Fiction in translation

Book Synopsis''One might almost say that he had assumed its [the cathedral''s] form as the snail takes on the form of its shell.'' Victor Hugo on QuasimodoThe Hunchback of Notre Dame is one of the great love stories but it is served up with lashings of horror. An instant classic first published in 1831, it''s set in the Paris of the 15th century, featuring a cast of thousands. Three men are in love with a beautiful street dancer called Esmerelda: the handsome Captain Phoebus, the wicked Archdeacon Frollo and his adoptive son Quasimodo, the bell-ringer of the cathedral. Naturally, this situation leads to trouble. Wrongly accused of murdering Phoebus, Esmerelda is sentenced to death and rescued from the gallows by Quasimodo, who memorably carries her up to the tower. Victor Hugo claimed he wrote this book to save Paris''s amazing gothic centre-piece from the ''demolishers''. And such was the success of his book that the immense building had to be restored to cope with the influx of tourists its popularity produced.ABOUT THE SERIES: The Arcturus Classics series brings together high-quality paperback editions of classics works, presented with contemporary graphic cover designs. Together they make a wonderful collection which is perfect for any home library.

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Book SynopsisThis bookis a new translation of Henry Murger’s influential Scènes de la vie de bohème, first published in French in 1851. The book recounts the lives of a bohemian group of creative young people as they fall in and out of love, endure cold and hunger, enjoy drunken parties, see their friends suffer and die of poverty, and finally emerge as mature artists. The book's publication soon inspired many (mostly young) people to seek out a bohemian life in Paris and other cities around the world. Not only did it inspire people at the time to change their lives, it also inspired Puccini’s beloved opera La Bohème(1896) and, a hundred years later, Jonathan Larson’s phenomenally successful Rent (1996). Few works of literature have had such a social impact. Bohemian cultures and subcultures have been with us ever since and Murger’s book remains an engaging and satisfying work of literature.Trade ReviewHenry Murger’s tales of bohemian life – in Robert Holton’s lively new translation – continue to fascinate and to resonate. The haphazard, hand-to-mouth existence of Murger’s bohemians, their vanities, their shifts and dodges, their amours, their self-deceptions, their wiles, their wit, their ever-fluctuating fortunes make for very agreeable and entertaining reading. The thoughtful introduction and informed annotations by Holton to Murger’s text are a most welcome added benefit. Warmly to be recommended. —Dr. Gregory Stephenson Associate professor emeritus at the University of Copenhagen. Author of the book "The Daybreak Boys: Essays on the Literature of the Beat Generation".Robert Holton provides a modern version of Henri Murger’s Scenes of Bohemian Life that captures the spirit of nineteenth-century Parisian bohemia while remaining accessible to contemporary readers. Holton’s ability to translate double-entendre and provide well-researched sociohistorical and cultural context underscores Murger’s oeuvre as a richly intertextual work of art. —Eliza Jane Smith, University of San Diego. If, like me, you thought the historical origins of Bohemia might be of modest, minor interest, then Robert Holton will make you think again. Framed by an informative and lively introduction, his new edition puts back into circulation the book that defined the subject and inspired or informed a wealth of cool cultural fashions and radical social experiments—from the garrets of Paris to the salons of the Bloomsbury Group, and from the Beat Generation to Bohemianisation as a form of urban gentrification. To evoke the trilby, an icon of cool which owes a debt to Murger’sbohemiaby way of du Maurier’s novel, a tip of my hat! — Oliver Harris, Professor of American Literature and President of the European Beat Studies NetworkThis new translation of Scenes of Bohemian Life by Robert Holton is direct, clear, lively and highly readable, and (as far as I can determine with my somewhat eroded command of French) has been rendered into English with fidelity and felicity. Holton's Introduction and his annotations are instructive and serve very much to enhance the text. The translator informs readers of the relation of the tales to actual persons and events known to the author, and assesses possible causes for the extraordinary popularity of the book in France and elsewhere during the 19th century, treating various aspects of its allure and mystique, including the book's implicit offer to readers of "a powerful new sense of possibility, an alternative way of life outside the strictures of society." — Midwest Book ReviewTable of ContentsINTRODUCTION; 1. How the Bohemian Society Was Established; 2. A Gift from the Gods; 3. Love at Lent; 4. Ali-Rodolphe, or A Turk by Necessity; 5. Charlemagne’s Coin; 6. Mademoiselle Musette; 7. The Sands of Pactolus; 8. What Five Francs Cost; 9. Polar Violets; 10. The Cape of Storms; 11. A Bohemian Café; 12. A Reception in Bohemia; 13. The Housewarming Party; 14. Mademoiselle Mimi; 15. Donec Gratus; 16. The Passage of the Red Sea; 17. The Graces Adorned; 18. Francine’s Muff; 19. Musette’s Whims; 20. Mimi’s Fine Feathers; 21. Romeo and Juliet; 22. Epilogue to Love; 23. Only Young Once; Appendix: Murger’s Preface; Index

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Book SynopsisHiroshima and Nagasaki have been destroyed. Japan is in ruins and occupied by the Americans. Takuya, an ex-officer in the Imperial Army, has returned to his native village only to learn that the Occupation authorities are intensifying their efforts to apprehend suspected war criminals. And those who are found guilty are being sentenced to death. Fearing that his role in the execution of a number of American pilots, Takuya takes to the road and becomes a fugitive in his own country. One Man's Justice is both a reflection on the murky reality of war and a page-turning novel of pursuit and escape.Trade ReviewA haunting and beautifully rendered tale of enduring optimism. * * The Herald * *Deserves to become a classic. * * Sunday Times * *An unsettling and important book. This novel blurs any distinctions between the victor and the vanquished - Yoshimura depicts a burnt-out moral landscape, all too familiar today. * * Scotland on Sunday * *Implacable and topical. -- Marina Warner

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Book SynopsisAuto Da Fé is the story of Peter Kien, a distinguished, reclusive sinologist living in Germany between the wars. With masterly precision, Canetti reveals Kien's character, displaying the flawed personal relationships which ultimately lead to his destruction.Manipulated by his illiterate and grasping housekeeper, Therese, who has tricked him into marriage, and Benedikt Pfaff, a brutish concierge, Kien is forced out of his apartment - which houses his great library and one true passion - and into the underworld of the city. In this purgatory he is guided by a chess-playing dwarf of evil propensities, until he is eventually restored to his home. But on his return he is visited by his brother, an eminent psychiatrist who, by an error of diagnosis, precipitates the final crisis...Auto Da Fé was first published in Germany in 1935 as Die Blendung (The Blinding or Bedazzlement) and later in Britain in 1947, where the publisher noted Canetti as a 'writer of strongly individual genius, which may prove influential', an observation borne out when the author was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1981. Auto Da Fé still towers as one of the greatest novels of the twentieth century, and Canetti's incisive vision of an insular man battling agianst the outside world is as fresh and rewarding today as when first it appeared in print.Trade ReviewOne of the few undoubted masterpieces of our time -- John DavenportA mad, magnificent work * Spectator *A strange, eloquent and terrifying book -- Polly ToynbeeThe work of a remarkable talent * Observer *

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Book SynopsisThe Year of Terror, 1937. Zybin, an exiled intellectual and archaeologist in the far province of Alma-Ata, finds himself wrongly accused of a crime during the darkest days of Stalin's reign. Soon, he and his colleagues are caught up in an ambitious Cheka investigator's attempts to set up a show trial to rival those taking place in Moscow. Vivid, courageous and defiant, The Faculty of Useless Knowledge is the crowning achievement by the author of The Keeper of Antiquities and The Dark Lady and draws heavily on autobiographical experience. First published in Russian in 1978, it is a masterpiece of anti-totalitarian literature, and stands alongside the works of Solzhenitsyn and Bulgakov in illuminating the chaos, absurdity and bureaucratic labyrinths of Soviet Russia.Trade ReviewThere are moments in The Faculty of Useless Knowledge, amid the flashbacks and shifting points of view, when a kind of magic begins to tug at the surface * The New York Times Book Review *Drawing from personal experiences during his own sentencing and exile, Dombrovsky writes passionately and often humorously about the terrifying Soviet judicial system. Fear and chaos pervaded the lives of Russians in 1937, the height of Stalin's purges. During this time, Zybin, an archeologist in Alma-Ata, Kazakhstan, is wrongly accused of a crime and then forced through the labyrinthine prison system, in which the bureaucratic investigations are even more grueling than the physical punishment he endures. Meanwhile, all those who know him, including his young assistant, Kornilov (many of these characters were introduced in Dombrovsky's The Keeper of Antiquities, his only other novel translated into English), are subjected to long interrogations in which every word can be twisted to incriminate Zybin or even themselves. Theological arguments about justice weave their way throughout the novel, and, as in Bulgakov's The Master & Margarita, these discussions focus primarily on the person most active during Christ's trial?Pontius Pilate. Dombrovsky argues that Pilate was a weak governor, a mere bureaucrat who constantly feared for his position. The interrogators and prosecutors of the novel are allegorical Pilates. The young and frightened Kornilov breaks down and betrays Zybin, who, unlike Christ, is not willing to acquiesce to the system as it stands. Wonderfully written and darkly witty, Dombrovsky's novel, first published in Russia in 1978, draws us into the surreal world of Stalin's Soviet Union. * Publishers Weekly *An imposing fictional portrayal of the Stalinist terror, set in 1937 in the eastern Russian republic of Kazakhstan (on the Chinese border) and featuring themes and characters from Dombrovsky's earlier novel, The Keeper of Antiquities (1969)... Thickly textured, eloquently argued, as informative as it is dramatic: a superb novel that brings to our attention an important near-contemporary (Dombrovsky died in 1978) whose books belong on the same shelf with those of Bulgakov and Solzhenitsyn * Kirkus Reviews *

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Book SynopsisA delightful variation on the long tradition of bestiary writing, Jules Renard’s short verse and prose poems have captured the imagination of readers and artists since they were originally written in 1894, with Ravel famously setting five of them to music. Presented in a new version by acclaimed translator Richard Stokes, this sumptuously produced volume will captivate and enchant new generations of readers the world over.

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Book SynopsisIn late-nineteenth-century Paris, the writer Hubert is shocked to discover that Icarus, the protagonist of the new novel he’s working on, has vanished. Looking for him among the manuscripts of his rivals does not solve the mystery, so a detective is hired to find the runaway character, who is now in Montparnasse, where he learns to drink absinthe and is picked up by a friendly prostitute.Trade ReviewOne of the most prodigiously gifted and influential French writers. The Irish Times

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Book SynopsisThe world might be in the throes of a global recession but when an author on the brink of despair, an enigmatic musician, a supermodel and a Satanic sect meet with the cream of Italian high society at the home of a Roman property tycoon, the world outside the mansion's walls is soon forgotten. There's going to be one hell of a party. And you've got a VIP ticket.Trade ReviewA raunchy satirical romp -- IAN RANKIN[A] hilarious modern farce * * The Times * *Riotously, and very readably, satirical, Ammaniti has a ball poking fun at the excesses of the Berlusconi era and the insecurities of writers * * Herald * *Funny and sharp-eyed * * Literary Review * *A master storyteller. * * Guardian * *

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Book SynopsisHailed as the greatest Japanese novel of the Twentieth century, THE MAKIOKA SISTERS is a subtle tale of domestic oppression worthy of Balzac or Chekhov, In this saga of the once prosperous but now declining Makioka family struggling to marry off one of their daughters, Tanizaki presents the picture of a family and a society striving to preserve their self-respect as they come to terms with disturbing new ways in a classic confrontation of innovasion and tradition. A wonderful portrait of Japanese life in the first half of the twentieth century.

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Book SynopsisWhen a priceless Leonardo is stolen from the Budapest Museum of Fine Arts, the Hungarian government tries to hush things up and the police show themselves to be completely clueless. Thank goodness for Milla Anderson! A gifted reporter for one of Budapest's daily newspapers, she picks up the trail in Palermo-and of course an international gang is soon hot on her heels. When a Hungarian detective is apparently liquidated and the oily Schoenberg-Belmonte begins insinuating his way into Mrs. Anderson's hotel, things start to look very dangerous indeed. This fast-paced crime story and lighthearted romantic comedy, set against a backdrop of Mediterranean scenery and fascist menace in Italy and Hungary between the wars, is Miklos Banffy at his best. Now published in English for the first time, translated by Thomas Sneddon.

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Book SynopsisWritten originally in Me'phaa, First Rain is a selection of poems that emerged from the poet responding to the death of his grandmother who declared to him in 2005: I will die in the days when the first rains come. The work mourns both the loss of a grandmother, and the fading away (like her sight in later life) of a culture and language that hold so much history and pride. In this way, they address social, racial and gender inequalities, environmental abuses and injustices faced by native peoples in Latin America - issues that have resonance globally. As the poet recounts: In the face of the wind, grab the stones that are falling upon us, one of his grandmother's phrases, refers to people standing up to injustice. This collection, Hubert Matiuwaa's first ever in English, is a gathering of stones.

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Book SynopsisIn a small town in Argentina, a seamstress is sewing a wedding dress. All of a sudden she fears that her son has been kidnapped and driven off to Patagonia. She gives chase in a taxi. Her husband finds out and takes off after her – to the end of the world, to the place where monsters are born, and where the southern wind falls hopelessly in love.Trade Review'I was quickly seduced by The Seamstress and the Wind, which takes place in Coronel Pringles, Argentina, Aira’s hometown. It figures he’d come from a place called Pringles, where funny music resounds and nothing ever happens, except everything.' -- Patti Smith

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Book SynopsisA beautiful homage to the art of reading - light and funny. A celebration of the union of sensuality and language. Marie-Constance loves reading and possesses an attractive voice. So, one day she decides to put an ad in the local paper offering her services as a paid reader. Her first client, a paralysed teenager, is transformed by her reading of a Maupassant short story. Marie-Constance's fame spreads and soon the rich, the creative and the famous clamour for her services. ------ Why Peirene chose to publish this book: 'The premise of the story is brilliant: a woman who loves reading aloud acquires - without realizing - power over others. What's true for her clients becomes real for you, the reader of this book. As you turn the pages, think of Marie-Constance as the personification of "reading" itself. And I promise you an experience you will never forget.' Meike Ziervogel, PublisherTrade Review'A clever, funny, and humane work that champions the power of literature.' David Mills, SUNDAY TIMES ------ 'An entertaining, sensuous and, above all, fun outing into the converging worlds of reading, language and sexuality.' Pam Norfolk, LANCASHIRE EVENING POST ------ 'Reader for Hire might be the perfect book - written with an elegance whose validity it also questions.' Joanna Walsh, NATIONAL ------ 'An excellent new translation of a novel ... written with a lightness of touch.' Harry Ritchie, DAILY MAIL

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Book SynopsisA young PhD student believes she has uncovered the first professional female artist in Britain. It’s a discovery that could transform her career and reputation. However, in her haste to break new ground, she has made a simple mistake which threatens everything –and she won’t acknowledge her error until it’s far too late. As she goes to ever greater lengths to protect her work from the truth, she begins to lose her grip on her thesis, her life and ultimately her sanity. History. A Mess. is a remarkable exploration of intellectual integrity and denial, and a gripping portrait of academic ambition.Trade Review"Its ambition is met with resounding success every step of the way." WILLOW HEATH, BOOKS AND BAO -- "Palsdottir writes with the hand of a mystery author and the mind of a postmodernist, teasing out her protagonist's problem while playing with literary forms, fragmenting timelines, and injecting fierce irony." PUBLISHERS WEEKLY -- "Absolutely brilliant from beginning to end." ICELANDIC NATIONAL TELEVISION

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Book SynopsisWill the newest branch of a decaying house be bent or broken by these uncertain times? It has been six years since China threw off imperial rule, yet Beijing seems largely unchanged. The city is a chaotic, roiling sea of humanity inhabited by merchants, hawkers and street urchins. In the midst of it all, Qi Yuexuan, the sole scion of a distinguished family, lives a life of indolence. But change is coming. Forces from within and without are becoming increasingly influential, while the new ideas they bring are shaking the foundations of the nation. Reappraising his entrenched values, Qi is torn between tradition and the new order. The Elm Tree paints an intimate, yet vivid picture of an extraordinary cast of characters associated with the Qi household. It documents a forgotten way of life before it was swept away by the turmoil of foreign occupation and civil war...

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Book SynopsisOriginally published in Dutch in 2017, this essay is a critique on the intellectual hold of destructive, non-sustainable capitalism on Western thought. It challenges the way that Soviet and Chinese totalitarianism has been used to discredit the idealism of 19th century communism.Reaching out from the intellectual and historical legacy of Karl Marx and Rosa Luxemburg, Peek investigates what he sees as the inevitable failure of capitalism, and argues for a fairer redistribution of knowledge, power and income.

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Book SynopsisTaken from the author’s Dutch short story collection Nederzettigen, this trio of stories is follows various individuals trying to build an existence, who need to feel at home somewhere. Each character is displaced in a different way but, wherever they come from, all the characters have a conflicting longing for change and stability. In crystal clear language, Van Hassel tells three tales about restless times in a fragmented society.

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Book SynopsisCould you put your beliefs before your family? Epic Annette is the extraordinary true story of Annette Beaumanoir: brilliant and fierce, she was a medical student living in a world at war who, at nineteen years old, joined the French Resistance and saved the lives of two Jewish children in Paris on the eve of their deportation to the camps. As a doctor and mother devoted to justice and equality, Annette was later found guilty of treachery for supporting the Algerian FLN in France and sentenced to ten years in prison. The story of her dramatic escape, trial in absentia and decades in exile, separated from her children, resembles that of the great heroes whose love for individuals had to compete with their destiny and love of humanity. Annette will remain with you forever. With this gripping personal tale of heroism and grief, author Anne Weber joins Homer in her ability to conjure a titan in an epic poem.Trade Review‘A reading delight from start to finish.’ https://www.sueddeutsche.de/kultur/anne-weber-deutscher-buchpreis-annette-ein-heldinnenepos-rezension-buchkritik-1.4891164 -- Joseph Hanimann * Die Süddeutsche Zeitung *‘A bold and moving exploration of the ethics of heroism.’ https://www.the-tls.co.uk/articles/annette-ein-heldinnenepos-anne-weber-book-review/ - review of the German Edition -- Anna Katharina Schaffner * Times Literary Supplement *Editor’s Choice Preview ‘A riveting and highly original retelling of the life of Annette Beaumanoir.’ https://www.thebookseller.com/previews/epic-annette-a-heroine8217s-tale -- Caroline Sanderson * The Bookseller *‘A heroine in a murky world: Anne Beaumanoir and the ethics of resistance’ ‘At the heart of Weber’s book is the instability of our conceptions of heroism, nuanced by hindsight.’ https://www.the-tls.co.uk/articles/annette-ein-heldinnenepos-anne-weber-book-review/ -- Anna Katharina Schaffner * The TLS *Guest review by Anne Sebba: Epic Annette - A Heroine’s Tale by Anne Weber, translated by Tess Lewis ‘Annette Beaumanoir is a rare heroine whose fierce courage almost demands an unusual, and beautiful, account of her life. She stood out in life and this epic will ensure that she is honoured in death. She deserves nothing less.’ http://reviewsbywriters.blogspot.com/2022/06/guest-review-by-anne-sebba-epic-annette.html -- Anne Sebba * Writer's Review *Epic Annette – Translation and international acclaim ‘An exceptional prose poem’ https://www.new-books-in-german.com/epic-annette/ -- Ruth Martin * New Books in German *Epic Annette: a nuanced, immensely moving testimony to an improbable life ‘While emulating an ancient form, Weber’s poem is charged with a political mission to bring to life stories historically left untold. It’s a bravura move that pays off; Epic Annette is a history lesson unlike any other’ https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/books/review/2022/08/20/epic-annette-nuanced-immensely-moving-testimony-to-an-improbable-life/ -- Roisin Kiberd * The Irish Times *Book Review: “Epic Annette” — What is Heroism? "Historical asides like this one, stunning at least to this reader, provide more than enrichment; they expand the biography of an extraordinary individual into an expressionist portrait of a swath of one European century." https://artsfuse.org/269440/book-review-epic-annette-what-is-heroism/ -- Kai Maristed * The Arts Fuse *Epic Annette – Anne Weber https://www.full-stop.net/2023/03/31/reviews/emily-hershman/epic-annette-anne-weber/ -- Emilt Hershman * Full Stop *This Week in Books: The hair of an It Girl laid on an altar for the dead. https://endoftheworld.substack.com/p/this-week-in-books-the-hair-of-an * The End of the World Review *The Watchlist: May 2023 - Words Without Borders -- Tobias Carroll * Words Without Borders (WWB) *

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Book SynopsisGeorge Sand''s fictionalised account of her notorious affair with the poet Alfred de Musset caused a sensation on its publication two years after his death, in 1859. It also prompted a volley of claim and counter-claim: two more novels rapidly appeared in the following months, Lui Et Elle, by Musset?s brother, defending his reputation; and Lui, by Louise Colet, Flaubert?s former mistress and briefly Musset?s. Then the journalists and commentators of the day joined in, with Eux, by Gaston Lavalley, and Eux Et Elles, by Adolphe de Lescure, satirising the whole sordid business.

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Book SynopsisA fun nonsense rhyme about a child who goes mushroom-picking.Part of the second batch of Bicki-Books, a collectible series of postcard-sized picture books which each feature a classic Latvian poem. Suitable for children aged 3+.

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Book SynopsisThis winner of the European Union Prize for Literature is a visceral combination of real and fictional events.

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Book SynopsisThe Madness of Despair tells the story of Maliha, who is living in London with her husband Nafie after an arranged marriage in their distant Arab homeland. The couple become good friends with Doctor Nadim, a fellow exile, but in the twists and turns of the friendship, the men’s nostalgia for their old lives – and old ways of living – come into conflict with Maliha’s ambition to live and love freely and make something of her new life now she’s settled in London. Though ready to throw off the constraints of her disastrous marriage at the slightest turn, Maliha is ill-prepared for the fire of emotions that overcomes her, leading to unforeseen consequences for all three. It is a powerful narrative that reveals just how much psychological suffering and cultural displacement can upset the most ordinary of aspirations for life and love.

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Book SynopsisSarajevo Firewood, which was shortlisted for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction (IPAF) award in 2020, explores the legacy of the recent histories of two countries — Algeria and Bosnia-Herzegovina — both of which experienced traumatic, and ultimately futile, civil wars in the 1990s. The novel narrates the lives of two main characters, with their friends and families: Salim, an Algerian journalist, and Ivana, a young Bosnian woman, both of whom have fled the destruction and hatred of their own countries to try to build a new life in Slovenia. As Ivana pursues her goal of writing her ‘dream play’, Khatibi’s novel brings to life in fictional form the memories and experiences of the countless ordinary people who survived the atrocities linking the two countries. As such, it represents both a lasting memorial to the thousands of dead and ‘disappeared’ of the two countries’ civil conflicts, but also a powerful and novel exploration of the experience of exile to which so many have been subjected over the last few decades.

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Book SynopsisLONGLISTED FOR THE DESMOND ELLIOTT PRIZE People say ‘I’m sorry’ all the time when it can mean both ‘I’m sorry I hurt you’ and ‘I’m sorry someone else did something I have nothing to do with’. It’s like the English language gave up on trying to find a word for sympathy which wasn’t also the word for guilt. Swedish immigrant Kristin won’t talk about the Project growing inside her. Her Brazilian-born Scottish boyfriend Ciaran won’t speak English at all; he is trying to immerse himself in a Swedish språkbad language bath, to prepare for their future, whatever the fick that means. Their Edinburgh flat is starting to feel very small. As this young couple is forced to confront the thing that they are both avoiding, they must reckon with the bigger questions of the world outside, and their places in it.Trade Review‘A novel brimming with ideas and promise.’ -- Lucy Knight * The Sunday Times *‘One of the gentlest and most patient, humane, and quirky things I have read in a long time ... Hugely original.’ -- Niamh Campbell, author of This Happy‘Unique and playful.’ * Foyles *‘How We Are Translated is the most contemporary of novels; set somehow both in the now and in the distant past; in one city that could be many cities, and in two different languages, though also in defiance of language, with as much focus on the silences between words as the words themselves. It’s a novel that maintains just the right balance of oddity, intimacy and illumination. It’s a novel that anyone interested in the future of the English novel needs to read!’ -- Sara Baume, author of Spill Simmer Falter Wither‘With echoes of Ali Smith and George Saunders, How We Are Translated explores themes of identity and intimacy with admirable sensitivity and wit.’ -- Julianne Pachico, author of The Anthill‘How We Are Translated is a layered work about home, language, barriers, and belonging. Johannesson’s unusual and refreshing prose crackles with truth — burning along beautifully.’ -- Alice Bishop, author of A Constant Hum‘Our bodies and languages are made new to us again through Jessica Gaitán Johannesson’s wild and playful novel. Laying bare the absurdity of the idea of a common tongue, she takes us on an adventure through private and public languages — those which ebb and flow between lovers or arise out of necessity in a workplace obsessed with authenticity. How We Are Translated gets at the heart of how language holds us, tears at us, and can bring us close in spite of, or because of, its inevitable imperfections.’ -- Saskia Vogel, author of Permission‘I really really loved How We Are Translated ... so brilliant on language, communication, distance, the ways we speak past/around/beyond each other.’ -- Nell Stevens‘Jessica Gaitán Johannesson has a very fresh voice that packs everything with so much new meaning that you won’t think about language or communication the same way again … I’ve never read anything quite like How We Are Translated before, but I very much hope that Gaitán Johannesson will follow her debut with more of the same.’ * Shiny New Books *‘An incredibly creative, entertaining and thought-provoking novel … fizzing with ideas, wry humour and linguistic contradictions.’ -- Nic Bottomley * Bath Life *‘A novel that you might end up reading in one sitting … this is writing with breathing space, with room for the ever-shifting spectrum of life.’ -- Saskia Hayward and Matthew Leigh * Bath Magazine *‘Eccentric, but likeable ... In Gaitán Johannesson’s novel, Swedish words and phrases appear in one column with their English translation in another ... The innovation is effective. The way a foreign word looks, together with its literal translation, seems to tell us something specific, not only about another culture but about humanity generally.’ -- Miranda France * TLS *‘This is an excellent book for those who love Edinburgh, the oddities of language, and other people’s drama. One of the best books that I have read recently. It is full of moments which would be pivotal in anyone’s life and they are described with the kind of dry self-deprecation I can't help but adore.’ -- Cecilie * The Portobello Bookshop *‘Johannesson's tender and madcap debut explores themes of family, history, and language [with] a spiritedness reminiscent of the work of Elizabeth McKenzie … a delightful romp.’ * Publishers Weekly *‘Concepts of ethnicity, intimacy, and identity are woven into Jessica Gaitán Johannesson’s quirky, contemplative novel … Poignant, perceptive, and clever, How We Are Translated is a novel about the human beings who exist beyond ideals of diversity, and about the emotional implications of language.’ * Foreword, starred review *‘Well-written.’ -- Alastair Mabbott * The Herald *‘How We Are Translated is a gentle and meditative look at relationships—romantic, cultural, familial. Gaitán Johannesson creates a soft world populated by simultaneously mundane and quirky characters. This is a tender story handled with soft, deft hands.’ -- Laura Graveline * Brazos Bookstore *‘Fans of Anne Carson and Maggie Nelson will like How We Are Translated. This is a beautiful book, both inside and out … a meditation on self: how a self is both lost and found in language and translation, and how a self is both lost and found in the body and all the body, especially the female body, can and can’t do.’ -- Samantha * Bear Pond Books *

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Book Synopsis'Perhaps the luminous novel is this thing that I started writing today, just now. Maybe these sheets of paper are a warm-up exercise. [...] But it's quite possible that if I go on writing - as I usually do - with no plan, although this time I know very well what I want to say, things will start to take shape, to come together. I can feel the familiar taste of a literary adventure in my throat. I'll take that as confirmation, then, and start describing what I think was the beginning of my spiritual awakening - though nobody should expect religious sermons at this point; they'll come later. It all began with some ruminations prompted by a dog.' A writer attempts to complete the novel for which he has been awarded a big fat Guggenheim grant, though for a long time he succeeds mainly in procrastinating - getting an electrician to rewire his living room so he can reposition his computer, buying an armchair, or rather, two: 'In one, you can't possibly read: it's uncomfortable and your back ends up crooked and sore. In the other, you can't possibly relax: the hard backrest means you have to sit up straight and pay attention, which makes it ideal if you want to read.' Insomniacs, romantics and anyone who's ever written (or failed to write) will fall in love with this compelling masterpiece told by a true original, with all his infuriating faults, charming wit and intriguing musings.Trade Review'This is the latest posthumously translated novel from the Uruguayan Levrero, whose Montevideo apartment was, to quote his translator McDermott, "the centre of a small universe...his legendary literary workshops, which followed an 'unmethodical method' designed to put people in touch with their imagination, produced hundreds of students who consider themselves his disciples." Here, a novelist receives a generous grant that produces an insuperable writer's block. As with Empty Words, in which the protagonist attempts 'graphological self-therapy' (handwriting exercises) to better himself, this is a digressive, Sternean tale in which interruption becomes a kind of illumination.' The Millions, 'Most Anticipated: The Great Second-Half 2021 Preview'---'There's no getting around that this is a rather long novel in which relatively little happens; this is not necessarily trying for the reader-even at it's most everyday-mundane, the diary, for example, is a quite amusing read-but this is a novel which certainly does take its good time. [...] An expansive chronicle of what is ostensibly a failure-the inability to write what the author conceives of as a 'luminous novel'-, The Luminous Novel succeeds. There is a lot to this work.' Michael Orthofer, The Complete Review---'The contradictions between how he experiences his life and how he lives it become evident, as does his obliviousness to the gap in his perception, even when it stares him in the face. Because of this fractured perspective, his story becomes universal . . . The Luminous Novel is a postmodern novel about the contradictions of everyday life, in which an author's struggle reveals that life is what happens when we are busy doing other things.' Foreword Reviews---'This is literature in the same way that John Cage's 4'33" is music.' Publishers Weekly---'A masterwork ... Levrero's big problem, consuming him throughout the book, is that he's won a Guggenheim fellowship to write a novel that is overly ambitious to the point of being impossible. ... Levrero delights in not meeting his obligation to Guggenheim ... Fans of Perec, Coover, and other experimentalists will enjoy Levrero's epic struggle not to write this book. Kirkus, starred review---'From domestic distractions to doubt and crippling insomnia, never has a book about the repetitious banality of the process of writing a novel - or, in fact avoiding writing a novel - been so compelling and accurately rendered. Mario Levrero turns the act of procrastination into a supreme art form.' Benjamin Myers---'From domestic distractions to doubt and crippling insomnia, never has a book about the repetitious banality of the process of writing a novel - or avoiding writing a novel - been so compelling and accurately rendered. Mario Levrero turns the act of procrastination into a supreme art form.' Ben Myers---'We are all his children.' Alvaro Enrigue---'Levrero is an author who challenges the canonical idea of Latin American literature. If you really want to complete the puzzle of our tradition, you must read him.' Juan Pablo Villalobos, Granta ---'The Luminous Novel could qualify as a new instalment in the literature of boredom, except that it's too charmingly, haplessly funny to be boring.' Lily Meyer, NPR---'The Luminous Novel is Levrero's greatest work, which he wrote by forcing himself to write it, knowing beforehand that what he wanted to write was impossible. That's why, instead of the novel, he narrates the distractions that sidetrack him from the novel. It's not so surprising that the happiest moment in The Luminous Novel is when Mario Levrero manages, finally, to fix Word 2000. Surely, fixing Word 2000 is easier than writing that unfathomable novel that Levrero writes but doesn't write. But to write the luminous novel it is necessary to pass through the dark novel; to make true literature it is crucial to turn to, as he says, fraudulent literature. Novel without a novel; literature without literature.' Alejandro Zambra

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Book SynopsisIn 1837, at the height of the Carlist Wars and a time of conflict between the past and future, a young Prussian man crosses the Pyrenees to fight for the ‘Order’. Finding himself trapped in the ruins of an abandoned city, his bewilderment at the war and what it means increases. Friendship, family, religion and politics: everything is distorted, transformed or destroyed. The Others oscillates masterfully between humour and tragedy and is a novel full of music, eccentric characters and extraordinary scenes.Trade ReviewAndrew Mcdougall, Bookblast. Full review here Once more, the triumph of Garrigasait’s novel is in making nineteenth century material feel so relevant. Many of the debates of the day, with words changed here and there, are not so different from the questions society still faces. John-Paul Davies, Buzz Magazine Garrigasait is a strong and supple writer to deal with such merges of time and place, research and reimagining, but each shift strengthens the story. The consistency of tone is confusing yet coherent; Tiago Miller’s translation is, I can only imagine, expert. The soldiers and locals speak in a common language that comes straight from contemporary London but is equally modern and brilliantly reinforces the constant off-setting. Weilemann and Foraster’s dreamlike musical reveries are stunningly rendered and I can’t think of any writing that has so successfully captured the minutia and wholeness of music as this book does. In Under 300 I was expecting a novel full of unrivalled bravery and stoicism, but instead, what The Others presented was a funny, witty, and intelligent portrayal of life in this environment. The character interactions explore clashing ideologies, shifting politics, and muddled outlooks that seemingly all blend as one. What the community ultimately desire is unclear, for both the reader and Wielemann. Paul Cheney, Half Man Half Book I liked this book overall, the prose is richly detailed and full of vivid descriptions. It is full of subtle nuanced humour, especially between von Wielemann and the men he is in charge of. Eleanor Updegraff, The Monthly Booking Tiago Miller’s text is graceful in tone and structure, differentiating slightly in style between the present-day and historical sections, and giving us a sharp narrative voice that wavers between humour, melancholia and, just occasionally, a hint of bitterness. Though this line refers to one of the characters in the novel, Miller as well as Garrigasait has proved himself more than capable of ‘making his words fall in with the style of a competent commander’. The result is a coolly immersive and thoughtful novel that asks some of life’s big questions, but is of itself an absolute pleasure to read. —from The Modern Novel This really is an excellent book as Garrigasait tells a very clever story, uses ribald humour to portray the military and the Catalans, mocks the Prussians and raises some serious issues, while delving into the history of his own region. Translator Tiago Miller clearly had some fun, trying to convey the Leida dialect of Catalan into colloquial English, as he tells us in the afterword. Sam Abrams, El Mundo The Others forces us to leave our comfort zone, and to steer away from indifference, banality, and conformity. A magnificent book! Toni Sala, Ara This fantastic book provides us with a reflection of our modern-day selves. The echoes with the present are so intense that it leaves you breathless after every phrase. The Others has the courage to force us to ask ourselves: ‘What skeletons lurk in our cupboards?’ Jordi Puntí, El Periódico This majestic novel contains moments or tenderness, humour and violence. Garrigasait’s writing is both precise and totally brilliant, and allows us to take a closer look at a country and mentality that is still with us almost two centuries later.

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Book Synopsis A book censor is on the look-out for objectionable content; a daughter mourns her father during her journey to fulfill his final wishes; a desperate man runs around a city to pay off his debts. Critical of regimes and nonetheless nostalgic for their home countries, Mo(a)t is a compendium of stories from six different authors reflecting on the paradoxical demands of our day-to-day lives. Each story is written with the author’s unique style, highlighting their skills in contemporary Arabic literature.What binds the stories of Mo(a)t together is the fact that they are transnational. The stories in this anthology are not centered around a theme, but rather, a concept. Each author lives outside their birth country — whether by choice or exile — yet, as writers, they’ve chosen to continue to express themselves in their mother tongue, rather than in the language of their adopted countries. From South Sudan to the Western Sahara, the authors in this collection reveal the symbiotic relationship between ourselves and our communities, and the freedom to step beyond these boundaries.

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Book SynopsisQueen of French Noir, Johana Gustawsson returns with a spell-binding, dazzlingly dark gothic thriller that swings from Belle Époque France to 21st-century Quebec, with an extraordinary mystery at its heart … FIRST in a bewitching new series **Shortlisted for the CWA Crime in Translation Dagger** `A wonderfully dark, intricately woven historical thriller spanning three generations … it will have you hooked from the very first page' B A Paris `A gripping story of murder and black magic …Gustawsson slowly weaves together three seemingly disparate strands of her narrative with a skill that shows why she is such an admired crime writer in her native France´ The Times BOOK OF THE MONTH `Intriguingly dark and vivid, and so cleverly told through three different time frames´ Essie Fox ________________ Three women Three eras One extraordinary mystery…1899, Belle Époque Paris. Lucienne’s two daughters are believed dead when her mansion burns to the ground, but she is certain that her girls are still alive and embarks on a journey into the depths of the spiritualist community to find them. 1949, Post-War Québec. Teenager Lina’s father has died in the French Resistance, and as she struggles to fit in at school, her mother introduces her to an elderly woman at the asylum where she works, changing Lina’s life in the darkest way imaginable. 2002, Quebec. A former schoolteacher is accused of brutally stabbing her husband – a famous university professor – to death. Detective Maxine Grant, who has recently lost her own husband and is parenting a teenager and a new baby single-handedly, takes on the investigation. Under enormous personal pressure, Maxine makes a series of macabre discoveries that link directly to historical cases involving black magic and murder, secret societies and spiritism … and women at breaking point, who will stop at nothing to protect the ones they love… _________________ `This novel is a whirlpool that draws you irresistibly into levels of darkness so much deeper than you can possibly be ready for´ Ambrose Parry `I found myself racing through the book, always wanting one more page, one more chapter. A wonderfully creepy, unsettling read, with a superb twist in its tail´ James Oswald `Gustawsson’s writing is so vivid, it’s electrifying. Utterly compelling´ Peter James `I was hooked from the first page – a stunning and beautifully written gothic thriller full of atmosphere, intrigue and delight´ Alexandra Benedict `Brilliant … the last chapters knocked me sideways, and it’s a long time since that’s happened´ Lisa Hall `A dark world of elegance and grotesque … mesmeric´ Matt Wesolowski `Harrowing, compelling, haunting, vivid, twisty and shocking! ´ Noelle Holten `A powerful page-turner´ Livres Hebdo ***NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER IN FRANCE*** FOR FANS OF Laura Purcell, Stacey Halls, Bridget Collins, Anna Mazzola, Essie Fox, Ambrose Parry and Laura Shepherd-Robinson Praise for Johana Gustawsson `A satisfying, full-fat mystery´ The Times `Assured telling of a complex story´ Sunday Times `A real page-turner, I loved it´ Martina Cole `A bold and intelligent read´ Guardian `Utterly compelling´ Woman’s Own `Cleverly plotted, simply excellent´ Ragnar Jónasson `A must-read´ Daily Express `Gritty, bone-chilling, and harrowing – it’s not for the faint of heart, and not to be missed´ Crime by the Book `A relentless heart-stopping masterpiece´ New York Journal of Book

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Book SynopsisA snobbish Danish literary author is challenged to write a crime novel in thirty days, travelling to a small village in Iceland for inspiration, and then a body appears … an atmospheric, darkly funny, twisty debut thriller, first in an addictive new series. ‘An original and thoroughly enjoyable treat’ Guardian BOOK OF THE YEAR ‘Dark and sharp … A lot of fun’ Val McDermid ‘Witty, dark, meta, ingenious and hugely compelling. I LOVED the Icelandic setting and satirical observations’ Will Dean ‘Hilariously scathing. Satirises genre fiction while creating a first-class example of it, full of suspects, red herrings and twists … wit and originality make it a joy to read’ Mark Sanderson, The Times CRIME BOOK OF THE YEAR **Winner of the Harald Mogensen Prize for Best Danish Crime Novel** **Shortlisted for the Glass Key Award****Winner of the Crime Fiction Lover Award for Best Crime Book in Translation** ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Copenhagen author Hannah is the darling of the literary community and her novels have achieved massive critical acclaim. But nobody actually reads them, and frustrated by writer’s block, Hannah has the feeling that she’s doing something wrong. When she expresses her contempt for genre fiction, Hanna is publicly challenged to write a crime novel in thirty days. Scared that she will lose face, she accepts, and her editor sends her to Húsafjöður – a quiet, tight-knit village in Iceland, filled with colourful local characters – for inspiration. But two days after her arrival, the body of a fisherman’s young son is pulled from the water … and what begins as a search for plot material quickly turns into a messy and dangerous investigation that threatens to uncover secrets that put everything at risk … including Hannah… Atmospheric, dramatic and full of nerve-jangling twists and turns, Thirty Days of Darkness is a darkly funny, unsettling debut Nordic Noir thriller that marks the start of a breath-taking new series. ____________________________________ ‘Dark and atmospheric … a bleak and beautiful evocation of Iceland, and Hannah is a pitch-perfect depiction of the bombastic neurosis that we writers know so very well’ Harriet Tyce ‘Such a clever, original twist on the Nordic Noir tradition – darkly humorous and utterly captivating’ Eva Björg Ægisdóttir ‘A fantastic debut … Darkly funny, tense and a lot of poking fun at crime-writing’ Tariq Ashkanani ‘Delightfully dark’ Antti Tuomainen ‘So atmospheric’ Crime Monthly ‘An absolute gem … a superb mix of humour and dark, twisty crime fiction with an added layer of contemplation regarding what makes books 'literary'. The Icelandic setting is perfectly drawn … Not to be missed' Yrsa Sigurðardóttir ‘Shades of Fargo and Twin Peaks – and there’s no higher praise than that. Absolutely brilliant!’ Rod Reynolds ‘A truly original thriller that perfectly balances humour and suspense’ Vogue ‘A hugely enjoyable read with thrills and laughs, as Hannah sticks her nose in where it’s not welcome’ Michael J. Malone ‘So satisfying … a truly great read’ Lilja Sigurðardóttir ‘A skilful, witty mash-up, playing with tropes of romantic fiction (yes, that popular genre writer turns up in the village and is not so bad after all) and crime fiction (closed community, dark secrets) … really entertaining’ Aly Monroe 'This reminded me somewhat of the more recent, meta efforts of the great Anthony Horowitz’ The Bookbag ‘The most original thriller of the year: realistic, suspenseful and romantic to the very last page. And just when you think you've got the plot figured out, the plot twists again' Politiken

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Book SynopsisAndrea Víctrix presents a dystopian vision of Palma, Mallorca, now named ‘Turclub’, in the year 2050. The unnamed narrator, who bears a certain resemblance to the author, had placed himself in voluntary cryo-stasis in 1965, fatigued by modern ‘civilization’ and morality, only to reawaken 85 years later with the physique of a 30-year old. Villalonga sets up an intriguing interplay between the narrator and the eponymous, androgynous Andrea Víctrix, so-called Director of Pleasure, in a satirical, sometimes self-ironizing exploration of contemporary issues such as gender and sexuality, consumerism, environmental disaster and the politics of big business. Both of its time and startlingly prescient, Andrea Víctrix merits a place amongst the greats of European dystopian fiction.Trade ReviewRACHEL FARMER (LUNATE LITERARY JOURNAL) - full review HERE Andrea Víctrix is certainly a unique reading experience, veering from grotesque and macabre to ludicrously funny in the space of a single paragraph… Ultimately, it is a rich, multi-layered work—one that would benefit from being studied in depth. It seems unlikely that a single reading can hope to unearth all its treasures. EUROPEAN LITERATURE NETWORK. Full review here Villalonga’s prose, in Johnson’s expertly crafted translation is extravagant and striking, perfectly suited to the city of Turclub, where decadence and hedonism are of utmost importance. The translator’s task could not have been easy – particularly in terms of language and gender surrounding the mysterious character of Andrea Víctrix – however, Johnson’s translation perfectly captures Villalonga’s often dark humour and immerses us deep into the world of Turclub, a city of excess and extravagance. This flamboyant and brilliant prose, however, never distracts from the important discussions that the novel can fuel today. ELEANOR UPDEGRAFF - Full review here Relayed in pacey, atmospheric prose peppered with sharp wit, Andrea Víctrix is a vision of a future none of us is likely to want to experience. Part incisive social criticism, part wild flight of the imagination, Villalonga’s masterpiece is a complex and entertaining work of fiction that deserves both to inspire and terrify readers for many years to come. BUZZ MAGAZINE. Full review here Compulsive reading, ending on an ambiguous note, leaving us to ponder its questions long after the last page is turned. THE MODERN NOVEL. Full review here This is another excellent novel from still relatively new publisher Fum d’Estampa. I had read quite a few Catalan novels before they were formed but I am clearly going to discover quite a few more interesting ones... (This is) a superb story with a host of fascinating ideas – my idea of a good novel. JACKIE LAW. Full review here A fascinating work of fiction that is both thought-provoking and disquieting. A reminder of the importance of critical thinking when considering widely promoted changes in attitude that are supposedly for the common good. The Monthly Booking Literary Blog. Full review here Relayed in pacey, atmospheric prose peppered with sharp wit, Andrea Víctrix is a vision of a future none of us is likely to want to experience. Part incisive social criticism, part wild flight of the imagination, Villalonga’s masterpiece is a complex and entertaining work of fiction that deserves both to inspire and terrify readers for many years to come. Ramon Mas, Les Males Herbes “This is, until someone proves otherwise, the best dystopian literature ever written in Catalan. And I say this not because of Llorenç Villalonga’s singular narrative talent, but rather because of his exceptional development of a series of ideas that provide Andrea Víctrix with a speculative solidity that is difficult to find anywhere else.” Andrea Navarra, The Barcelona Review “With the novel Andrea Víctrix, Llorenç Villalonga’s amalgamation is a spasmotic, incredible story, accumulative and grotesque, truly original, unique and highly relevant in its own literary context.” Jordi Llavina, El 3 de Vuit “A truly great novel, beautiful and terrfying in equal parts, tender and groundbreaking, and one that should be read for many years to come. A warning from history.”

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Book SynopsisA murder mystery with political overtones taking place partly in the UK and partly in Romania

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Book SynopsisIn seven interconnected short stories, the Guatemalan countryside is ever-present: a place of timeless peace, and the site of sudden violence. Don Henrik, a good man struck time and again by misfortune, confronts the crude realities of farming life, family obligation, and the intrusions of merciless entrepreneurs, hitmen, drug dealers, and fallen angels, all wanting their piece of the pie. Told with precision and a stark beauty, Trout, Belly Up is a beguiling, disturbing ensemble of moments set in the heart of a rural landscape in a country where brutality is never far from the surface.Trade ReviewGabriel García Márquez Short Story Prize (Finalist)Society of Authors TA First Translation Prize (Shortlist)"While each of the shorts could stand alone--and do, rather successfully--deciphering and connecting the overlapping threads provides enhanced literary pleasure." —Shelf Awareness, starred review"Fuentes’s prose is emotionally resonant and smartly constructed….These satisfying stories are full of surprises." —Publishers Weekly"A smart, controlled debut from a writer who addresses poverty and criminality in a variety of registers." —Kirkus"Fuentes is a consistently engaging and original writer...it is a joy to find writing of such high quality." —The Times Literary Supplement"With grace and humility, Rodrigo Fuentes has written a subtle, luminous, memorable book."" —Rodrigo Hasbún , author of AFFECTIONS

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Book SynopsisA dangerous intimacy emerges between a French teacher and a former student who has achieved art world celebrity: the painting of a portrait upturns both their lives.

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Book Synopsis"A welcome volume of stories from Russia's finest contemporary fiction writer, Mikhail Shishkin, full of his typical fusing of mysticism and modernist experimentation." --Sam Sacks, Wall Street Journal The first English-language collection of short stories by Russia's greatest contemporary author, Mikhail Shishkin, the only author to win all three of Russia's most prestigious literary awards. Often included in discussions of Nobel Prize contenders, Shishkin is a master prose writer in the breathtakingly beautiful style of the greatest Russian authors, known for complex, allusive novels about universal and emotional themes. Shishkin's stories read like modern versions of the eternal literature written by his greatest inspirations: Boris Pasternak, Ivan Bunin, Leo Tolstoy, and Mikhail Bulgakov. Shishkin's short fiction is the perfect introduction to his breathtaking oeuvre, his stories touch on the same big themes as his novels, spanning discussions of love and loss, death and eternal life, emigration and exile. Calligraphy Lesson spans Shishkin's entire writing career, including his first published story, the 1993 Debut Prize--winning "Calligraphy Lesson," and his most recent story "Nabokov's Inkblot," which was written for a dramatic adaptation performed in Zurich in 2013. Mikhail Shishkin (b. 1961 in Moscow) is one of the most prominent names in contemporary Russian literature. A former interpreter for refugees in Switzerland, Shishkin divides his time between Moscow, Switzerland, and Germany.Trade ReviewWorld Literature Today Editor's Pick: Summer Reads (2015) "Shishkin tends not to be sentimental or idealistic-- indeed, he is usually quite the opposite--and this gives the more positive or transcendent moments extra punch." -- Sibelan Forrester, The Slavic Review "Shishkin is virtuosic, his subjects move through others' stories in dizzying/awe-inspiring ways. Incredible!" -- Maaza Mengiste, author of Beneath the Lion's Gaze "Though the stories in CALLIGRAPHY LESSON are steeped in Russian history and have a distinctly Russian tone, many of the philosophical quandaries they engage extend beyond language and borders -- they are universal problems, and this translation boldly and successfully takes them on." -- Caroline North, Dallas Observer "Shishkin is fantastically, magically talented." -- Julie Hersh, Music & Literature "Compact, and at times riveting to read, this collection delivers a well-rounded portrait of Russian's most acclaimed contemporary writer." -- Lucy Renner Jones, Words Without Borders "An ideal introduction to Shishkin and his work." -- Michael Orthofer, Complete Review "Nothing I read about [Shishkin], however, quite prepared me for the desperate urgency of CALLIGRAPHY LESSON, as if its lyricism were only a last match struck against the darkness. His prose breathes life -- doesn't breathe it, gasps it, aware of the perishability of words, of worlds dying in each instant, and us dying with them, as life is beaten out of us second by second." -- Cynthia Haven, The Book Haven "Characters with great pathos navigate a distinctly post-Soviet bedlam ... The collection consists of artfully constructed, empathetic tales of people living in the midst cyclonic time." -- Jacob Kiernan, New Orleans Review "I highly recommend Calligraphy Lesson for the beautiful language, moving stories and the emotional characters." -- The Book Binder's Daughter "Complex and allusive ... juxtaposed with autobiographical -- and at times overtly politicised -- narratives ... [the final story] takes us beyond fiction and into the realm of the philosophical essay ... the collection stands at the nexus between Shishkin's novelistic output and his increasingly outspoken forays into the political arena ...In CALLIGRAPHY LESSON, he celebrates art's -- and, more specifically, language's -- capacity to elevate us to the time-annihilating plateau." -- Leo Shtutin, Open Democracy "Shishkin's life-affirming language posits transcendence." -- Robert H. McCormick Jr., World Literature Today "Shishkin's agile, inventive narration reveals his homeland anew, showing once again why he has become one of Russia's most valued storytellers--and an important new author in the West." -- Literalab "[A] skillful achievement of complex, stylistic prose to evoke poignant themes common to all people, including love, life, family, and death. [Shishkin's] particular style is impressionistic, which matches the characteristics of his dominating theme: language." -- Daniel P. Haeusser, Reading 1000 Lives

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