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  • Experts

Translation

    The Best Kids’ Books in Translation, recommended by Adam Freudenheim

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    The Best Kids’ Books in Translation - The Murderer's Ape by Jakob Wegelius & Peter Graves (translator)

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    The Murderer's Ape
    by Jakob Wegelius & Peter Graves (translator)

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    The Best Kids’ Books in Translation - Maresi by Annie Prime (translator) & Maria Turtschaninoff

    2

    Maresi
    by Annie Prime (translator) & Maria Turtschaninoff

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    The Best Kids’ Books in Translation - The Cat Who Came in off the Roof by Annie M.G. Schmidt & David Colmer (translator)

    3

    The Cat Who Came in off the Roof
    by Annie M.G. Schmidt & David Colmer (translator)

  • Read
    The Best Kids’ Books in Translation - Reckless: The Petrified Flesh by Cornelia Funke & Oliver Latsch (translator)

    4

    Reckless: The Petrified Flesh
    by Cornelia Funke & Oliver Latsch (translator)

  • Read
    The Best Kids’ Books in Translation - The Letter for the King by Laura Watkinson (translator) & Tonke Dragt

    5

    The Letter for the King
    by Laura Watkinson (translator) & Tonke Dragt

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    The Best Kids’ Books in Translation - The Beast Player by Cathy Hirano (translator) & Nahoko Uehashi

    6

    The Beast Player
    by Cathy Hirano (translator) & Nahoko Uehashi

The Best Kids’ Books in Translation, recommended by Adam Freudenheim

There is no shortage of great kids’ books written in English, but reading books in translation can open up whole new worlds and surprising perspectives. Adam Freudenheim, managing director of Pushkin Press, talks us through some of his favourites among the many books he’s published for kids, translated from other languages.

    The Best Novels in Translation: the 2019 Booker International Prize, recommended by Bettany Hughes

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    The Best Novels in Translation: the 2019 Booker International Prize - Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk, translated by Antonia Lloyd-Jones

    1

    Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead
    by Olga Tokarczuk, translated by Antonia Lloyd-Jones

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    The Best Novels in Translation: the 2019 Booker International Prize - Celestial Bodies by Jokha Alharthi, translated by Marilyn Booth

    2

    Celestial Bodies
    by Jokha Alharthi, translated by Marilyn Booth

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    The Best Novels in Translation: the 2019 Booker International Prize - The Years by Annie Ernaux, translated by Alison Strayer

    3

    The Years
    by Annie Ernaux, translated by Alison Strayer

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    The Best Novels in Translation: the 2019 Booker International Prize - The Pine Islands by Jen Calleja & Marion Poschmann

    4

    The Pine Islands
    by Jen Calleja & Marion Poschmann

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    The Best Novels in Translation: the 2019 Booker International Prize - The Shape of the Ruins by Juan Gabriel Vásquez, translated by Anne McLean

    5

    The Shape of the Ruins
    by Juan Gabriel Vásquez, translated by Anne McLean

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    The Best Novels in Translation: the 2019 Booker International Prize - The Remainder by Alia Trabucco Zerán, translated by Sophie Hughes

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    The Remainder
    by Alia Trabucco Zerán, translated by Sophie Hughes

The Best Novels in Translation: the 2019 Booker International Prize, recommended by Bettany Hughes

Bettany Hughes, author of Istanbul: A Tale of Three Cities and chair of this year’s Booker International Prize judging panel, talks us through the six books they have shortlisted for the title of best novel in translation.

    Books every Chinese Language Learner Should Read, recommended by Chris Livaccari

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    Books every Chinese Language Learner Should Read - The Languages of China by Robert S Ramsey

    1

    The Languages of China
    by Robert S Ramsey

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    Books every Chinese Language Learner Should Read - The Sextants of Beijing by Joanna Waley-Cohen

    2

    The Sextants of Beijing
    by Joanna Waley-Cohen

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    Books every Chinese Language Learner Should Read - Wandering on the Way by Zhuangzi (aka Chuang Tzu)

    3

    Wandering on the Way
    by Zhuangzi (aka Chuang Tzu)

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    Books every Chinese Language Learner Should Read - Diary of a Madman and Other Stories by Lu Xun

    4

    Diary of a Madman and Other Stories
    by Lu Xun

  • Read
    Books every Chinese Language Learner Should Read - The Story of the Stone by Cao Xueqin

    5

    The Story of the Stone
    by Cao Xueqin

Books every Chinese Language Learner Should Read, recommended by Chris Livaccari

China covers a vast territory, and is far more ethnically and culturally diverse than many outsiders assume. Chris Livaccari, a veteran Chinese language teacher, recommends books he believes every Chinese language learner should read.

    The Best of Georgian Literature, recommended by Gvantsa Jobava

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    The Best of Georgian Literature - The Knight in the Panther Skin by Lyn Coffin (translator) & Shota Rustaveli

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    The Knight in the Panther Skin
    by Lyn Coffin (translator) & Shota Rustaveli

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    The Best of Georgian Literature - Kvachi by Donald Rayfield (Translator) & Mikheil Javakhishvili

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    Kvachi
    by Donald Rayfield (Translator) & Mikheil Javakhishvili

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    The Best of Georgian Literature - A Man Was Going Down the Road by Donald Rayfield (Translator) & Otar Chiladze

    3

    A Man Was Going Down the Road
    by Donald Rayfield (Translator) & Otar Chiladze

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    The Best of Georgian Literature - The Lame Doll by Ani Kopaliani (translator), Besik Kharanauli & Timothy Kercher (translator)

    4

    The Lame Doll
    by Ani Kopaliani (translator), Besik Kharanauli & Timothy Kercher (translator)

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    The Best of Georgian Literature - The Cushion by Elizabeth Heighway (translator), Irakli Samsonadze & Philip Price (translator)

    5

    The Cushion
    by Elizabeth Heighway (translator), Irakli Samsonadze & Philip Price (translator)

The Best of Georgian Literature, recommended by Gvantsa Jobava

How does a country left in ruins by 70 years of Soviet oppression rebuild its literature? It starts from scratch and breaks all the rules. Gvantsa Jobava reveals the riches of Georgian literature, from 12th-century feminist epics to radical, experimental accounts of a post-Independence underworld

    Neil Griffiths recommends the best Indie Fiction of 2017

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    Neil Griffiths recommends the best Indie Fiction of 2017 - Compass by Charlotte Mandell (translator) & Mathias Enard

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    Compass
    by Charlotte Mandell (translator) & Mathias Enard

  • Read
    Neil Griffiths recommends the best Indie Fiction of 2017 - We That Are Young by Preti Taneja

    2

    We That Are Young
    by Preti Taneja

  • Read
    Neil Griffiths recommends the best Indie Fiction of 2017 - Robinson by Jack Robinson

    3

    Robinson
    by Jack Robinson

  • Read
    Neil Griffiths recommends the best Indie Fiction of 2017 - Blue Self-Portrait by Noémi Lefebvre

    4

    Blue Self-Portrait
    by Noémi Lefebvre

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    Neil Griffiths recommends the best Indie Fiction of 2017 - The Iron Age by Arja Kajermo

    5

    The Iron Age
    by Arja Kajermo

Neil Griffiths recommends the best Indie Fiction of 2017

Publishing took a hit in the 2007-8 financial crisis, but tough times may just have changed the industry for the better. As the big guys consolidate and tighten their margins, cracks grow wider and more books slip through… Which is good news for the publishers ready to catch them. The novelist Neil Griffiths, founder of a new prize for small presses, discusses 2017’s best indie books and celebrates publishers who ‘think like you, read like you, and live books like you’

    The best books on Language and Thought, recommended by Daniel L. Everett

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    The best books on Language and Thought - Language: An Introduction to the Study of Speech by Edward Sapir

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    Language: An Introduction to the Study of Speech
    by Edward Sapir

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    The best books on Language and Thought - Language In Relation To A Unified Theory Of The Structure Of Human Behaviour by Kenneth Pike

    2

    Language In Relation To A Unified Theory Of The Structure Of Human Behaviour
    by Kenneth Pike

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    The best books on Language and Thought - Aspects of the Theory of Syntax by Noam Chomsky

    3

    Aspects of the Theory of Syntax
    by Noam Chomsky

  • Read
    The best books on Language and Thought - On Understanding Grammar by Talmy Givón

    4

    On Understanding Grammar
    by Talmy Givón

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    The best books on Language and Thought - Making It Explicit: Reasoning, Representing & Discursive Commitment by Robert Brandom

    5

    Making It Explicit: Reasoning, Representing & Discursive Commitment
    by Robert Brandom

The best books on Language and Thought, recommended by Daniel L. Everett

The linguist argues that all language has a basis in culture and explains how Chomsky is like Freud: crucial, but crucially wrong. He chooses five of the best books on linguistics.

    The best books on Translation, recommended by Edith Grossman

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    The best books on Translation - Don Quixote by Cervantes (translated by Samuel Putnam)

    1

    Don Quixote
    by Cervantes (translated by Samuel Putnam)

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    The best books on Translation - One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

    2

    One Hundred Years of Solitude
    by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

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    The best books on Translation - The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis by José Saramago (translated by Giovanni Pontiero)

    3

    The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis
    by José Saramago (translated by Giovanni Pontiero)

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    The best books on Translation - Translating Neruda by John Felstiner

    4

    Translating Neruda
    by John Felstiner

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    The best books on Translation - Paul Celan by John Felstiner

    5

    Paul Celan
    by John Felstiner

The best books on Translation, recommended by Edith Grossman

The award-winning literary translator discusses books on and of translation that inspired her, and considers the trade-off that every translator faces, between fidelity and meaning

    Daniel Mendelsohn on Updating the Classics (of Greek and Roman Literature)

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    Daniel Mendelsohn on Updating the Classics (of Greek and Roman Literature) - The Iliad by Homer

    1

    The Iliad
    by Homer

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    Daniel Mendelsohn on Updating the Classics (of Greek and Roman Literature) - Ransom by David Malouf

    2

    Ransom
    by David Malouf

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    Daniel Mendelsohn on Updating the Classics (of Greek and Roman Literature) - The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

    3

    The Song of Achilles
    by Madeline Miller

  • Read
    Daniel Mendelsohn on Updating the Classics (of Greek and Roman Literature) - The Lost Books of the Odyssey by Zachary Mason

    4

    The Lost Books of the Odyssey
    by Zachary Mason

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    Daniel Mendelsohn on Updating the Classics (of Greek and Roman Literature) - The Infinities by John Banville

    5

    The Infinities
    by John Banville

Daniel Mendelsohn on Updating the Classics (of Greek and Roman Literature)

Greek myths were themselves elastic so there is no reason the classics of Roman and Greek literature shouldn’t be updated, says classicist Daniel Mendelsohn. He talks us through some of his favourites.

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