Most countries have their own bestseller lists, and it seems like many books from other nations don't get translated for our consumption, or if they do, it takes a long time for them to show up in our bookstores and libraries. According to a Guardian article, "Just 3% of books published in the UK have been translated from a foreign language" - one wonders if the stats for the USA would be similar? Even books that don't require translation, such as those from England and Australia and New Zealand, are sometimes hard to find in this country. You can watch Vera the mystery series, but you can't find the Ann Cleeves novels on which they are based (Silent Voices was finally published here in 2013 - it's book 4 of 7, randomly) - though you can read the author's Shetland mysteries. That is a mystery to us!
"Are there books that are indeed too culturally specific to sell well across borders? I suspect there are. But the publishing industry is so finely tuned these days that virtually any book with potential to sell will get a good look; those that don’t are the ones that will remain locked within their own borders," Edward Nawotka wrote in Publishing Perspectives in 2013.What do you think? With the Man Booker International Prize longlist recently announced, we've compiled a list of some international bestsellers, literary prizewinners from other countries, and recommended titles from around the world that you might have missed and that we hope will capture your imagination. Do they translate for you? Let us know in the comments!
Love in Lowercase by Francesc Miralles
The Rainbow Troops by Andrea Hirata; translated from the Indonesian by Angie Kilbane
As of 2013, Indonesia’s best-selling book of all time.
1914 by Jean Echenoz; translated from the French by Linda Coverdale
The Big Green Tent by Ludmila Ulitskaya; translated from the Russian by Bela Shayevich
La emoción de las cosas by Angeles Mastretta [Spanish language]
The Confessions of Noa Weber by Gail Hareven; translated by Dalya Bilu [eBook]
All That I Am by Anna Funder
Ten White Geese by Gerbrand Bakker; translated from the Dutch by David Colmer
The Life Intended by Kristin Harmel
Lineup by Liad Shoham; translated from the Hebrew by Sara Kitai
Honor by Elif Shafak
Swimmer by Joakim Zander
Abyssinian Chronicles by Moses Isegawa [eBook]
Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya
Honor by Elif Shafak
Swimmer by Joakim Zander
Abyssinian Chronicles by Moses Isegawa [eBook]
Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya
The Neruda Case by Roberto Ampuero; translated by Carolina De Robertis
The Truth and Other Lies by Sascha Arango
The Keeper of Lost Causes by Jussi Adler-Olsen
The Truth and Other Lies by Sascha Arango
The Keeper of Lost Causes by Jussi Adler-Olsen
Broken Glass by Alain Mabanckou ; translated by Helen Stevenson [eBook]
Snow White Must Die by Nele Neuhaus
The Dressmaker by Rosalie Ham
Stone Upon Stone by Wiesław Myśliwski; translated from the Polish by Bill Johnston
Europe in Sepia by Dubravka Ugresic; translated from the Croatian by David Williams
The Patience Stone: Sang-e Saboor by Atiq Rahimi ; translated by Polly McLean
Signs Preceding the End of the World by Yuri Herrera; translated by Lisa Dillman
The Summer Book by Tove Jansson; translated from the Swedish by Thomas Teal
The Last Lover by Can Xue ; translated by Annelise Finegan Wasmoen
The Blood Brothers: A Novel of Berlin Gang Life by Ernst Haffner; translated by Michael Hofmann
"The Dirty Dust
is consistently ranked as the most important prose work in modern
Irish, yet no translation for English-language readers has ever before
been published." [library catalog]
The Year of the Hare by Arto Paasilinna ; translated from the Finnish by Herbert Lomas
Good Morning Comrades by Ondjaki ;translated from the Portuguese by Stephen Henighan [eBook]
Seconds Out by Martin Kohan ; translated from the Spanish by Nick Caistor [eBook]
Mauve Desert by Nicole Brossard ; translated by Susanne de Lotbinière-Harwood [eBook]
Three Strong Women by Marie NDiaye; translated by John Fletcher
Three Strong Women by Marie NDiaye; translated by John Fletcher
International Bestsellers, March 2016 [Publishing Trends]
International Book News [Publishers Weekly]
49 Incredible Books from 49 Countries [HuffPost]
The Best-Selling Books in 10 Countries Around the World [Flavorwire]
The Best-Selling Books in 10 Countries Around the World [Flavorwire]
