The Lady in White review
The most recent addition to the complete review is my review of Christian Bobin's The Lady in White. This slim translated-from-the-French novel is about Emily Dickinson, and it's a nice...
View ArticleAndré Brink (1935-2015)
Afrikaans- and English-writing South African author André Brink has passed away; see, for example, The New York Times' obituary of this 'towering South African literary presence', or Shaun de...
View ArticleAssia Djebar (1936-2015)
Algerian-born, French-writing author Assia Djebar, an 'immortal' member of the illustrious Académie française (fauteuil 5) and often thought to be a contender for the Nobel Prize, has passed...
View ArticleF. Sionil José on 'Literature and society'
In The Philippine Star F. Sionil José writes on Literature and society. Incidentally, it's good to hear from the ninety-year-old (!) author: Yes, I am working on a new novel
View ArticleIsrael Prize for Literature panel mess
The Ministry of Education in Israel awards the prestigious Israel Prize. Because ... oh, who knows, the Israeli government goes through endless re-shuffles, and somehow Benjamin Netanyahu --...
View ArticleThe Door review
The most recent addition to the complete review is my review of Szabó Magda's The Door, Len Rix's translation, published in the UK in 2005, finally making it to the US, courtesy of New York...
View Article'African Literature'
An interesting exchange at The New Inquiry, where they wonder: What Even is African Literature Anyway. Lots of good points and a fun read. (See also, of course, the African...
View ArticleFolio Prize shortlist
They've announced the eight-title-strong shortlist for the second Folio Prize, selected from eighty nominated titles (warning ! dreaded pdf format !). None are under review at the...
View ArticleChris Andrews Q & A
At his Conversational Reading weblog Scott Esposito has a Q & A with Chris Andrews about his soon-forthcoming translation of a César Aira story collection, The Musical Brain -- see the New...
View Article(Translation) copyright "rustling"
A fascinating piece of work by Wendell Ricketts can now be downloaded from his site, his detailed study of Copyright "Rustling" in English-Language Translation: How Translators Keep (and Lose)...
View ArticleWoman in Darkness review
The most recent addition to the complete review is my review of Luisgé Martín's Woman in Darkness, another intriguing title from Hispabooks.
View ArticlePEN World Voices Festival programme
The PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature runs 4 to 10 May in New York City this year, and the schedule has now been posted. The theme of the festival is: 'On Africa',...
View ArticleDe Avonden (finally) coming out in English
There are, unfortunately, no end of books written in foreign languages that, while deserving, haven't yet been translated into English, but some do stand out more than others: the case of Dutch...
View ArticleAlice Kaplan on Meursault, contre-enquête
I've mentioned Kamel Daoud's multiple-prize-winning take on Camus' The Stranger, Meursault, contre-enquête, serveal times already. Along with Houellebecq's Soumission, it is among the most...
View ArticleCairo International Book Fair
The Cairo International Book Fair, which ran the past two weeks, seems to have been quite the success. At Arabic Literature (in English) Yasmin El-Beih reports on the Record Attendance...
View ArticleSlaves in their Chains review
The most recent addition to the complete review is my review of Konstantinos Theotokis' Slaves in their Chains. Good to see this 1922 Greek novel made available in English -- from Angel...
View ArticleJonathan Franzen Q & A
At Booth Susan Lerner has A Conversation with Jonathan Franzen. At least one interesting reveal -- less about him than about authentication-processes at social media sites: It's tedious...
View ArticleIPAF shortlist
They've announced the shortlist for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction. At her Arabic Literature (in English) M.Lynx Qualey has an overview and useful additional links....
View ArticleSubmission mega-success
The English translation of Michel Houellebecq's Submission is now available for pre-order at Amazon.co.uk -- but the book itself is only due 10 September. Meanwhile, it is doing very...
View ArticleUK library lending
They've released the latest Public Lending Right numbers, where they reveal the most-borrowed titles by UK library users -- since authors get a small amount for each time their books find a...
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