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Words Without Borders

Contributor

Words Without Borders

Founded in 2003, Words Without Borders promotes cultural understanding through the translation, publication, and promotion of the finest contemporary international literature. Our publications and programs open doors for readers of English around the world to the multiplicity of viewpoints, richness of experience, and literary perspective on world events offered by writers in other languages. We seek to connect international writers to the general public, to students and educators, and to print and other media and to serve as a primary online location for a global literary conversation. Learn more about WWB

Articles by Words Without Borders

The National Book Award Interviews: Sam Taylor and David Diop
By Words Without Borders
When I translate, it’s just me and the text, and I work quickly, intuitively. If I ever try to slow down or analyze what I’m doing, I lose that sense of flow.
The National Book Award Interviews: Lara Vergnaud and Mohamed Mbougar Sarr
By Words Without Borders
I always say that the last book I translated is the hardest book I’ve ever translated. But in this case, I think it’s true!
Headshots of translator Lisa Dillman and writer Pilar Quintana semifinalists for the 2023 National...
Credits: Lisa Dillman by April Hunt. Pilar Quintana by Danilo Costa.
The National Book Award Interviews: Lisa Dillman and Pilar Quintana
By Words Without Borders
This novel is my answer to that fear, to that childhood fear says Pilar Quintana of her Abyss, longlisted for the 2023 National Book Award for Translated Literature.
Multimedia
The National Book Award Interviews: Bruna Dantas Lobato and Stênio Gardel
By Words Without Borders
“This was just being at the right place at the right time,” says translator Bruna Dantas Lobato.
Photos of National Book Award semifinalists Sophie Hughes and Fernanda Melchor
The National Book Award Interviews: Sophie Hughes and Fernanda Melchor
By Words Without Borders
Trust is the lifeblood of successful author-translator collaborations, and by trusting me so unwaveringly, Fernanda has also shown me how to trust myself.
Multimedia
Image of translator Anton Hur and writer Bora Chung semifinalists for the 2023 National Book Award
The National Book Award Interviews: Anton Hur and Bora Chung
By Words Without Borders
It was fate that I translated this book, says National Book Award semifinalist Anton Hur.
Multimedia
A pile of plastic letters and numbers on a pink and blue background
Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Unsplash
7 Ways to Support Translation on International Translation Day
By Words Without Borders
The WWB team recommends seven ways to promote translators and global literature on International Translation Day—and all year round!
Portrait of translator Samantha Farmer
Samantha Farmer Awarded Momentum Grant for Early-Career Translators
By Words Without Borders
Samantha Farmer is recognized for their translation of a subversive queer Croatian novel.
Portrait of Anna Claire Weber
Meet WWB’s Marketing and Communications Manager, Anna Claire Weber
By Words Without Borders
WWB talks with our marketing and communications manager, Anna Claire Weber, about the writers she loves, her experience as a bookseller, and her current writing projects.
The twelve books featured in the list, in three rows of five
12 Translators Recommend Women in Translation
By Words Without Borders
For Women in Translation Month, a dozen translators recommend recent favorite books written and translated by women.
From left to right, a collage of photos of Merve Emre, Agnes Ahlander Turner, and Enid Prasad
Three New Members Join WWB Board of Directors
By Words Without Borders
Words Without Borders is pleased to announce the election of three new members to its Board of Directors this spring: Agnes Ahlander Turner, Merve Emre, and Enid Prasad.
A photo of Daniel Hahn. He is seated on a bench inside an art gallery, and turns to the left to...
Copyright (c) John Lawrence.
Daniel Hahn to Receive 2023 Ottaway Award for the Promotion of International Literature
By Words Without Borders
WWB's annual award for the promotion of international literature will go to Daniel Hahn this year.
Portrait of translator and editorial fellow Isabella Corletto
Introducing WWB’s Editorial Fellow, Isabella Corletto
By Words Without Borders
Everyone around me spoke both languages and we could move back and forth between them almost unconsciously, which is why I often say that my real first language is Spanglish.
The covers of the books featured in the list
Your #IWD2023 Reading List
By Words Without Borders
In honor of International Women's Day 2023, WWB recommends 10 forthcoming books written and translated by women and published by small presses.
National Book Critics Circle logo
The National Book Critics Circle Appreciations for the Gregg Barrios Book in Translation Prize
By Words Without Borders
The judges of the inaugural National Book Critics Circle Gregg Barrios Book in Translation Prize share their appreciations of the twelve longlisted titles.
The covers of the books featured in the list
The Best Books of 2022—And What We’re Looking Forward to in 2023
By Words Without Borders
Our staff, contributors, and board members share their favorite translated books of the year and the titles they're looking forward to in 2023.
We’re Hiring: Full Stack Web Developer (Contract)
By Words Without Borders
Words Without Borders (WWB) seeks an individual or agency to manage technology needs for its website, wordswithoutborders.org.
Left, author Shariar Mandanipour; right, translator Sara Khalili
Left, Shariar Mandanipour, photo © Danial Mondanipour; right, Sara Khalili, photo © Miriam Berkley
The National Book Award Interviews: Shahriar Mandanipour and Sara Khalili
By Words Without Borders
“There have been times when we have spent hours discussing a single phrase and how to give it the same life and soul in English.”
Left: Mohammed Hasan Alwan; Right: William M. Hutchins
The National Book Award Interviews: Mohammed Hasan Alwan & William M. Hutchins
By Words Without Borders
I thought he was in search for something meaningful and, thus, he was exposing himself to conditions he hoped would light the way for a coming revelation.
Portraits of Jon Fosse and Damion Searls
Left: Jon Fosse, photo by Tom Kolstad Samlaget; Right: Damion Searls, photo by Beowulf Sheehan
The National Book Award Interviews: Jon Fosse & Damion Searls
By Words Without Borders
“To me writing is an act of listening. And if I am writing well then what I write will necessarily be new to me as well. Writing is a journey into the unknown.”
Portraits of Yoko Tawada and Margaret Mitsutani
The National Book Award Interviews: Yoko Tawada & Margaret Mitsutani
By Words Without Borders
We’re living in a world where both languages and people are constantly in flux. In this novel, I wanted to focus on a small group of people making their way through that world.
Portraits of Mónica Ojeda and Sarah Booker
The National Book Award Interviews: Mónica Ojeda & Sarah Booker
By Words Without Borders
I always say to myself that Jawbone came to me as a nightmare, a vision full of fear and desire, but I really can’t remember how it started.
Portraits of Samanta Schweblin and Megan McDowell
Left: Samanta Schweblin, photo by Alejandra Lopez; Right: Megan McDowell, photo by Camila Valdés
The National Book Award Interviews: Samanta Schweblin & Megan McDowell
By Words Without Borders
I’m always a little amazed at the subtlety of Samanta’s language, how much she can convey in so few words—that hasn’t changed over all the books of hers I’ve translated.
At left face of French language translator Mark Polizzotti and at right face of French Rwandan...
The National Book Award Interviews: Scholastique Mukasonga & Mark Polizzotti
By Words Without Borders
“One thing that makes 'Kibogo' such a compelling work is the critical distance it maintains from all the power structures it describes.”
Portraits of Olga Ravn and Martin Aitken
Left: Olga Ravn, photo credit: Lærke Posselt; Right: Martin Aitken
The National Book Award Interviews: Olga Ravn & Martin Aitken
By Words Without Borders
I think my task was less linguistic than it was a matter of representing the environment in my mind and sensing its moods emotionally, entering that strange atmosphere so it could seep through into the translation.
Portraits of Saša Stanišić and Damion Searls
Left: Saša Stanišić, photo by Katja Sämann; Right: Damion Searls, photo by Beowulf Sheehan
The National Book Award Interviews: Saša Stanišić & Damion Searls
By Words Without Borders
I started working on [the book] in 2016 when my grandmother was showing the first serious signs of dementia. I wanted to create an archive of sorts, in which her life was told in stories.
Portraits of Bibiana Mas and Aina Marti
Bibiana Mas (left); Aina Marti
An Interview with Two New Publishers of Women in Translation
By Words Without Borders
I thought I could create a space for sharing women’s global experiences through literary fiction. 
July 2022 Poetry Collection Feature
8 Poetry Collections in Translation to Read in 2022
By Words Without Borders
Recent and forthcoming poetry in translation from Mexico, South Korea, Croatia, Haiti, and more.
Woman reading book with bookshelves and colorful book spines behind her
The New Words Without Borders: The Future of Reading the World
By Words Without Borders
Nearing its twentieth anniversary, the premier publication for international literature reimagines what is to come.
March-2022-Triangle-Square-Interview-Ruth-Weiner-Featured
Ruth Weiner, publisher of Triangle Square Books for Young Readers. Photo © Eva Sotomayor.
Children’s Literature in Translation: Triangle Square Books for Young Readers
By Words Without Borders
Answers aren’t always easy to come by in the real world when you’re a kid.
We’re Hiring: Digital Engagement & Communications Manager
By Words Without Borders
Digital Engagement & Communications ManagerFull-timeRemote (Tristate area preferred)The digital engagement and communications manager will drive audience and engagement growth across Words Without…
Various wooden letter blocks
Photo by Amador Loureiro on Unsplash
9 Writers to Read on International Mother Language Day
By Words Without Borders
We highlight 9 writers working in their heritage languages, from Galician and Cebuano to Guaraní and Kaaps.
Multimedia
A watercolor of a middle-aged woman from the shoulders up
An image from Igort's "The Story of Serafima Andreyevna," translated by Jamie Richards.
Voices from Ukraine: A Reading List
By Words Without Borders
While some of this writing engages directly with the country's history of armed conflict with Russia, the majority addresses more quotidian themes.
9 Dystopian Novels in Translation to Read Now
By Words Without Borders
Recent and forthcoming dystopian fiction from Argentina, Egypt, Iceland, Japan, and more.
Most Anticipated Books Of 2022 Feature
WWB’s Most Anticipated Translated Books of 2022
By Words Without Borders
WWB staff, contributors, and board members on the translated books they're most excited about in 2022.
Calvin Baker Joins WWB Board of Directors
By Words Without Borders
Words Without Borders is pleased to announce the election of acclaimed author Calvin Baker to its Board of Directors. “I am a great admirer of Calvin’s writing. A brilliant writer…
The Best Translated Books of 2021
By Words Without Borders
As the year comes to an end, our staff, contributors, and board members look back on their favorite international reads from 2021.Eric M. B. BeckerEditorOne of my most thought-provoking reads…
7 New Voices in English Translation to Read Now
By Words Without Borders
Each year, WWB is proud to offer a platform to dozens of international writers whose work has never before appeared in English translation. As 2021 comes to an end, we’re looking back at some of…
Spanish-language Writing in New York, Then and Now: An Interview with Esther Allen & Ulises Gonzales
By Words Without Borders
While many Latinx writers work in English, there is a longstanding tradition of writers born or raised in this country who work in Spanish.
Introducing WWB’s Education Fellow, Allison Tim
By Words Without Borders
We're pleased to welcome Allison Tim as the first-ever WWB education fellow. Allison is a writer, photographer, and budding filmmaker. After graduating from Macalester College with…
Soleil Davíd
Introducing WWB’s Editorial Fellow, Soleil Davíd
By Words Without Borders
I see translation as a way for me to engage with one facet of my country’s literature, a hopefully productive excuse to read works in Tagalog and Bikol.
Introducing WWB’s New Books Editor, Adam Dalva
By Words Without Borders
We’re pleased to welcome Adam Dalva as the new books editor of Words Without Borders.Adam’s writing has appeared in the New Yorker, the New York Review of Books, and the Paris…
10 Translated Books about Translators for International Translation Day
By Words Without Borders
Happy International Translation Day! To ensure that you're squeezing in as much translation as possible on this special day, we've made a list of ten great translated books that feature translator…
The Winners of the 2021 Words Without Borders—Academy of American Poets Poems in Translation Contest
By Words Without Borders
This prize-winning translation haunts.
Children’s Literature in Translation: Gecko Press
By Words Without Borders
In recent years, a proliferation of books in translation for children and young adults has brought imaginative stories from around the world to new readers. We’re speaking with some of the extraordinary…
Announcing the Winners of the 2021 Poems in Translation Contest
By Words Without Borders
As a pandemic defined by isolation stretches ever onward, our third Poems in Translation Contest brought together 606 poems from 327 poets and 79 countries, translated from 61 languages. We are thrilled…
Naveen Kishore, Renowned Publisher of Seagull Books, to Receive 2021 Ottaway Award
By Words Without Borders
We are pleased to announce that Naveen Kishore, publisher and founder of Seagull Books in Kolkata, will receive the 2021 Words Without Borders Ottaway Award for the Promotion of International Literature.“In…
Introducing WWB’s Digital Marketing and Communications Coordinator, Bruna Dantas Lobato
By Words Without Borders
We’re pleased to welcome Bruna Dantas Lobato as WWB’s digital marketing and communications coordinator. Bruna is a Brazilian writer and literary translator whose writing has…
The Translator Relay: Jayme Costa Pinto
By Words Without Borders
WWB’s Translator Relay features an interview with a different translator every few months. The current month’s translator will choose the next interviewee, adding a different, sixth…
11 Translated Books by Asian Women Writers to Read This #WITMonth
By Words Without Borders
 Happy #WITMonth! To celebrate this special occasion, we've chosen eleven books you won't want to miss by some of our favorite Asian women writers in the WWB archives. From Indonesia,…
The Translator Relay: Karen Sherwood Sotelino
By Words Without Borders
WWB’s Translator Relay features an interview with a different translator every few months. The current month’s translator will choose the next interviewee, adding a different, sixth…
Who Translates?
By Words Without Borders
In the wake of 2020’s racist violence, and subsequent organizing by the Black Lives Matter movement and others to combat white supremacy, literary magazines and publishers everywhere have, to differing…
10 New Children’s Books in Translation to Read This Summer
By Words Without Borders
As the days grow hotter and the school year draws to a close, you—and the kids in your life—might have some extra time on your hands. To help you plan your summer reading list, we’ve…
8 Queer Books in Translation to Read Now
By Words Without Borders
For Pride Month 2021, we asked eight writers and translators to recommend their favorite queer titles in translation. The books they shared with us—from Chile, China, Equatorial Guinea,…
Children’s Literature in Translation: Epigram Books
By Words Without Borders
In recent years, a proliferation of books in translation for children and young adults has brought imaginative stories from around the world to new readers. We’re speaking with some of the extraordinary…
The Translator Relay: Adam Morris
By Words Without Borders
WWB’s Translator Relay features an interview with a different translator every few months. The current month’s translator will choose the next interviewee, adding a different, sixth…
Children’s Literature in Translation: Groundwood Books
By Words Without Borders
In recent years, a proliferation of books in translation for children and young adults has brought imaginative stories from around the world to new readers. We’re speaking with some of the extraordinary…
More Than a Literary Movement: Susana Sanches Arins and Valentim Fagim on Reintegrationist Galician
By Words Without Borders
WWB's March issue features writing from Galicia, an autonomous region of northwestern Spain that borders Portugal. Though the Galician language shares a common root with modern Portuguese, Galicia's…
Translated by Jacob Rogers
The Translator Relay: Julia Powers
By Words Without Borders
WWB’s Translator Relay features an interview with a different translator every few months. The current month’s translator will choose the next interviewee, adding a different, sixth…
“In Another Voice”: Kyra Ho on Creating a Poetry Translation Podcast
By Words Without Borders
In the midst of the COVID-19 lockdown, classmates Kyra Ho and Maria Goikhberg created In Another Voice, a podcast dedicated to poetry in translation. In less than a year, they have…
7 Issues of International Women’s Writing to Read on #IWD2021
By Words Without Borders
Happy International Women's Day! In celebration of this special day, we've selected seven outstanding issues of women's writing in translation from the WWB archives. Featuring work from…
Twenty Years of Île en île: A Conversation with Thomas C. Spear
By Words Without Borders
From 1998 until January 2021, Professor Thomas C. Spear edited Île en île, an extensive virtual archive of literature from French-speaking islands and their diasporas. Although there will…
Children’s Literature in Translation: Tapioca Stories
By Words Without Borders
In recent years, a proliferation of books in translation for children and young adults has brought imaginative stories from around the world to new readers. We’re speaking with some of the extraordinary…
Lily Meyer and Mona Kareem Reflect on Close-Up: An Experiment in Reviewing Translation
By Words Without Borders
Today WWB concludes its series Close-Up: An Experiment in Reviewing Translation, in which Lily Meyer and Mona Kareem seek to develop and practice a translation-centric approach…
How Can We Better Publish Black Writers in Translation?
By Words Without Borders
This month, WWB took a look back at some of the important writing on race and racism to be found in the magazine's archives.
The Translator Relay: Sophie Duvernoy
By Words Without Borders
WWB’s Translator Relay features an interview with a different translator every few months. The current month’s translator will choose the next interviewee, adding a different, sixth…
Our Favorite International Reads of 2020 (and What We’ll Be Reading in 2021)
By Words Without Borders
As the year comes to an end, our staff, contributors, and board members share their favorite international reads from 2020 and the titles they’re looking forward to in 2021.Eric M. B.…
The Best Translated Books You Missed in 2020
By Words Without Borders
As we approach the end of 2020, we’ve been speaking with translators, critics, publishers, writers, and booksellers about outstanding books in translation that readers might have…
Tara Parsons Joins WWB Board of Directors
By Words Without Borders
Words Without Borders is pleased to announce the election of Tara Parsons, Associate Publisher of the HarperOne Group, to its Board of Directors. “Tara's expertise and leadership in…
The Translator Relay: Jack Jung
By Words Without Borders
WWB’s Translator Relay features an interview with a different translator every few months. The current month’s translator will choose the next interviewee, adding a different, sixth…
Introducing WWB’s Assistant Editor and Development Associate, Nina Perrotta
By Words Without Borders
We’re pleased to welcome Nina Perrotta as WWB’s assistant editor and development associate. Nina is a writer, editor, and translator from Spanish and Portuguese. Prior to joining WWB, she…
Children’s Literature in Translation: Levine Querido
By Words Without Borders
In recent years, a proliferation of books in translation for children and young adults has brought imaginative stories from around the world to new readers. We’re speaking with some of the extraordinary…
“Glaciers and Oceans and the Next Hundred Years”: A Conversation with Andri Snær Magnason
By Words Without Borders
In his forthcoming book On Time and Water, an excerpt of which appears in our October 2020 Climate issue, and in his TED talk, Icelandic writer Andri Snær Magnason combines science, myth, and…
Introducing WWB’s Editorial Fellow, Varun Nayar
By Words Without Borders
We’re pleased to welcome Varun Nayar as a WWB editorial fellow. Varun is a writer, editor, and researcher from Delhi, India. He was most recently the nonfiction editor of Asymptote, and…
An Interview with WWB Poetry Contest Winners Enrique Villasis and Bernard Capinpin
By Words Without Borders
“Birds in Flight, 1965” by Enrique Villasis, translated from Filipino by Bernard Capinpin, was one of four winners of WWB’s 2020 Poems in Translation contest, presented…
“This Catastrophe That Is Called Lebanon”: A Conversation with Mazen Kerbaj
By Words Without Borders
Lebanese comics artist and musician Mazen Kerbaj first appeared in Words Without Borders in February 2008, in our second graphic novel issue. Since then he’s contributed six more pieces, most recently…
New Canons: 9 Anthologies of Translated Literature
By Words Without Borders
In honor of International Translation Day, we’ve compiled a list of nine of the most innovative anthologies of translated literature from the past two decades. These collections move beyond the…
An Interview with WWB Poetry Contest Winners Yau Ching and Chenxin Jiang
By Words Without Borders
“Trial Run” by Yau Ching, translated from Chinese by Chenxin Jiang, was one of four winners of WWB’s 2020 Poems in Translation contest, presented in partnership with the Academy…
The Translator Relay: Don Mee Choi
By Words Without Borders
WWB’s Translator Relay features an interview with a different translator every few months. The current month’s translator will choose the next interviewee, adding a different, sixth…
An Interview with WWB Poetry Contest Winner Bryan Mendoza
By Words Without Borders
Bryan Mendoza’s translation of Julio Pazos Barrera's “Pegasus Autopsy” was one of four winners of WWB’s 2020 Poems in Translation contest, presented in partnership…
An Interview with WWB Poetry Contest Winner Nguyễn-Hoàng Quyên
By Words Without Borders
Making texts that are potentially wrong or slippery keeps me heedful of officious frames of correctness.
Shining a Light on Children’s Books in Translation: Ruth Ahmedzai Kemp on World Kid Lit Month
By Words Without Borders
September is World Kid Lit Month—a celebration of translated literature for young people. We invited World Kid Lit advocate and children’s book translator Ruth Ahmedzai Kemp to tell us about…
Announcing the Winners of the 2020 Poems in Translation Contest
By Words Without Borders
In the midst of a pandemic defined by isolation, our second Poems in Translation Contest brought together 935 poems from 448 poets and 87 countries, translated from 58 languages. We are thrilled to announce,…
9 Translated Books by Black Women Writers to Read This #WITMonth
By Words Without Borders
This #WITMonth, we're spotlighting books by some of our favorite Black women writers in translation. From Haiti and Cabo Verde, Italy and Equatorial Guinea, the books below span continents…
The Translator Relay: Kristin Dykstra
By Words Without Borders
 WWB’s Translator Relay features an interview with a different translator every few months. The current month’s translator will choose the next interviewee, adding a different,…
The Complete WWB Decameron
By Words Without Borders
A little over ten weeks ago, as borders were closing and our world convulsed in the COVID-19 pandemic, we asked ourselves how we could join together with our readers for solace, stimulation, and contact…
8 Queer Books in Translation to Read This Pride Month
By Words Without Borders
This year, Pride Month comes at a momentous and grief-stricken time. As queer communities around the world take to the streets in the fight for racial justice, many are also working to raise awareness…
The Translator Relay: Urayoán Noel
By Words Without Borders
WWB’s Translator Relay features an interview with a different translator every few months. The current month’s translator will choose the next interviewee, adding a different, sixth…
Lily Meyer and Mona Kareem on Their New Series, Close-Up: An Experiment in Reviewing Translation
By Words Without Borders
Today WWB launches its new series Close-Up: An Experiment in Reviewing Translation, a response to the dearth of book reviews that take translators and translation into account. In the conversation…
11 Indie Presses Recommend Books in Translation for World Book Day 2020
By Words Without Borders
This year, World Book Day comes at a difficult moment for book publishers, as well as for writers, translators, and readers. We thought we’d take the occasion to trumpet some of our favorite…
Shelter in Poems: Poetry to Break the Isolation of Social Distancing
By Words Without Borders
Words Without Borders is leaning into poetry's ability to fill the void of isolation.
International Booksellers Recommend 11 Translated Books to Read Right Now
By Words Without Borders
Over the past several weeks, we at Words Without Borders have been thinking about how to best support our community of international writers, translators, and booksellers through the COVID-19 crisis.…
The Translator Relay: Regina Galasso
By Words Without Borders
WWB’s Translator Relay features an interview with a different translator every few months. The current month’s translator will choose the next interviewee, adding a different, sixth…
For International Women’s Day, Nine Translated Books by Women to Read in 2020
By Words Without Borders
In celebration of International Women’s Day, we’re looking ahead to the translated literature by women that we’re most excited about in 2020. Here are the books at the top of our…
Words Without Borders Receives 2020 National Endowment for the Arts Grant
By Words Without Borders
New York, New York, January 16, 2020—The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) announced yesterday awards totaling more than $27 million in its first funding round of fiscal year 2020, including an…
A Note from the Editors: January 2020
By Words Without Borders
A note from the editors on the occasion of our Rojava poetry feature.
Our Favorite International Reads from 2019 (and What We’ll Be Reading in 2020)
By Words Without Borders
As the year draws to a close, our staff, contributors, and board members share their favorite works-in-translation of 2019 and the titles they’re looking forward to in 2020.Eric M. B. BeckerEditorTo…
The Best Translated Books You Missed in 2019
By Words Without Borders
As we approach the end of the year, we’ve been speaking with translators, critics, publishers, writers, and booksellers about excellent works in translation that you may have missed in your…
Your Holiday Gift Guide to Reading in Translation
By Words Without Borders
This holiday season give friends and family the gift of literature from around the world. Here are our recommendations of exciting recent international titles for all of the readers in your…
“Languages Constantly Crackling in the Air”
By Words Without Borders
Not enough is known about the Philippines.
Photographing the Amazon: An Interview with Eliseu Cavalcante
By Words Without Borders
We spoke with Brazilian photographer Eliseu Cavalcante—whose work focuses on marginalized groups, environmental issues, and social change—about his photo series documenting life in the Amazon,…
Children’s Literature in Translation: Amazon Crossing Kids
By Words Without Borders
In recent years, a proliferation of books in translation for children and young adults has brought imaginative stories from around the world to new readers. We’re speaking with some of the extraordinary…
An Interview with WWB Poetry Contest Winner Jacob Rogers
By Words Without Borders
Jacob Rogers’s translation of “An Apocryphal History of the Discovery of Migration” by Alba Cid was one of four winners of WWB’s poetry in translation contest, presented in…
An Interview with WWB Poetry Contest Winners Lee Young-ju and Jae Kim
By Words Without Borders
“Roommate, Woman” by Lee Young-ju, translated from Korean by Jae Kim, was one of four winners of WWB’s poetry in translation contest, presented in partnership with the Academy of…
An Interview with WWB Poetry Contest Winners Claudia Masin and Robin Myers
By Words Without Borders
“Tomboy” by Claudia Masin, translated from Spanish by Robin Myers, was one of four winners of WWB’s poetry in translation contest, presented in partnership with the Academy of American…
An Interview with WWB Poetry Contest Winners Dorothy Tse and Natascha Bruce
By Words Without Borders
“Cloth Birds” by Dorothy Tse, translated from Chinese by Natascha Bruce, was one of four winners of WWB’s poetry in translation contest, presented in partnership with the Academy…
Edith Grossman, Renowned Translator and Advocate for Translation, to Receive 2019 Ottaway Award
By Words Without Borders
We are pleased to announce that Edith Grossman will receive the 2019 Ottaway Award for the Promotion of International Literature.“In a career that spans over half a century—translating, teaching…
The Winners of the Words Without Borders—Academy of American Poets Poem-in-Translation Contest
By Words Without Borders
We received 717 poems from 282 poets from 87 countries translated from 55 languages.
Announcing the Winners of the 2019 Poems in Translation Contest
By Words Without Borders
This year, we partnered with the Academy of American Poets for our first ever poetry in translation contest. We received 717 poems from 282 poets from 87 countries translated…
The Translator Relay: Chantal Ringuet
By Words Without Borders
WWB’s Translator Relay features an interview with a different translator every few months. The current month’s translator will choose the next interviewee, adding a different, sixth…
Words Without Borders Launches Poems in Translation Contest
By Words Without Borders
Words Without Borders Launches Poems in Translation ContestMónica de la Torre to Judge We're pleased to announce a new contest to spotlight some of the groundbreaking poets working around…
Introducing WWB’s Digital Marketing and Communications Coordinator, Susannah Greenblatt
By Words Without Borders
We’re pleased to welcome Susannah Greenblatt as WWB’s digital marketing and communications coordinator. Susannah is a writer, filmmaker, and translator from the Spanish, and she…
The Translator Relay: Lazer Lederhendler
By Words Without Borders
WWB’s Translator Relay features an interview with a different translator every few months. The current month’s translator will choose the next interviewee, adding a different, sixth…
An Interview with Ma Jian and Flora Drew
By Words Without Borders
We spoke with Chinese author Ma Jian and his English-language translator, Flora Drew, who is also his partner, about their collaboration on his work. Words Without Borders (WWB): Flora—are you Ma…
Our 2019 PEN World Voices Festival Itinerary
By Words Without Borders
The fifteenth annual PEN World Voices Festival kicks off today in New York City. From May 6–12, writers from around the world will participate in conversations, readings, translation…
International Literary Women & Organizations that Balance for Better
By Words Without Borders
For International Women’s Day, we’re celebrating women and organizations from around the globe who advocate for greater gender parity in the literary world. Through publishing and activism,…
An Interview with Réka Mán-Várhegyi
By Words Without Borders
Réka Mán-Várhegyi’s story “Woman Striker Has Killer Left Foot,” translated by Owen Good, was performed as a part of WWB’s Selected Shorts event at Symphony…
An Interview with Yalçın Tosun
By Words Without Borders
Yalçın Tosun’s story “Muzaffer and Bananas,” translated by Abby Comstock-Gay, was performed as a part of WWB’s Selected Shorts event at Symphony Space on Wednesday,…
An Interview with Évelyne Trouillot
By Words Without Borders
Évelyne Trouillot’s story “Detour,” translated by Paul Curtis Daw, was performed as a part of WWB’s Selected Shorts event at Symphony Space in New York City on…
Words Without Borders Receives National Endowment for the Arts Grant
By Words Without Borders
New York, New York, February 13, 2019—The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) announced today awards totaling more than $27 million in its first funding round of fiscal year 2019, including an…
The Translator Relay: Helen Mintz
By Words Without Borders
WWB’s Translator Relay features an interview with a different translator every other month. The current month’s translator will choose the next interviewee, adding a different, sixth…
Our Favorite International Reads from 2018 (and What We’ll Be Reading in 2019)
By Words Without Borders
As the year draws to a close, our staff, contributors, and board members share their favorite works-in-translation of 2018 and the titles they’re looking forward to in 2019.Elisa Wouk…
The Translator Relay
By Words Without Borders
WWB’s Translator Relay features an interview with a different translator every few months. The current featured translator chooses the next interviewee, adding a different, sixth question.Featured…
WWB Partners with Poets.org to Bring International Poetry to More Readers
By Words Without Borders
WWB is thrilled to announce a content partnership with the Academy of American Poets, who will be sharing poems in translation originally published in Words Without Borders on Poets.org.…
Look Who’s Coming to the WWB Gala on October 30!
By Words Without Borders
Amitav Ghosh, Dunya Mikhail, Katie Kitamura, Andre Dubus III, Ann Goldstein, Edith Grossman, Esther Allen, and Martin Puchner are among the stellar writers and translators who will mingle with guests…
Our Guide to the 2018 Brooklyn Book Festival & Bookend Events
By Words Without Borders
The Brooklyn Book Festival is coming up on Sunday, September 16, with a wonderful lineup of literary luminaries. The festival is preceded by a week of exciting Bookend Events, including Words…
Chad W. Post to Receive WWB Ottaway Award
By Words Without Borders
We are pleased to announce that Chad W. Post, director of Open Letter Books and managing editor of Three Percent, will receive the 2018 Words Without Borders Ottaway Award for the Promotion of International…
Words Without Borders One of Three Winners of Inaugural Whiting Literary Magazine Prizes
By Words Without Borders
Words Without Borders, A Public Space, and Fence to receive first annual awards for outstanding literary magazinesWords Without Borders (WWB) has been named a winner of the inaugural Whiting…
Introducing Mandana Naviafar
By Words Without Borders
We’re pleased to welcome Mandana Naviafar, who will be working with Nadia Kalman on our education program, Words Without Borders Campus, this summer. Originally from Tehran, Iran, Mandana is currently…
WWB Campus Receives Honorable Mention for National Book Foundation’s Innovations in Reading Prize
By Words Without Borders
The Education Website Brings Eye-opening World Literature into the ClassroomWWB Campus, the education initiative of Words Without Borders, has received an honorable mention for the 2018 Innovations in…
Words Without Borders Celebrates 15 Years of Publishing New International Writing
By Words Without Borders
Special anniversary issue looks back at magazine’s impact on writersWords Without Borders has launched its fifteenth anniversary with the publication of a special issue, “The World Through…
Dispatches from the 2018 PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature
By Words Without Borders
The PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature returned for its fourteenth year with a week of events centered on the theme “Resist and Reimagine.” Didn’t make…
Our 2018 PEN World Voices Festival Itinerary
By Words Without Borders
The fourteenth annual PEN World Voices Festival kicks off on Monday in New York City. From April 16–22, more than 165 writers from around the world will participate in conversations, readings, translation…
International Women Writers and Translators Who Press for Progress
By Words Without Borders
In celebration of International Women’s Day, meet women writers and translators from around the world who are pressing for progress through their activism and their literature.Writing Outside…
Introducing WWB’s Editorial Fellow, Núria Codina
By Words Without Borders
We are very pleased to welcome Núria Codina as an editorial fellow! Núria is a researcher, lecturer, and translator from Barcelona. She holds a PhD in comparative literature from…
Introducing WWB’s New Watchlist Curator, Tobias Carroll
By Words Without Borders
We’re pleased to welcome Tobias Carroll as the new curator of WWB’s Watchlist. Tobias is the managing editor of Vol.1 Brooklyn and the author of the short…
Lisa Lucas on the National Book Award for Translated Literature
By Words Without Borders
The National Book Foundation recently announced the addition of a National Book Award for Translated Literature. Joining the awards in fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and young people’s literature,…
Interviews with Publishers of Children’s Literature in Translation
By Words Without Borders
In recent years, a proliferation of books in translation for children and young adults has brought imaginative stories from around the world to new readers. We spoke with some of the extraordinary…
Our Guide to the 2018 ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival
By Words Without Borders
The 2018 ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival kicks off tomorrow, Thursday, January 25. Now in its eleventh year, the five-day festival, and the accompanying Jaipur BookMark program, brings together…
Three New Members Join WWB Board of Directors
By Words Without Borders
Words Without Borders is pleased to announce the election of three new members to its Board of Directors: Abe Hsuan, Jennifer Moross, and Rebecca Servadio.“With their diverse international backgrounds…
Introducing WWB’s Development Associate, Segacy Roberts!
By Words Without Borders
We’re pleased to welcome Segacy Roberts as the development associate at Words Without Borders. After graduating from Dartmouth with a degree in English literature, Segacy returned…
Our Favorite International Reads from 2017 (and What We’ll Be Reading in 2018)
By Words Without Borders
As the year draws to a close, our staff, board members, and contributors share their favorite works-in-translation of 2017 and the titles they’re looking forward to in 2018.Corinna BarsanBoard Member…
The 2017 Best of the Blog: International Women Writers, Translation in Film, and more
By Words Without Borders
It has been an exciting year on WWB Daily! Here are some of our most-read blog articles of 2017, including classic stories brought into new languages and to the big screen, international women writers…
Your Holiday Gift Guide for Reading in Translation
By Words Without Borders
This holiday season give friends and family the gift of the world on the page. Here are our recommendations for all of the readers in your life.For children and the young at heart, get lost in the vivid,…
NYFA Immigrant Artist Program Literary Series
By Words Without Borders
Words Without Borders partnered with the New York Foundation for the Arts’s Immigrant Artist Mentoring Program (IAP) on the following series, which features essays by current and former…
The 2017 Words Without Borders Gala & Globe Trot
By Words Without Borders
Last Wednesday evening WWB staff, board members, contributors, supporters, and readers gathered at Tribeca 360 to celebrate our fourteenth anniversary and to honor Jill Schoolman, founder and publisher…
Meet the Writers Hosting the 2017 WWB Gala!
By Words Without Borders
Masha Gessen, Osama Alomar, Uzodinma Iweala, and Idra Novey are just a few of the 26 outstanding writers and translators who will join us for our annual celebration this November, chaired by James…
Get Ready to Globe Trot on November 1st!
By Words Without Borders
Tickets are now on sale for WWB’s fourth annual Globe Trot, happening on November 1st at Tribeca Three Sixty!This annual celebration welcomes young publishing professionals, translators, and some…
Our Guide to the 2017 Brooklyn Book Festival & Bookend Events
By Words Without Borders
The Brooklyn Book Festival is this Sunday, with a stellar lineup of literary conversations, preceded by exciting Bookend events all this week, beginning with tonight’s kickoff party. On…
Celebrate with WWB on November 1st!
By Words Without Borders
Tickets are now on sale for the 2017 Words Without Borders Gala. Hosted by Maaza Mengiste with honorary chair Ian Buruma, the gala will be held Wednesday, November 1 at  Tribeca Three…
Introducing WWB’s New Book Review Editor, Miguel Conde!
By Words Without Borders
We’re pleased to welcome Miguel Conde as the new book review editor of Words Without Borders.Miguel is an editor and journalist based in Rio de Janeiro. He worked for eight years as a reporter and…
A Reading List for World Refugee Day
By Words Without Borders
On World Refugee Day, and as we honor the courage and the strength of the millions of people fleeing or forcibly displaced by war, violence, and famine, we at WWB are revisiting stories in our archives that…
WWB Contributor Jessica Cohen Awarded 2017 Man Booker International Prize
By Words Without Borders
Congratulations to longtime Words Without Borders contributor Jessica Cohen, who has been awarded the 2017 Man Booker International Prize, along with David Grossman, for the translation of A…
Words Without Borders Launches WWB Campus
By Words Without Borders
Words Without Borders is thrilled to announce the public launch of our online education program, WWB Campus, which offers students and educators a window into other cultures through literature.The resource…
Jill Schoolman to Receive WWB Ottaway Award
By Words Without Borders
We are thrilled to announce that Jill Schoolman, founder and publisher of Archipelago Books, has been selected to receive the 2017 Words Without Borders Ottaway Award for the Promotion of International…
Translation Groups Respond to U.S. Travel Ban
By Words Without Borders
February 1, 2017—Words Without Borders has joined others in the translation community in issuing the following statement on an executive order that restricts immigrant and refugee entry into the…
The 2016 Best of the Blog: Women in Translation, Interviews with Award Winners, and more
By Words Without Borders
Before the year is out, catch some of our most-read WWB Daily articles of 2016, including interviews with award-winning writers and translators, international women writers to add to your reading…
Our Favorite International Reads from 2016 (and What We’ll Be Reading in 2017)
By Words Without Borders
As the year draws to a close, our team, board members, and friends of WWB select favorite works-in-translation of 2016 and look ahead to the exciting reads forthcoming in 2017. Eric M. B. BeckerEditorIn…
From Concept to Performance: Writing, Translating, and Staging “No Direction”
By Words Without Borders
Tonight, “No Direction”—a microplay by Miguel Alcantud and Santiago Molero, translated by Sarah Maitland, and directed by Debra Caplan—will be performed, along with two other plays…
The 2016 Words Without Borders Gala & Globe Trot
By Words Without Borders
Tuesday night WWB staff, board, contributors, supporters, and readers gathered at Tribeca 360, where the panoramic view mirrored the sweep of our content, to celebrate our thirteenth anniversary…
Celebrate with Words Without Borders on November 1
By Words Without Borders
Our Gala & Globe Trot Are Tonight!The 2016 WWB Gala is tonight, Tuesday, November 1. A terrific group of authors and translators will join us at Three Sixty° Tribeca…
7 Ways to Support #Translation Every Day
By Words Without Borders
Image: Bookstore. Creative Commons.In honor of International Translation Day, here are 7 things you can do to support translation every day (plus a list of publishers and journals committed…
WWB Event — New Italian Voices
By Words Without Borders
Image: Darrin Zammit Lupi, from “Isle Landers,” 2014, photograph. @ Darrin Zammit Lupi. To celebrate our September issue, There Is No Map: The New Italian(s), Words Without…
Our Guide to the 2016 Brooklyn Book Festival & Bookend Events
By Words Without Borders
The Brooklyn Book Festival is this Sunday, with a stellar lineup of literary conversations, preceded by exciting Bookend events all this week. Below is our itinerary of not-to-be-missed festival…
Look Who’s Coming to the WWB Gala!
By Words Without Borders
Pictured: Roxana Saberi (photo by Nadia Dara Diskavets); Barbara Epler; Edith Grossman (photo by Miguel Rajmil).We’re thrilled to announce the lineup of table hosts and special…
In Memoriam: Gregory Rabassa, 1922–2016
By Words Without Borders
Image: Earl Fitz with Gregory Rabassa. Photo courtesy of Ezra E. Fitz.The great translator Gregory Rabassa died June 13 at ninety-four. You can read an excerpt from his memoir, If This…
Help WWB Inspire Global Readers
By Words Without Borders
June 6–17, Words Without Borders is raising support for its new online education program, WWB Campus, with a crowdfunding campaign to #InspireGlobalReaders. Find out more about WWB Campus and…
WWB EVENT — Back to the Future: Cuban Sci-fi Now
By Words Without Borders
Image: Douglas Pérez, “Pictopía III: Still I Have a Dream,” 2009, Courtesy of the Shelley and Donald Rubin Private Collection.Celebrate WWB's current issue and…
WWB EVENT — (In)verse: Poets Translate Each Other
By Words Without Borders
To celebrate National Poetry Month, on Wednesday, April 27, Words Without Borders and Poets House present an evening with three poet-translators featured in the April issue of WWB.…
Our Graphic Archive: Issues 2007–20
By Words Without Borders
Every issue from the last ten years of graphic novels in translation.
We Have a New Book Review Editor!
By Words Without Borders
We’re pleased to welcome M. Bartley Seigel as the new book review editor of Words without Borders.Matt comes to us with experience as poet, writer, literary editor and publisher, journalist, and…
From the Contributor: fs, Poet and DJ
By Words Without Borders
You already know that October issue contributor fs is a poet. (You can find his poem “[i wish there was a god]” from this month's issue of Estonian literature here.) What you may not have…
As It Happened: Translation at the Brooklyn Book Festival
By Words Without Borders
This year's Brooklyn Book Festival feature two presentations by the PEN Translation Committee of the PEN American Center in New York. If you couldn't make it, fear not: Words without Borders was…
WWB’s Holiday Reading List
By Words Without Borders
hr {margin:4em 0;background-color:white;}Still looking for the perfect gift for your international literature-loving friends and family? Let WWB's editors, reviewers, and contributors help!Susan HarrisThe…
WWB Celebrates Its 2014 Gala and the First Annual Globe Trot
By Words Without Borders
The 2014 Words without Borders Gala Join us for the 2014 Words without Borders Gala on October 28, 2014 at Tribeca Three Sixty. We will honor Carol Brown Janeway with the 2014 Ottaway Award for the…
Poets of Protest
By Words Without Borders
Words Without Borders introduces Manal Al-Sheikh and Mazen Maarouf, two poets living in exile in Scandinavia.
WWB’s Holiday Reading List
By Words Without Borders
Having a hard time choosing between all the great books in translation available this time of year? Let WWB's staff, reviewers, and contributors guide you through the best books in translation we…
From the Editors: On “Words without Borders: The Best of the First Ten Years”
By Words Without Borders
As part of our ongoing celebration of our ten-year anniversary, we're delighted to share this behind-the-scenes look into the making of our tenth-anniversary e-anthology Words without Borders:…
Join WWB for its Tenth Anniversary Gala
By Words Without Borders
Words without Borders invites our readers to join us for our Tenth Anniversary Gala on October 29, 2013 from 6-9 PM, at Tribeca Three Sixty in New York City. Ticket information can be found on our…
We Have a New Executive Director!
By Words Without Borders
We’re pleased to welcome Karen Phillips as the new executive director of Words without Borders. She joined us in late September and has hit the ground running with preparations for our upcoming…
Adonis Recommends Abdel-Moneim Ramadan
By Words Without Borders
Ramadan's dazzling poem evokes Adonis's famous “Funeral for New York.”
Day Three at the London Book Fair
By Words Without Borders
The highlight of the third and final day at the Literary Translation Center was a conversation among poets, editors, and translators about an exciting new book of contemporary Chinese poetry.  The…
Day Two at the London Book Fair
By Words Without Borders
The London Book Fair runs from April 16-April 18, and WWB brings it to you from the Literary Translation Centre, a seminar dedicated to all aspects of literary translation.  Follow us each day…
Day One at the London Book Fair
By Words Without Borders
The London Book Fair runs from April 16-April 18, and WWB brings it to you from the Literary Translation Centre, a seminar dedicated to all aspects of literary translation.  Follow us each day on…
From the London Book Fair, Day 3
By Words Without Borders
In a morning session at today’s London Book Fair, Daniel Hahn asked a group of translators and translation advocates what it is exactly that makes a good translator. An “open-ended and impossible”…
From the London Book Fair: Myths and Myth-busting
By Words Without Borders
Some welcome myth-busting about translation today at day two of the Literary Translation Center.  During the opening session, called “Translation Intelligence: Surveys, Reports, Statistics—What’s…
From the London Book Fair–Translations and Liquidity: Crises and Capital
By Words Without Borders
The first day of the Literary Translation Center at the London Book Fair has first and foremost been about asking questions.  This is because one of the organizing themes of the day—and a refrain…
Statement of Intent, by Georges Perec
By Words Without Borders
When I attempt to state what I have tried to do as a writer since I began, what occurs to me first of all is that I have never written two books of the same kind, or ever wanted to reuse a formula, or…
Weekend Reading
By Words Without Borders
“Witness to war: Evelio Rosero on fiction that fights for the truth” on Rosero’s win of the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize for The Armies, translated from the Spanish by Anne McLean:As…
Weekend Reading: Nawal El Saadawi, Lynne Tillman, and more…
By Words Without Borders
This week’s weekend reading starts with some pieces from the PEN Website where we’ve been spending a lot of time recently gearing up for the PEN World Voices Festival.———————-Nawal…
Weekend Reading
By Words Without Borders
Where we share some of what we’re reading around the net…Enjoy———————-Interview with Daniel Alarcón at La Bloga on the recent Latin American…
Say No to Metro Confiscation and Trial
By Words Without Borders
Say No to “Metro” ConfiscationLast year we published an excerpt from Magdy El Shafee’s Metro, an Arabic graphic novel set in Cairo that deals with the financial and social insecurity…
Resources for Further Reading (and viewing) on Etgar Keret
By Words Without Borders
As a last post in this month's Etgar Keret discussion, we've included some links below for more information on Etgar Keret, his other projects, and also upcoming events (New Yorkers, check out…
Blogging about Graphics in February
By Words Without Borders
As part of our third annual Graphic Novels issue, we’ll be featuring blog posts on the art, inspiration, histories and technical details behind the most exciting graphic narratives out there. All…
For Translators—Vermont Studio Center Deadlines
By Words Without Borders
For all our translator-readers, the Vermont Studio Center has listed the fellowships available as part of its upcoming February 17 application deadline. For more details on the fellowships, application…
“The Literature of Immigration” at FLYP
By Words Without Borders
FLYP takes a look at the “Literature of Immigration” in its latest issue and features short interviews with the participants at the WWB- and Americas Society-sponsored event at the Americas…
Online Book Club for “The Diving Pool” by Yoko Ogawa
By Words Without Borders
This January, we kick off the year in book clubs with an online discussion of Yoko Ogawa’s Diving Pool. Ogawa is one of contemporary Japan’s most celebrated authors, and her collection of…
Ilya Kaminsky Awarded Lannan Literary Fellowship
By Words Without Borders
Ilya Kaminsky, poetry editor at Words Without Borders, has been awarded a two-year literary fellowship by the Lannan Foundation. From their website: The Lannan Literary Awards and Fellowships were established…
Le Clezio wins Nobel
By Words Without Borders
In a decision that none of our in-house bookmakers called, French author J. M. G. Le Clezio has won this year’s Nobel Prize for Literature. Dig into the WWB archives for a look at his work, in this…
Words with Borders…and Borders and Borders
By Words Without Borders
With regrets for the delay in commenting on this, here’s
Mahmoud Darwish Tribute on the Bowery
By Words Without Borders
A tribute to the late Mahmoud Darwish will be held at the Bowery Poetry Club this Sunday, October 5th at 1:30 PM. Readers will include Breyten Breytenbach, Pierre Joris, Ammiel Alcalay, Ghassan Nasr,…
Jabuti Prize for Tezza’s “Eternal Son”
By Words Without Borders
WWB author Cristovão Tezza has won the prestigious Jabuti Prize for his book The Eternal Son. You can read an excerpt from the book in our September issue, over here Our heartiest congratulations…
2009 Susan Sontag Prize for Translation
By Words Without Borders
Translators under 30, this is for you: The Susan Sontag Foundation has announced its annual prize for translation, with a cash award of $5,000. This year the call is for work translated from Spanish into…
Yalo Discussion Forum
By Words Without Borders
Have a comment you’d like to add to the discussion? Add it below. Comments are moderated and may take a while to appear on the forum.
A Dangerous Occupation
By Words Without Borders
Issue #2 of Triple Canopy has the first ever translation of the “Caracas Speech” that Roberto Bolaño gave when he was awarded the Rómulo Gallegos prize for his novel “The Savage…
“The Assistant” Book Club Discussion
By Words Without Borders
Post your thoughts on Walser or The Assistant below. Comments are moderated, and will appear after a very short delay, so avoid posting twice if you notice that your post doesn’t appear immediately.Have…
Global Gourmet Blogs!
By Words Without Borders
All this month, to celebrate our Global Gourmet issue, the blogs at WWB will feature guest essays by food writers and bloggers from around the world on an aspect of the food culture of their stomping…
Columbia Graduate Student Translation Conference
By Words Without Borders
Sunday marked the end of Columbia’s three-day Graduate Student Translation Conference. Panel discussions revolved around various aspects of the work, business and craft of translation. Chad Post…
Pan-African Literary Forum in Ghana
By Words Without Borders
The Pan-African Literary Forum announces its Summer Writers’ Conference, as well as two scholarships that will take the winners, with all-expenses paid, to Ghana to attend. The conference will gather…
And the Winners Are! (Publishers, sign these folks up…)
By Words Without Borders
Hot off the presses…the winners of the 2008 PEN Translation Fund grants…PEN Translation FundAnnouncement of 2008 Grant RecipientsThe PEN Translation Fund, now celebrating its fifth year of…
HERBERT: POET OF DESPONDENT HOPE
By Words Without Borders
Raport z oblężonego miasta Report from a Besieged City by Cynthia Haven In the final installment in our discussion on Zbigniew Herbert's Collected Poems Cynthia Haven leads us through Herbert's…
Lawrence Venuti Tells us Some More About the Business of Translation
By Words Without Borders
Earlier this month, Words Without Borders featured a piece by Lawrence Venuti on the business side of publishing books in translation. Venuti’s article was written for the Frankfurt Book Fair Panel…
“I will oppress you with my strange love”: Andrzej Franaszek discusses the friendship of Zbigniew
By Words Without Borders
Andrzej Franaszek is a literary critic and cultural editor of the Polish weekly Tygodnik Powszechny. He is the author of Ciemne źródło (Dark Spring), which discusses the subject of suffering…
“Emigration, Displacement and Loss in Polish Poetry: An Interview with Anna Frajlich”
By Words Without Borders
by Anna FrajlichCynthia Haven talks to Anna Frajlich about exile, aesthetics, ethics and more in the work of Zbigniew Herbert. You can read Anna Frajlich’s essay on Herbert’s “Apollo…
“The Truth of Human Suffering”: Anna Frajlich on “Apollo and Marsyas”
By Words Without Borders
by Anna FrajlichAnna Frajlich talks about aesthetics and ethics in Herbert's “Apollo and Marsyas.” Anna Frajlich has been called “the best Polish poetess of her generation.”…
Expanses of the Unspoken: An Interview with Peter Dale Scott
By Words Without Borders
by Peter Dale ScottCynthia Haven interviews Peter Dale Scott, one of the earliest translators of the work of Zbigniew Herbert. You can find James Marcus’s introduction to the poet over here.—EditorsPeter…
January Book Club— the “Collected Poems” of Zbigniew Herbert
By Words Without Borders
We’re delighted to launch the year in book clubs with a fantastic new club on the Collected Poems of the Polish poet Zbigniew Herbert. Conducting interviews, holding forth on individual poems and…
Final Thoughts on Laye
By Words Without Borders
In the final installment of our book club discussion of Camara Laye’s The Radiance of the King, Laila Lalami discusses the ways in which Laye’s book went against the literary conventions of…
Sandy Taylor (1931-2007)
By Words Without Borders
Alexander (Sandy) Taylor was a brilliant publisher of literature in translation whose Curbstone Press, co-founded with his wife, Judith Doyle, is an inspiration to us all. For those who didn’t know…
Kafka and Laye—Literary Influences in “The Radiance of the King”
By Words Without Borders
In this installment of our discussion of The Radiance of the King, Laila talks about the influences at play in Laye’s work, the contentious issue of the book’s authorship and the ways in which…
Landing on an Unknown Coast—the Story of “The Radiance of the King”
By Words Without Borders
In the second post in our December book club on The Radiance of the King, Laila Lalami talks about the story of The Radiance of the King and the unique ways in which it addresses the protagonist’s…
December Book Club—Laila Lalami on Camara Laye’s The Radiance of the King
By Words Without Borders
This month, Laila Lalami heads our book club discussion of Camara Laye’s The Radiance of the King. Laila is the author of the 2005 collection of fiction Hope and Other Dangerous Pursuits and you…
Cogwheels
By Words Without Borders
As we come to the end of our book club on Ryunosuke Akutagawa’s short story collection Mandarins, Michael tackles Cogwheels, another posthumously published story by the author. We’d like to…
The Life of a Fool
By Words Without Borders
As we near the home stretch of our discussion of Ryunosuke Akutagawa’s Mandarins, Michael Orthofer offers up some ruminations on The Life of a Fool, Akutagawa’s posthumously-published collection…
Akutagawa—the Writer, the Works
By Words Without Borders
As we near the end of our discussion of Ryunosuke Akutagawa’s The Mandarins this month, Michael Orthofer dwells a little on our ideas of the author and his work. Earlier posts can be found here:…
Literary Influences and East Meets West
By Words Without Borders
Michael Orthofer continues with yet another post for this month’s book club, on the next of the stories from Ryunosuke Akutagawa’s collections Mandarins.We began the month with an introduction…
An Evening Conversation
By Words Without Borders
Plowing ahead, we have the next post in this month&#39s book club discussion on Ryunosuke Akutagawa&#39s Mandarins. In this post, Michael Orthofer discusses the discursive narrative of Akutagawa&#39s…
What’s with the title?—and a look at “Mandarins”
By Words Without Borders
Michael Orthofer kicks off discussion of Ryunosuke Akutagawa’s short-story collection Mandarins in this post with a discussion of the titular story from the collection and a rumination on the murky…
November Book Club—Ryunosuke Akutagawa’s “Mandarins”
By Words Without Borders
We’re very pleased to bring you the first installment in this month’s book club, dedicated to Ryunosuke Akutagawa’s Mandarins. This month, discussion will be headed by Michael Orthofer,…
Arthur Philips on “The Rebels”, “Embers” and Gyula Krúdy
By Words Without Borders
Arthur Phillips was born in Minneapolis in 1969 and educated at Harvard. He has been a child actor, a jazz musician, a speechwriter, a dismally failed entrepreneur, and a five-time Jeopardy! champion.…
David Leavitt Responds to Mark Sarvas in Our Book Club
By Words Without Borders
Renowned novelist David Leavitt (The Indian Clerk, The Body of Jonah Boyd) doubles as the editor of Subtropics, the literary journal of the University of Florida. In Issue 3, Leavitt included the opening…
Mark Sarvas Talks about Fathers and Sons in “The Rebels”
By Words Without Borders
Leading a book group discussion on Sándor Márai’s The Rebels, one is faced with an interesting dilemma, one to which Arthur Phillips politely alluded to in his excellent New Yorker…
October Book Club–“The Rebels” by Sándor Márai
By Words Without Borders
This October, we're delighted to host a new installment in the WWB-Reading the World Book Clubs with a feature on Hungarian author Sándor Márai's The Rebels. Discussion will be headed…
Teacher’s Forum
By Words Without Borders
This forum is for teachers of world literature to exchange ideas on using WWB in the classroom. Tell us your favorite story to teach, activities you’ve used for teaching literature in translation,…
Translation Talk
By Words Without Borders
This forum is for you, our readers interested in translation, practitioners of translation, and others, to ask questions, exchange ideas, and share thoughts on the topic of translation. If you wish to…
Discussions On Translation
By Words Without Borders
Words Without Borders presents forums on literature and translation.
Job Announcements
By Words Without Borders
Use this forum to post your job openings, internships and other opportunities for writers, editors and translators.
Events Calendar
By Words Without Borders
Please announce your upcoming events here.
Words Without Borders Book Groups
By Words Without Borders
Tired of the same six titles on display at the store and want some recommendations on what to read next? Looking for a few, cool people to talk about the newest titles from the international scene? If…
Words Without Borders Celebrates New Translations in 2006
By Words Without Borders
As we approach the end of the year, the editors at Words Without Borders would like to celebrate the wealth and variety of literary translations published in English in 2006. To this end, we approached…