If you’re passionate about translations then small presses matter. New Directions, Open Letter, Other Press, Gray Wolf, Melville House, etc. – these publishers are introducing readers to the likes of Cesar Aira, Bolaño, Mahmoud Dowlatabadi and Sergio Chejfec. Whereas translations make up only a small portion of the lists of the major publishing houses – they are the lists of the smaller publishers.
Which is why it’s always exciting to see their numbers grow. Because somewhere in Argentina, or Russia, Germany, Italy or France… there’s an author writing stories. Stories we’re impatiently waiting to read.
Two Lines Press is associated with The Center for the Art of Translation in San Francisco, California. Their first book was released in April – Hi, This is Conchita & Other Stories by Santiago Roncagliolo. In May it is the French author’s, Marie NDiaye’s, novel All My Friends (translated by Jordan Stump).
Readux Books is a small press out of Berlin, Germany that just introduced itself to the world last month. They’ll be publishing short works in translations – short stories and novellas – both in print and e-book formats. But we’ll all have to wait until October, 2013 for their first release.
Frisch & Co. is strictly a digital publisher, also based out of Berlin. Their first book was released in April – Anatomy of a Night by Anna Kim. Three more books are schedule through January, 2014.
READER AT LARGE 