Prize: Royal Society Winton Prize for Science Books

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: Translating from ... Hebrew

$

0

0

       They've announced the winner of the Royal Society Winton Prize for Science Books -- though ... well, do I even have to say it: not yet at the official site, last I checked. (Seriously ? Am I the only one who finds this situation beyond ridiculous. Sure, they'll have it up by the time many of you read this, sixteen or twenty-four hours after the official announcement, but how hard is it to put it up immediately ?)
       At The Independent Steve Connor reports that Expert in idleness is surprise winner of science book prize, as The Wave Watcher's Companion by Gavin Pretor-Pinney took the prize; get your copy at Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk.

---

Translating from ... Hebrew

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: The Price of Civilization review

≪ Previous: Prize: Royal Society Winton Prize for Science Books

$

0

0

       In The Jewish Week they have: 'A translator (and fiction writer) on the tricky task of turning Israeli novels into English', as Evan Fallenberg writes about what's Gained in Translations [via].

       See also the Index of Israeli and Hebrew Literature under Review at the complete review.

The Price of Civilization review

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: Weird Fiction Review

≪ Previous: Translating from ... Hebrew

$

0

0

       The most recent addition to the complete review is my review of Jeffrey D. Sachs on Reawakening American Virtue and Prosperity (or, as the British and Canadian subtitle has it, Economics and Ethics After the Fall), in The Price of Civilization.

Weird Fiction Review

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: More on Chetan Bhagat

≪ Previous: The Price of Civilization review

$

0

0

       Lots of good stuff at Weird Fiction Review -- including Jeff VanderMeer's 101 Weird Writers Preview: Alfred Kubin (whose The Other Side was just reviewed at Obooki's Obloquy; you can try to get your copy at Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk).
       There's also The Miraculous Side of the Universe: An Interview with Michal Ajvaz -- see also reviews at the complete review of Ajvaz's The Other City and The Golden Age -- as well as fiction by Ajvaz and Leena Krohn, and a lot more.

More on Chetan Bhagat

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: Writers' best book choices

≪ Previous: Weird Fiction Review

$

0

0

       I mentioned Chetan Bhagat and his new novel, Revolution 2020, yesterday, and in The Hindu Swati Daftuar also wonders 'What makes Chetan Bhagat, India's only author selling in millions, such a publishing phenomenon ?' in The revolution man -- with some impressive numbers.
       So, for example:

His latest book, Revolution 2020, had the online bookstore, Flipkart.com, hiring 500 extra delivery boys just for a day to deliver the pre-ordered copies

       (I note with some disappointment that no complete review readers have ordered the book via Flipkart -- but I also wonder whether Amazon has ever had to hire extra delivery boys to deliver copies .....)
       But the sales numbers are certainly very impressive (especially when compared to the nearest competition (scroll down in the piece for sales totals for other Indian bestsellers)):

Bhagat's new book, Revolution 2020, has already sold 750,000 copies since its publication in October, 2011.

       (See also the Rupa publicity page, or get your copy from Amazon.com -- paperback or Kindle (!) -- or Amazon.co.uk.)

Writers' best book choices

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: Writing in Norway, after Utøya

≪ Previous: More on Chetan Bhagat

$

0

0

       Expect to see a lot more of these, as lists of writers choosing "their best books of the year" begin to appear (in addition to the usual simple 'best books of the year' lists): first up, The Telegraph's Books of the Year 2011, which includes selections by John Banville and Ali Smith (but also the likes of Jeffrey Archer and even Orlando Figes).

Writing in Norway, after Utøya

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: Writing in ... China

≪ Previous: Writers' best book choices

$

0

0

       In The Observer Andrew Anthony asks a number of Norwegian authors How do you write crime fiction in the wake of a massacre ?
       Jo Nesbø, author of Harry Hole novels such as The Redbreast, is one of the authors he talks to:

"I don't know how my writing will change," Nesbø later said. "It will change ... I will not address the massacre itself. But it's so influenced our way of thinking and our society. So it will be there in my novels somewhere, I'm sure."

       Jan Kjærstad -- not strictly a crime writer, but the author of, for example, the Wergeland-trilogy (which begins with The Seducer) -- also weighs in:

Kjaerstad thinks it will take a long period of creative gestation before a good novel is produced dealing with 22 July. In the meantime, he's doubtful that the search for societal answers will prove all that fruitful. "People are going too fast and coming to very easy conclusions. It is of course an illusion that you can fix something like this. If someone goes into a bubble, you can't reach them. When they pass a certain level of rationality, they are beyond reach."

Writing in ... China

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: The French Father review

≪ Previous: Writing in Norway, after Utøya

$

0

0

       Xinhua reports that Chinese president urges writers, artists to produce "great works", as Hu Jintao addressed:

a joint inaugural ceremony for the Ninth National Congress of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles (CFLAC) and the Eighth National Congress of the China Writers' Association (CWA).

       Among other things:

He advised them to get close to the realities and lives of the masses, uphold the spiritual torch of the Chinese nationality, and produce a greater number of excellent works that live up to the history, the times and the people.

       Good luck with all that.

---

The French Father review

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: Prize: Helsingin Sanomat Literature Prize

≪ Previous: Writing in ... China

$

0

0

       The most recent addition to the complete review is my review of Alain Elkann's The French Father (which features Roland Topor in the afterlife !).

Prize: Helsingin Sanomat Literature Prize

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: Daniel Sada (1953-2011)

≪ Previous: The French Father review

$

0

0

       As I mentioned a few days ago, they announced the Finlandia Prize shortlist, and now they've also announced the winner of the major Finnish debut prize, as the Helsingin Sanomat Literature Prize goes to Satu Taskinen, who won it for her Täydellinen paisti.

Daniel Sada (1953-2011)

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: Bolaño reviews

≪ Previous: Prize: Helsingin Sanomat Literature Prize

$

0

0

       Daniel Sada -- born just a few months before Roberto Bolaño, who was a fan ("Of my generation I admire Sada, whose goals seem the most daring to me" he said in one of the interviews collected in Between Parentheses) -- has passed away; see, for example, the report in the Latin American Herald Tribune.
       He hasn't broken through in English translation yet -- but might have been on the cusp: Graywolf is bringing out Almost Never -- the translation of his prize-winning 2008 novel Casi nunca -- in April; pre-order your copy from Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk. The Anagrama foreign rights page calls it a: "Rabelaisian tale of lust and longing".

Bolaño reviews

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: Amos Oz profile

≪ Previous: Daniel Sada (1953-2011)

$

0

0

       The most recent additions to the complete review are my reviews of two new Roberto Bolaño books:

• The posthumously published early novel, The Third Reich, due out shortly
• The poetry collection, Tres

       Posting these review also led me to update all the other Bolaño-review-pages on the site, which was a lot of work. A lot of new reviews, a lot of dead links, a lot of changed links ..... (And note that Bolaño-mania appears to be near universal: IBNA has just reported -- and kudos for that headline -- Distant Star twinkles in Iran).

Amos Oz profile

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: Swiss Book Prize

≪ Previous: Bolaño reviews

$

0

0

       In The Jewish Week Eric Herschthal profiles The Wizardry Of Amos Oz -- and learns:

"It would be a mistake to read Scenes from Village Life as a statement about the state of Israel," Oz said in an interview at the offices of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, his American publisher. "It should be read as a statement on the human condition

Swiss Book Prize

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: Asian literature abroad

≪ Previous: Amos Oz profile

$

0

0

       Like love german books I missed the announcement, but, yes, Jacob beschliesst zu Lieben by Catalin Dorian Florescu has won this year's Swiss Book Prize; see also his official site.

Asian literature abroad

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: Writing in (and about) Africa

≪ Previous: Swiss Book Prize

$

0

0

       In The Economic Times Sudeshna Sen reports on Seeking readers for Asian Literature in UK.
       Among the observations, Bhavit Mehta notes:

"The trouble with the publishing industry in UK is that it is staffed from white, middle class backgrounds. There's no diversity and the books being published are not representative of the multicultural UK population. Some of the bigger publishers are making an effort, but in a recession time, they prefer to play safe," says Mehta. It might take time, but Mehta is convinced that with enough promotion, South Asian publishing can gradually take its place with Bollywood in the UK market.

---

Writing in (and about) Africa

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: Prize: (American) National Book Awards

≪ Previous: Asian literature abroad

$

0

0

       In The Guardian Richard Lea reports that Kenyan author attacks insularity of British fiction, as:

The prize-winning Kenyan author Binyavanga Wainaina has attacked the insularity of British authors, describing their work as "indigestible" for Kenyan readers, and suggesting that "you'd struggle to find any significant books that come out of Britain" about the African experience.

Prize: (American) National Book Awards

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: Brian Boyd working on Karl Popper biography

≪ Previous: Writing in (and about) Africa

$

0

0

       They handed out the (American) National Book Awards (which they impressively also live-streamed on the Internet -- well done !), the prizes going to:

• Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward (fiction)
• The Swerve: How the World Became Modern by Stephen Greenblatt (non)
• Head Off & Split by Nikky Finney (poetry)
• Inside Out & Back Again by Thanhha Lai ('young people's literature')

       None of these are under review at the complete review (and I can't really see getting to any of them anytime soon).

Brian Boyd working on Karl Popper biography

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: Translating into ... Arabic

≪ Previous: Prize: (American) National Book Awards

$

0

0

       Brian Boyd is best-known for his Nabokov books (the latest one is Stalking Nabokov; see the Columbia University Press publicity page, or get your copy at Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk), but it's exciting to hear him report: "I'm writing a biography of philosopher Karl Popper."
       I very much enjoyed Malachi Haim Hacohen's Karl Popper: The Formative Years (1902-1945), and Popper's own autobiographical writings, but I certainly think Boyd can help complete the picture and very much look forward to this.
       (Popper's Conjectures and Refutations ranks among the ten most influential reads of my rather well-read life, and while I'm generally unimpressed by meeting or seeing famous folk, having the opportunity to hear him lecture live was among the handful of my most memorable famous-people-encounters.)

Translating into ... Arabic

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: The Squirrel's Birthday review

≪ Previous: Brian Boyd working on Karl Popper biography

$

0

0

       In Al-Masry Al-Youm M. Lynx Qualey finds 'In the world of children's books, translation 'may leave a child cold'', in In other words: When translation stifles local talent.

The Squirrel's Birthday review

November 24, 2011, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: Egyptian writers

≪ Previous: Translating into ... Arabic

$

0

0

       The most recent addition to the complete review is my review of Toon Tellegen's children's book, The Squirrel's Birthday and Other Parties.
       (Why review a book for young kids ? As I mentioned last week, Judith Wilkinson's translation of Raptors -- a poetry collection by Tellegen -- was awarded the Corneliu M. Popescu Prize, and his "poetic, philosophical animal stories" sounded interesting. This was the one the local library branch had.)