I know you’ve been waiting impatiently to hear the outcome of this year’s Best Translated Book Awards, so here’s the scoop:
The fiction prize goes to George Szirtes for his translation of László Krasznahorkai’s Satantango, which I very much enjoyed reading (and also to Krasznahorkai himself for writing the book), and the poetry prize goes to Sean Cotter for his translation of Nichita Stanescu’s Wheel with a Single Spoke, which I’m looking forward to reading, and to Stanescu himself. So the winning languages this year are Hungarian and Romanian, which I’m glad to see. Those are two languages whose literature deserves more attention anyhow, and seeing two fine translators honored for challenging projects is always satisfying.
The presentations were made during an event at the PEN World Voices Festival that seemed not to have made its way into the official program. Maybe next year. And meanwhile congratulations to the winning translators, their authors, and their publishing houses, New Directions and Archipelago.