I loved Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata. It was a pandemic read that I really liked. It is quirky, but that was the appeal for me. I loved that it had a female protagonist who knew exactly what she wanted and pushed against the perceived norms of society. Good read and short to boot!
Hmmm... choosing one book in translation is very difficult. Before I even read others' responses, I was going to recommend Disoriental by Negar Djavadi translated by Tina Kover. So happy to see other people loved this one, too! Another French author with lovely translations is Antoine Laurain. He books tend to be set in Paris and have a slightly magical quality about them. I loved Vintage 1954 and The Red Notebook. And, of course, all of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books installments by Carlos Ruiz Zafón and translated by Lucia Graves. Oh! One more: The Great Passage by Shion Miura, translated from Japanese by Juliet Winters Carpenter. It's a super-sweet (but with some teeth) story about a team of people creating an epic dictionary. So much love for words and culture!
I haven't finished it yet, but have you heard about the new Beowulf translation by Maria Dahvana Headley? It's explicitly feminist and is trying to use "evolving language," so the narrator addresses the reader as "Bro!" I love it so far, but I'm not very far in.
Another favorite translated book: The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bulgakov, which is my favorite book of all time. I like P&V's version best, but any of them are good.
I loved Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata. It was a pandemic read that I really liked. It is quirky, but that was the appeal for me. I loved that it had a female protagonist who knew exactly what she wanted and pushed against the perceived norms of society. Good read and short to boot!
Hmmm... choosing one book in translation is very difficult. Before I even read others' responses, I was going to recommend Disoriental by Negar Djavadi translated by Tina Kover. So happy to see other people loved this one, too! Another French author with lovely translations is Antoine Laurain. He books tend to be set in Paris and have a slightly magical quality about them. I loved Vintage 1954 and The Red Notebook. And, of course, all of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books installments by Carlos Ruiz Zafón and translated by Lucia Graves. Oh! One more: The Great Passage by Shion Miura, translated from Japanese by Juliet Winters Carpenter. It's a super-sweet (but with some teeth) story about a team of people creating an epic dictionary. So much love for words and culture!
In Altre Parole (in other words) by Jhumpa Lahiri. I love this book.
Another vote for Disoriental by Negar Djavadi translated by Tina Kover. I read it earlier this month and LOVED it.
For books in translation I’d recommend ‘Hurricane Season’ by Fernanda Melchor and ‘Disoriental’ by Negar Djavadi. Both are really great!
I haven't finished it yet, but have you heard about the new Beowulf translation by Maria Dahvana Headley? It's explicitly feminist and is trying to use "evolving language," so the narrator addresses the reader as "Bro!" I love it so far, but I'm not very far in.
Another favorite translated book: The Master and Margarita, by Mikhail Bulgakov, which is my favorite book of all time. I like P&V's version best, but any of them are good.