GloBooks is a new international book review site. It is a place where readers with
a passion for great fiction by international writers can connect with each
other. It often features works
originally in languages other than English, but now available in translation,
and heralding from all around the globe.
Philip Chadha founded GloBooks, and he
is also heavily involved in the London-based Asian Book Club. He here writes
about encouraging trends in the availability of translated fiction.
So: Over to Philip…
“If I said two names Jo Nesbo and Stieg Larsson, what would they mean to you? If you are a fan
of crime fiction, then probably quite a lot. Larrson and Nesbo are literary
stars, authors whose books have
sold in their millions around the world. Larsson’s Girl with the Dragon Tattoo stormed best seller charts everywhere; Nesbo
has produced a string of must-reads for any crime fiction fan. His novels The Police and, more recently, The Son have clocked up a bucket-load of
sales from London to Sydney. For sure, Nordic noir has helped put translated fiction on the
map.
Still, there is a wealth of great writers
telling international stories that are high in cultural currency but low
in popularity, both amongst English-language publishers and also amongst English-speaking
readers. Unfortunately, translated fiction has long been perceived as the poorer
cousin of English language literature.
But people are keen to expand their horizons, and perhaps things are about to change? In a recent article in The Observer newspaper (UK), journalist Dalya Alberge highlights
a market report recently published by Literature
Across Frontiers, a group furthering literary exchange, translation
and policy debate within Europe. Talking about the UK, its director, Alexandra Büchler, is quoted as
saying literary translations have grown by some 18% over 20 years. UK Publishers also
reported an increase in sales. Adam Freudenheim, director of Pushkin Press, a London-based house which specialises in translated fiction, told Alberge: 'Sales doubled last year and
are on track to double or even triple this year.'
It’s not just the small presses making a success of translated fiction; some major publishers are also doing sterling work. Penguin are soon to launch Turkish novelist Elif Shafak`s new novel Architect`s Apprentice which is out in November. Shafak is a barn stormer of a writer with her books translated into 33 languages.
At GloBooks we too are doing our bit to
promote fiction in translation. We cover
books from everywhere - including, of course, Asia. We will be talking about Architect`s Apprentice and, looking even further east, we were delighted recently
to feature Indian writer Deepti Kapoor’s well-received debut novel Bad
Character - click here to see our
discussion."