I am always so impressed by the art of translation itself - the care translators must take to accurately convey the author's meaning in another language! This is a great list -- I just read "I Who Have Never Known Men" and "Thirst," which were both great translated works!
I am so tremendously happy when someone mentions polish literature 🫶 Olga Tokarczuk is great and I love the attention she gets in mainstream media lately but we have more amazing writers! I implore you to read Bruno Schultz, Wisława Szymborska (also a Nobel laureate), Witold Gombrowicz, Bolesław Prus and many more. It is all yours to explore
I am happy to see you include Wiszlawa. I discovered her last year and she has become one of my favorite poets. Her poems are strong and beautiful in translation. I can only imagine how powerful they must be in mother tongue.
first of all, i LOVE white nights oml. second of all, i couldn’t agree more!! it is always so valuable and critical to engage with stories and worldviews from different cultures and i would argue this is especially necessary in times of conflict!! however, it’s unfortunate when a fraught political climate often prompts some to try and “cancel” some cultures which i think is counterproductive because all cultural understanding is a means to greater understanding and peace as a whole <3 i say this as someone who studies russian, who does not support russia but sees the value in the bridges all languages can build nevertheless 💓
i love this list thank you. i've read most of them actually but am excited to check out the ones i havent… already added them to my goodreads. pessoa and lispector are incredible and reading japanese literature always trips me out in a good way. please make a list of translated poetry, im so curious what your picks would be!
I remember reading an interview with Italo Calvino (or maybe it was an essay he wrote?) where he was discussing his work being translated. In particular, he mentioned "The Colorless Knight" being translated as "The Black & White Knight", to which he wrote the translator that it wasn't correct. I love that.
I'm currently reading "Sanatorium under the sign of the hourglass" by Bruno Schulz, and I'm consistently blown away by the prose -- how the translator knew the best words to convey Schulz's frantic, dream-like prose IS an artform
I have several bilingual poetry editions, and while I can't read the non-English, having the two languages side-by-side is a lovely visual reminder and acknowledgment (respect) to the soul and presence of the original voice as well as the labor of love by the translator.
I am always so impressed by the art of translation itself - the care translators must take to accurately convey the author's meaning in another language! This is a great list -- I just read "I Who Have Never Known Men" and "Thirst," which were both great translated works!
I am so tremendously happy when someone mentions polish literature 🫶 Olga Tokarczuk is great and I love the attention she gets in mainstream media lately but we have more amazing writers! I implore you to read Bruno Schultz, Wisława Szymborska (also a Nobel laureate), Witold Gombrowicz, Bolesław Prus and many more. It is all yours to explore
Beata,
I am happy to see you include Wiszlawa. I discovered her last year and she has become one of my favorite poets. Her poems are strong and beautiful in translation. I can only imagine how powerful they must be in mother tongue.
Hi Karen! I especially love this sung version of the poem „Nic dwa razy” (or „Nothing twice” I believe is the english title) by a young polish singer sanah. Give it a listen here: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=rR001X7JQy8&pp=ygUMbmljIGR3YSByYXp5 ❤️
first of all, i LOVE white nights oml. second of all, i couldn’t agree more!! it is always so valuable and critical to engage with stories and worldviews from different cultures and i would argue this is especially necessary in times of conflict!! however, it’s unfortunate when a fraught political climate often prompts some to try and “cancel” some cultures which i think is counterproductive because all cultural understanding is a means to greater understanding and peace as a whole <3 i say this as someone who studies russian, who does not support russia but sees the value in the bridges all languages can build nevertheless 💓
i love this list thank you. i've read most of them actually but am excited to check out the ones i havent… already added them to my goodreads. pessoa and lispector are incredible and reading japanese literature always trips me out in a good way. please make a list of translated poetry, im so curious what your picks would be!
I remember reading an interview with Italo Calvino (or maybe it was an essay he wrote?) where he was discussing his work being translated. In particular, he mentioned "The Colorless Knight" being translated as "The Black & White Knight", to which he wrote the translator that it wasn't correct. I love that.
I'm currently reading "Sanatorium under the sign of the hourglass" by Bruno Schulz, and I'm consistently blown away by the prose -- how the translator knew the best words to convey Schulz's frantic, dream-like prose IS an artform
I have several bilingual poetry editions, and while I can't read the non-English, having the two languages side-by-side is a lovely visual reminder and acknowledgment (respect) to the soul and presence of the original voice as well as the labor of love by the translator.