Book of Minutes
I open the dresser drawer and find the definition of tenderness under the letter h: handkerchiefs with embroidered initials, lavender scent, well-pressed and folded in quarters, the way light… More
Captain Kidd
The art of the biographer consists specifically in choice. He is not meant to worry about speaking truth; he must create human characteristics amidst the chaos. More
The Payback
The chief secured their door with a padlock, put the key in his pocket, and signaled to the peasant driver to get moving. When they reached the bridge, silhouettes… More
The Power of Voice: On Translating Aurora Venturini
The balance of humor and horror in Venturini's The Cousins owes everything to the author's signature achievement: the voice of the narrator and main character. More
The Cousins
The novel that propelled Aurora Venturini to literary stardom at the age of 85 tells the story of a dysfunctional lower-middle-class family in Argentina with dark humor and psychological… More
Intuition and Reflection: On Translating Chris Marker
The “essay film” is Marker’s invention and natural element, its best specimens brilliant orchestrations of image and text and sound, of intuition (the snapped photo—and Marker’s images are nearly… More
The Impossible Fairy Tale
The Impossible Fairy Tale is the first novel by one of South Korea’s most promising young writers. In Hong’s pitch-perfect, limpid translation, this meta-fictional story of two small girls,… More
Counterpointed Sonic Progressions: On Translating Gozo Yoshimasu
"The poems are incredibly powerful and, in performance, even magisterial; the difficulties fade away and the force of the poems—chanted, sung, whispered—transcends many linguistic and cultural barriers." More
Dear Monster: The Naked Poetry of Gozo Yoshimasu
Gozo Yoshimasu, an aurally and visually stunning poet known for his Talmudic density, struggles to respond to the 3.11 nuclear disaster in Japan. In her deft, polyvalent translation, Okamoto… More
My Cosmic Ransom: On Translating Johannes Urzidil
"Urzidil’s world is still very much an enchanted one, with an underlying, often mystical meaning and sense of connectedness. Urzidil is a truth-seeker, and I knew I had to… More