100BestWIT discussion

A thread for discussing other books by women writers in translation (outside of the top 100 list).

Looking for book recommendations based on a specific country/region/author/translator/topic/genre? Need advice for choosing the best translation? Or just want to recommend a great book you've read recently? Leave a comment here.

I wouldn't mind rolling recommendations for the WIT works I have on hand. You can check out what's included here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...

Agnese wrote: "A thread for discussing other books by women writers in translation (outside of the top 100 list).

Thanks for starting this additional thread Agnese! This could be a great resource for current and future books beyond the Best100 and the 800+

I'm currently finishing Faces on the Tip of My Tongue (2019) (136pgs.) by Emmanuelle Pagano, translated from the French by Jennifer Higgins. It is a set of themed short stories set around a rural French community. Slightly frustratingly, it is not a complete translation of the original Un renard à mains nues (A Fox with Bare Hands) (2012) (340pgs.) as an afterward by the translators explains that they selected only the stories that were the best linked i.e. one story will have characters or references to those in another.

This is from Peirene Press who have been publishing quite a few women in translation in recent years. They are also the publishers of Soviet Milk by Nora Ikstena which is in the #Best100WIT.

Peirene Press operates a subscription service whereby you can receive each book a month or so in advance of the official publication date. It seems like a good way to support independent small press and women in translation.

Aubrey wrote: "I wouldn't mind rolling recommendations for the WIT works I have on hand. You can check out what's included here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/list......"

I highly recommend Secondhand Time: The Last of the Soviets by Svetlana Alexievich (translated by Bela Shayevich) which has deservedly been included in the top 100 list. It’s a long book, full of heart-wrenching life stories, but ultimately a very worthwhile read.

Alan wrote: Thanks for starting this additional thread Agnese! This could be a great resource ..."

Peirene Press has a really interesting catalogue and I have quite a few of their books on my TBR list. I look forward to reading The Mussel Feast which has been recommended to me several times, even before it made the list of 100 Best WIT. I think Peirene Press also published another book by Birgit Vanderbeke this year.

I’m also curious to try The Blue Room by Hanne Ørstavik who made the list with her book Love which I really enjoyed.

I've made it my mission to read more non-fiction this year and non-fiction by women in translation is hard to find! If you have any suggestions, let me know. (And yes, Alexievich is amazing... once I've fully recovered from the brutal Boys in Zinc I want to get to Second hand time next!)

Some of my favorites so far:
A Simple Story: The Last Malambo by Leila Guerriero is a wonderful piece of long-form journalism. I didn't know I was interested enough in some obscure dance competition to read an entire book on it, but apparently... I am? I couldn't put it down.

The Book of Emma Reyes by (you guessed it) Emma Reyes was a fascinating account of her childhood, written in letters to a friend. I wonder if she also wrote letters about her later life, which was no less adventerous. And if so, let me read them please!

I've just finished the collection of essays Those Whom I Would Like to Meet Again by Giedra Radvilavičiūtė, which are wonderfully funny, complex and meandering musings on life, writing and scottish fold cats.

Also, if people want to see more non-fiction suggestions (and add their own), there's a listopia list here.

Sanne wrote: "I've made it my mission to read more non-fiction this year and non-fiction by women in translation is hard to find! If you have any suggestions, let me know. (And yes, Alexievich is amazing... once..."
That list has been great for my TBR! :) I think that's where we connected the other day, Sanne. Translated non-fiction is also a sweet spot for me.

Sanne wrote: "I've made it my mission to read more non-fiction this year and non-fiction by women in translation is hard to find! If you have any suggestions, let me know. (And yes, Alexievich is amazing... once..."

Thank you for sharing that list! I’ve been wanting to explore more non-fiction in translation and this is a great source of inspiration! It will also be very useful for Non-fiction November. :)

I just actually finished a glorious nonfiction WIT work: Journey into the Whirlwind by Evgenia Ginzburg. I believe I added the book to Sanne's list already, if it hadn't been added by another previously.

Sanne wrote: "I've made it my mission to read more non-fiction this year and non-fiction by women in translation is hard to find! If you have any suggestions, let me know. (And yes, Alexievich is amazing... once..."

Hi Agnese, re: translated non-fiction, I now remembered Memories Denied (2009) by Imbi Paju although I'm not sure if it is translated from the Finnish 2006 or the Estonian 2007 original. I've sent you for your Baltic Literature List as well via twitter.

Thank you for all the suggestions, Alan! I’ve added them to the Guide to Baltic Literature on my blog and I’ve also started a Goodreads list here: Baltic Literature in English Translation

Agnese wrote: "Thank you for all the suggestions, Alan! I’ve added them to the Guide to Baltic Literature on my blog and I’ve also started a Goodreads list here: Baltic Literature in English Translation"

Agnese, fantastic work on these Baltic lists!! Except now my TBR is increasing by another 20-30 titles ;)

Thank you, I’m glad to hear that! :)

Yes, every time I visit translatedlit.com or any of our moderators' blogs, I end up with a stack of books more on my TBR. It's a slippery slope that I just adore. BTW, thank you all for all of your hard work.

That’s the goal

Ella wrote: "Yes, every time I visit translatedlit.com or any of our moderators' blogs, I end up with a stack of books more on my TBR. It's a slippery slope that I just adore. BTW, thank you all for all of your..."

Thank you, Ella! That’s very encouraging to hear! :)

Here's a list of books in translation by women out this fall from one of last year's BTBA judges:

http://www.rochester.edu/College/tran...

I may be very late on this (can't figure out when it was posted.) but the Warwick Prize has the eligible book list for 2019 available here in PDF:

The 2019 prize has received 92 entries from 30 languages, a substantial increase on 2018 and 2017.

https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/cross_fac/w...

The Book Riot's 100 Must-Read Classics in Translation list is worth bringing back, considering that roughly half of them are by women. There's some overlap with regards to the 100WiT in terms of works/authors, but all in all, this is a good counterbalance to the contemporary bias of the more recent list: https://www.listchallenges.com/book-r...

Announcements for Nobel Prizes for Lit for 2018 and 2019 coming 10/10/2019: https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/lit...

Maryse Condé won the so-called Alternative Nobel, and there are other WiT who won the Neustadt, which has had a high correspondence rate with Nobel Prize for Lit winners. I'm thinking Saadawi's also a favorite, along with a number of others. Anyone have any WiT they're gunning for?

I’m (somewhat nervously) looking forward to this year’s announcement...

There are currently four Nobel Prize laureates on the list of 100 Best WIT - Sigrid Undset, Wisława Szymborska, Herta Müller, and Svetlana Alexievich.

I agree that Nawal El Saadawi is a strong Nobel contender, and I would also like to see Annie Ernaux and Yōko Ogawa win the prize.

Dubravka Ugrešić won a Neustadt, and I could see her in the running. Unfortunately, a number of other WiT winners are recently deceased: Djebar more than deserved a Nobel.

Aubrey wrote: "Dubravka Ugrešić won a Neustadt, and I could see her in the running. Unfortunately, a number of other WiT winners are recently deceased: Djebar more than deserved a Nobel."

And yet, I keep reading articles from the British press that say they all think Margaret Atwood is overdue... Hmm.

Aubrey wrote: "Dubravka Ugrešić won a Neustadt, and I could see her in the running. Unfortunately, a number of other WiT winners are recently deceased: Djebar more than deserved a Nobel."

Yes, I’d love to see Ugrešić win!

It’s also sad that Daša Drndić passed away in 2018, she would have been another worthy contender for the prize.

Ella wrote: "And yet, I keep reading articles from the British press that say they all think Margaret Atwood is overdue... Hmm."

Ugh, I’m so tired of constantly hearing about Atwood and that new sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale...

I heard Oates was another horrendously popular contender, but honestly, if I had to choose between them and, say, Knausgård, or another musician, I'd more readily submit to the white woman popularity contest.

Aubrey wrote: "I heard Oates was another horrendously popular contender, but honestly, if I had to choose between them and, say, Knausgård, or another musician, I'd more readily submit to the white woman populari..."

Isn't it sad when we're all just hoping that the worst case won't happen to the NOBEL in LIT! Argh.

I would seriously hope that some woman would win. If it was a woman of color, that'd be great, but I won't hold my breath.

Yeah, Alexievich got my hopes up earlier on, but considering Ishiguro got the last announced one, I'm sure a there's a number of persons on the committee who feel that they've appealed to the 'liberals' enough.

I really hope it isn't going to be a another Anglophone author, because that means I'd already know the author. I prefer to be introduced to an author who I hadn't heard (a lot) about before her winning such a prestigious oeuvre prize. That way, I have a new author to try with an enormous backlist to sink my teeth into if I like her writing. That's what I loved about previous winners like Müller and Alexievich (and Modiano if a small mention of a male author is allowed in this group...).

My ideal winner is a woman who's out of print and nearly forgotten, as that means her books will become available again after winning (and it has the bonus of plenty of articles by literary pundits who "totally knew" she was going to win.... I love literary postering by people who clearly don't know what just happened).

I always do feel a little sad that, in order to be eligible for the nobel, an author's entire oeuvre must be read by the jury - which means that (partially) untranslated authors simply don't have a chance.

Sanne wrote: "I really hope it isn't going to be a another Anglophone author, because that means I'd already know the author. I prefer to be introduced to an author who I hadn't heard (a lot) about before her wi..."

I agree, it would be great if the prize would go to an author (preferably a woman) whose books have been undeservedly overlooked or forgotten.

It doesn't seem fair that, in order to be eligible for the Nobel, the jury must read the author's entire oeuvre. It basically means that all Anglophone authors are put in a more privileged position.