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This collection examines how translated books come into being and circulate across languages.
Using Dutch as a case study of a source language at the margins of the world literary system, the volume sets out an innovative conceptual framework for understanding the making of translated literature, covering discovery, selection, acquisition, translation, production, marketing, and reception. It brings together fifteen accounts of recent literary works translated from Dutch, spanning five genres and fourteen different target languages. This comparative approach, keeping the focus on the same source language at the periphery of the world literary system across examples, allows for a deeper look into the numerous agents involved in the lifecycle of a translated book, including translators, editors, agents, rights managers, marketing staff, and government representatives. Chapters explore the connections between production-side decisions and how translated books were ultimately received in the market, from success stories and breakthroughs to works that faced delays, setbacks, or limited uptake, thereby illustrating a variety of trajectories within the global translation system. Taken together, the collection provides a comprehensive picture of the circulation of Dutch literature in translation and contributes to broader discussions on the translation of less widely studied languages.
This book will appeal to scholars in translation studies and world literature, particularly those interested in literary translation, the sociology of translation, and translation publishing.
List of contents
Introduction. Literary Translation Lifecycles
Jack McMartin, Part I. Mediating Taste: Discovery, Selection, and Acquisition, 1. Connecting Multiple Mediatorships and Literary Awards: The Case of Bart Moeyaert and the ALMA in Sweden and Beyond
Annika Johansson and Sara Van Meerbergen, 2. An Acquired Taste? The Selection and Translation Process of Herman Koch's Bestseller
Het diner in Estonian
Luc van Doorslaer, 3. Divine Interventions? Harry Mulisch's
De ontdekking van de hemel in Czech
Veronika Horá¿ková and Wilken Engelbrecht, 4. The Translator as a Cultural Tastemaker: Samgis Zandi's Persian Translation of Stefan Brijs'
De engelenmaker Nasrin Ashrafi and Elaheh Rezvani, 5. From Manuscript to Memory: Publishing and Translational Pathways of Anne Frank's Diary in Italy
Paola Gentile and Dolores Ross, Part II. Transforming Texts: Translation and Production, 6. Translating a
meisjesboek: Ideology and Norms in the Selection and Translation of Guus Kuijer's
Polleke into Afrikaans
Mareli Swart and Ilse Feinauer, 7. Translating "A Noble Stranger": The Belgian National Poet Charles Ducal and Intra-National Poetry Translation Flows from Dutch to French in a Multilingual Country
Timothy Sirjacobs and Ewoud Goethals, 8. Why the French Market Melted for Lize Spit's
Het smelt: The Success Story of a Flemish Bestseller in French
Kim Andringa and Maud Gonne, 9. Selecting and Publishing Dutch Literature in Turkey: The Case of Arnon Grunberg's Graphic Novel
Van Istanbul naar Baghdad in Turkish
Irmak Mertens, 10. The Making of the German Translation of Louis Paul Boon's
Mieke Maaike's obscene jeugd and Its Last-Minute Retraction,
Anja van de Pol-Tegge, Part III. Circulating Translations: Marketing and Reception, 11. Marketing Translated Dutch Literature on Social Media: The Case of the Serbian Publisher Booka
Bojana Budimir, 12. "If you want to be happy, stop being scared": Guus Kuijer's
Het boek van alle dingen in Russian
Ekaterina Vekshina and Irina Michajlova, 13. Exemplary and Divergent Translation Trajectories of Children's Literature from Dutch to Hungarian: A Comparative Case Study
Krisztina Gracza and Orsolya Réthelyi, 14. The Migratory Route of Dutch Non-Fiction: A Study of the Production and Reception of the Spanish Translation of
Melancholie van de onrust by Joke J. Hermsen
Carmen Clavero Fernández and Goedele De Sterck, 15. Waiting for Gerard: The Long Arrival of Reve's
De avonden in English
Jack McMartin and Filip De Ceuster, Index
About the author
Jack McMartin is associate professor of translation studies at KU Leuven, and director of the Centre for Translation Studies (CETRA), Belgium.
Paola Gentile is Assistant Professor of Dutch Translation and Interpreting at the University of Trieste, Italy.
Elisa Nelissen holds a PhD in translation studies from KU Leuven, Belgium.
