the Booktrust, the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize is the only UK prize dedicated to translated fiction. It is also the only prize where the translator is given the [...]
Three Percent announce longlist for 2011 Best Translated Book Awards
American translated fiction website Three Percent reveal the 25 titles chosen for this year’s Best Translated Book Awards longlist.
Book News: World lit fans gear up for PEN World Voices Festival
Tomorrow sees the launch of this year’s PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature as 150 top writers from 40 countries gather in New York City to participate in a week-long celebration of global writing. And this year’s Festival is set to be the biggest yet, as it also ‘takes to the road’ for the [...]
Shortlist for the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize 2010 revealed
It was an exciting start to a dreary morning, as the shortlist for this year’s Independent Foreign Fiction Prize was announced earlier today. Taken from the original longlist of 15, which included big ‘hitter’s such as Jonathan Littell’s The Kindly Ones (Chatto & Windus) and Yoko Ogawa’s The Housekeeper and the Professor (Harvill Secker), the [...]
Given that it offers an opportunity to travel the world at will without having to physically go anywhere, it's surprising that so few readers take any real interest in translated fiction. Not so at RobAroundBooks where the literary form is put on a pedestal offering an insight into the sights, sounds and culture that can be enjoyed by the more cosmopolitan reader.
