Nicaragua 🇳🇮: The Country Under My Skin: a memoir of love and war by Gioconda Belli, tr. by Kristina Cordero

Posted on by jessenana

In a Nutshell: This book is Belli’s account of the Nicaraguan revolution, of meetings with Fidel Castro and Gabriel García Marquez and exile in Costa Rica and of her own political and romantic awakenings. A brilliant book, I was gripped from the very first page. I have now thought to myself of all the people … Continue reading Nicaragua 🇳🇮: The Country Under My Skin: a memoir of love and war by Gioconda Belli, tr. by Kristina Cordero

Mozambique 🇲🇿: Neighbours: The Story of a Murder by Lília Momplé, tr. Richard Bartlett and Isaura de Oliveira

Posted on by jessenana

My dad and step-mum are champions of this project and for my birthday this year, they gave me two books, one representing Namibia and this one. In a Nutshell: This 130 page novella is part of the AWS (African Writers Series). It is a sort of whodunnit, it takes place on the eve of Eid, starting at … Continue reading Mozambique 🇲🇿: Neighbours: The Story of a Murder by Lília Momplé, tr. Richard Bartlett and Isaura de Oliveira

Fiji 🇫🇯: A Privileged Life Denied by Sarote Fotfiri Erasito (tr. Sarote Fotfiri Erasito) in Poems from the Edge of Extinction: An Anthology of Poetry in Endangered Languages (Ed. Chris McCabe)

Posted on by jessenana

In 2021, I started a podcast interviewing a different woman each month asking her twenty questions. You can listen to the podcast here. As a thank you gift, I bought each woman a copy of this book. This is one of my favourite discoveries in this project, a wonderful anthology on the world’s languages/dialects that … Continue reading Fiji 🇫🇯: A Privileged Life Denied by Sarote Fotfiri Erasito (tr. Sarote Fotfiri Erasito) in Poems from the Edge of Extinction: An Anthology of Poetry in Endangered Languages (Ed. Chris McCabe)

Azerbaijan 🇦🇿: Days in the Caucasus by Banine, tr. by Anne Thompson-Ahmadova

Posted on by jessenana

In a Nutshell: Days in the Caucasus, originally published in Paris in 1945, is Banine’s memoir of her childhood in Baku, from when she was born (1905) until she left for Paris in 1923. It was translated into English in 2019. Parisian Days, the kind of sequel to Days in the Caucasus was published earlier … Continue reading Azerbaijan 🇦🇿: Days in the Caucasus by Banine, tr. by Anne Thompson-Ahmadova

Italy 🇮🇹: The Little Virtues by Natalia Ginzburg, tr. Dick Davis

Posted on by jessenana

Back in 2o19, I was living in Tanzania. The week before Christmas, my husband and I were visiting family and friends in the UK. On one of the final days of our trips, I went Christmas shopping, the final stop was in Daunt Books in Marylebone, London, I was just about to pay for my … Continue reading Italy 🇮🇹: The Little Virtues by Natalia Ginzburg, tr. Dick Davis

Georgia 🇬🇪: The Eighth Life (for Brilka) by Nino Haratischvili, tr. by Charlotte Collins and Ruth Martin

Posted on by jessenana

Observations: The Eighth Life (for Brilka) is the 2020 winner of the Warwick Prize for Women in Translation. For more about the prize, read here. I read this wonderful book whilst away on holiday with my husband, I was 3-4 months pregnant, we were on a road trip around Cambodia: visiting Chhlong/Kratie, Ratanakiri and Mondulkiri. This … Continue reading Georgia 🇬🇪: The Eighth Life (for Brilka) by Nino Haratischvili, tr. by Charlotte Collins and Ruth Martin

Welcome to #WITMonth 2023

Posted on by jessenana

Hello! It is great to be back as a guest curator this year for #WomenInTranslation (WIT) month. A bit about me, my name is Jess Andoh-Thayre. I am from Brixton, South London. I currently live in Cambodia. Before living here in Cambodia, I lived in Tanzania with my husband, who is a diplomat. I have … Continue reading Welcome to #WITMonth 2023

#WorldKidLit Wednesday: Batu and the Search for the Golden Cup

Posted on by Nanette McGuinness

Looking for a summertime middle grade adventure tale? Curious to learn about faraway places?  Then Batu and the Search for the Golden Cup* will be just the ticket for you! Set in Kazakhstan, Batu and the Search for the Golden Cup is the opening book in a coming-of-age fantasy series set in today’s world but … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: Batu and the Search for the Golden Cup

#WorldKidLit Wednesday: An interview with Translator Shelley Fairweather-Vega

Posted on by Nanette McGuinness

NM: Congratulations on the upcoming release on August 1 of your translation of Batu and the Search for the Golden Cup from Russian into English. It's a wonderful coming-of-age magical adventure and was a bestseller in Kazakhstan. How did the book find its way to you and then to Amazon Publishing? Was it an easy journey or one … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: An interview with Translator Shelley Fairweather-Vega

#WorldKidLit Wednesday: Genius Noses: A Curious Animal Compendium

Posted on by Planet Picture Book

As everyone knows, a nose is a very useful appendage. But just how useful? In Genius Noses,* a non-fiction picture book aimed at readers ages 6-12, you’ll discover the multiple uses and benefits of the probosces, snouts and beaks of no fewer than 100 different animals! The contents page is split into neat sections like … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: Genius Noses: A Curious Animal Compendium