In a Nutshell: Part fiction, history, biography and memoir. In 1942, Anna Goldenberg’s maternal great-grandparents and one of their sons are deported to the Thersienstadt concentration camp, a then German-occupied region of the Czech Republic. Goldenburg’s grandfather, Hansi avoids deportation and survives but he will never see his parents and brother again. Using letters, archives … Continue reading Day 20: 🇦🇹 I belong to Vienna: a Jewish Family’s Story of Exile and Return
Day 8: 🇦🇷The German Room
In a Nutshell: The German Room transported me to another place, it had notes of (Elena) Ferrante, Murakami and (Mario) Benedetti in this wonderful novel. The narrator of the novel is pregnant, she lives in Buenos Aires but escapes to her childhood home, the German city of Heidelberg to escape and clear her head. Heidelberg … Continue reading Day 8: 🇦🇷The German Room
Day 7: 🇨🇺 Havana Year Zero
After reading two brilliant books from Charco Press last summer: The German Room by Carla Maliandi ( tr. Frances Riddle) and Holiday Heart by Margarita García Robayo (tr. Charlotte Coombe). I decided to subscribe to their 2021 bundle. Charco Press is a small indie publisher, based in Edinburgh, that brings Latin American contemporary writers to … Continue reading Day 7: 🇨🇺 Havana Year Zero
Day 6: 🇭🇹 Dance on the Volcano
Observations: Originally published in 1957 in French, this edition was translated by Kaiama L. Glover, a beautiful translation I may add. It was published in 2016 by Archipelago Books. I loved it, a period romp in places and at other times, a devastating tale of the impact colonialism has on nations like Haiti. In a … Continue reading Day 6: 🇭🇹 Dance on the Volcano
Day 3: 🇵🇹 Now and at the Hour of Our Death
And Other Stories is a small publishing house, publishing indie books translated into English. I decided to become a subscriber in 2019 and I also ordered a women-in-translation bundle. The women-in-translation bundle consisted of three books, one of them is Now and At the Hour of Our Death. This is a wonderful, life-affirming book. In … Continue reading Day 3: 🇵🇹 Now and at the Hour of Our Death
Day 2: 🇩🇿 Our Riches/A Bookshop in Algiers
A lot of my reading is accompanied by a snack or a good coffee. My edition of this book is called Our Riches but a new edition was released in May called A Bookshop in Algiers. In a Nutshell: Adimi was born in 1986, the same year as me! She was born in Algiers but … Continue reading Day 2: 🇩🇿 Our Riches/A Bookshop in Algiers
#WorldKidLit Wednesday: The End
What if the world actually ended with a bang and not with a whimper? (Pace, T.S. Eliot.) And what if you knew the end was coming? How would you spend your final days? That’s the premise in The End, an award-winning upper YA novel by Swedish author Mats Strandberg. When the story begins, scientists have … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: The End
#WorldKidLit Weekend: The Story of the Blue Planet
A Roald Dahlian eco-parable for middle grade readers, The Story of the Blue Planet* takes place on a special, beautiful planet strikingly similar to earth and inhabited only by children. These Peter-Pan-esque protagonists never age and come in all shapes and sizes. Some are “even weird like the child you see in the mirror.” They can … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Weekend: The Story of the Blue Planet
The Booktrekker: Eritrea
READ Eritrea is an East African country situated just above Ethiopia. At one point in the country’s history, it was annexed by Ethiopia, which led to numerous armed conflicts between the Ethiopian army and Eritreans fighting for their country’s independence. Many civilians were forced to flee Eritrea, and they ended up living in refugee camps. … Continue reading The Booktrekker: Eritrea
#TranslatedLit Editor’s Reflections by Rónán Hession
My month in the editor’s chair of the Global Literature in Libraries Initiative blog has come to an end. I’d like to thank sincerely all the publishers and contributors over the past month for providing such interesting and inspiring blog posts. At a time when everyone is so stretched and busy, your support and cooperation … Continue reading #TranslatedLit Editor’s Reflections by Rónán Hession
Global Literature in Libraries Initiative 