10 Best Books in Translation 2023

Поділитися
Вставка
  • Опубліковано 20 січ 2025

КОМЕНТАРІ • 60

  • @evajanczaruk8790
    @evajanczaruk8790 Рік тому +10

    Your reviews are incredibly engaging and encourage a book buying lust in me: I don't just want to read the titles mentioned, I want to own them. Publishers should be paying you a commission.

  • @MidlandsTraveller
    @MidlandsTraveller Рік тому +7

    I am so happy to see a Brazilian author in this list. I love your book recommendations. I know you like Latin America's literature. So I would recommend you another Brazilian author - Itamar Vieira Junior. His book Torto Arado is a a masterpiece. I read a lot of books in translation ( women in translation are my favourites) and I always find excellent book reviews here. Thanks for sharing your picks for this year. ❤

  • @the_eerie_faerie_tales
    @the_eerie_faerie_tales Рік тому +15

    What You Are Looking For is in the Library reminds me of I Am a Cat Barista manga by Hiro Maijima. It's about a magical cat cafe (with a cat barista) that only appears when a weary soul is walking by... there is no menu, the cat barista just happens to know exactly what beverage they need, and while the customers sip their drink, he offers a listening ear and insightful advice. They leave with a bit of his kitty cat wisdom and then make those small changes in their life and become happier. ☕🐈

    • @WillowTalksBooks
      @WillowTalksBooks  Рік тому +3

      That sounds wonderful!

    • @anotherdeaddave5749
      @anotherdeaddave5749 Рік тому +2

      I love cat barista!! What a great rec ❤

    • @the_eerie_faerie_tales
      @the_eerie_faerie_tales Рік тому +1

      @@anotherdeaddave5749 yay! So glad to hear of another Cat Barista fan 😊 it is so adorable. I just read Vol. 1 in November and will be reading Vol. 2 this month.

    • @Wuggas
      @Wuggas Рік тому +1

      Thank you for the recommendation! I saw I Am a Cat Barista on a list but I was wary as my manga TBR is fairly long as it is but seeing this comparison has solidified it's place on the top of the TBR.

    • @the_eerie_faerie_tales
      @the_eerie_faerie_tales Рік тому

      @@Wuggas yay! happy to hear that 😄 hope you love it too!

  • @justbe411
    @justbe411 Рік тому +2

    Not me adding most of these to my tbr. Excited for A Little Luck, I loved Elena Knows so much. I haven’t been able to find a copy of the new Banana Yoshimoto, one of my favorite authors! Thanks for these reviews 🩵

  • @miss.spin_gabi6649
    @miss.spin_gabi6649 11 місяців тому +1

    Your passion when you talk about these books, is so freakin contagious

  • @Melianmei
    @Melianmei Рік тому +3

    I love watching your videos and reviews! You made all the books look so interesting! Now, I wasn't expecting a Brazilian author on your list. As a Brazilian myself now I will have to read Ana Paula Maia. And What You Are Looking For is in the Library is on my list for quite a few time, and it will be my next read.

  • @startthefirstchapter
    @startthefirstchapter Рік тому +2

    YOU make me want to read all of these! I’m heading home to ‘Merica for the holidays and I already ordered Honeybees and Distant Thunder. I’ve read the Library one in Japanese as well but I also ordered the English. Love your translation videos ❤

  • @barbaraellison1095
    @barbaraellison1095 Рік тому +1

    Thanks to you I had the great pleasure of listening to What You are Looking for…..it’s brilliantly performed. I loved it.

  • @chriscze6153
    @chriscze6153 Рік тому +2

    I got The Premonition and Honeybees and Distant Thunder off of your recs - I quite loved Honeybees in particular and was astounded by the quality of Oneda's translation of The Premonition, simply wonderful writing and some of the best translation work I've seen so far. Great video as always and look forward to the best English language books!

  • @the_eerie_faerie_tales
    @the_eerie_faerie_tales Рік тому +2

    I've played classical piano since I was a child... there is nothing like the high of playing those keys 🎹 🎶

  • @cosmosrenegade
    @cosmosrenegade Рік тому +1

    You've become a bit of a comfort youtuber to me, i absolutely adore how you describe and review books. not to mention you are a excellent source for my hobby of collecting books that i might be interested in, to browse when in need of a book. Not really a tbr, i am under no illusion that i will ever read all of them, more like a digital library curated to my tastes, organized as is helpful (storygraphs automatic genre tags help alot too) from trusted sources. this video convinced me that i need a translated tag!
    (edit)
    your also somewhat of a inspiration to me! we seem to think about books similarly, paticularly in regards to sociopolitical importance, and ive wanted to start a book blog for a while, but still haven't gotten around to it. and ever since that how to review books video (absolutely spectacular, one of my favorites) ive realized how much i would actually enjoy having one

    • @WillowTalksBooks
      @WillowTalksBooks  Рік тому

      You’re very kind, thank you! Can’t wait to read your blog!

  • @Lili_Maybe
    @Lili_Maybe Рік тому +1

    Great list! So many books that I've had on my radar and just haven't read yet!! This has definitely bumped them back up my list now 🤩 lovely video

  • @Vee__channnn
    @Vee__channnn Рік тому +1

    thanks for sharing your best books in translation. Going to read them all. Anyway, your explanation is detail and to the point, i like it.

  • @mariareadsssf
    @mariareadsssf 10 місяців тому

    I love your videos. It is thanks to you that I read "A Little Luck". It helped me to better understand a person I never met face to face, the person that gave birth to my husband. I am extremely grateful.

  • @dcdszgage2125
    @dcdszgage2125 Рік тому +1

    Great list! Im excited to open these books and get reading.

  • @hairylittlewombat
    @hairylittlewombat Рік тому +1

    I could easily add every one of these books, they all sound awesome. I already have Finger Bone and I've just added Of Cattle and Men, A Little Luck & Mary; or, The Birth of Frankenstein to my Kindle. Looking forward to your English Language video.

  • @spexi513
    @spexi513 Рік тому +1

    Added several to the TBR; thank youuuuuu 📖🪱💚

  • @CharlieBrookReads
    @CharlieBrookReads Рік тому +2

    Mary sounds amazing as does the Claudia Pinero one. I loved WYALFIITL ❤️Great recommendations as always.

  • @Salome9955
    @Salome9955 Рік тому +2

    I'm Dutch, but I'd been so turned off from reading Dutch literature due to the terribly stuffy, old and complicated books we were forced to read in high school, so I haven't read any Dutch fiction books in years and only read English novels instead. Lately, I've been wanting to read more in my native language, but I honestly had no idea where to start. I now have two titles to pick up thanks to this video! Thank you so much

  • @EvieM1
    @EvieM1 Рік тому +1

    I definitely want to get to ‘A Little Luck’. I loved ‘Elena Knows’.

  • @isaaczurich9272
    @isaaczurich9272 Рік тому +1

    Great list! Finger Bone was also one of my favorite books in translation from his year! Another fantastic one was Ten Planets by Yuri Herrera, translated from the Spanish by Lisa Dillman.

    • @WillowTalksBooks
      @WillowTalksBooks  Рік тому +1

      Wow, Ten Planets passed me by completely! I’ll check it out, thank you :)

  • @camiloflores1592
    @camiloflores1592 Рік тому +3

    as every year, this is again one of my favourites "best 10 books" video
    I can't stop adding all these books to my TBR 😂
    edit: you should definitely start piano lessons!!!

  • @tirarosaurioreads
    @tirarosaurioreads Рік тому +2

    I loved The Premonition! It's one of my favorite books by Banana Yoshimoto I'd say :)

  • @rachel1021
    @rachel1021 Рік тому +1

    I really, really adore Walking Practice. It has gone on my mental list of all-time favorite books. That is a very long list lol

  • @SM-vr8dz
    @SM-vr8dz Рік тому +2

    My favourite kind of video 🎉

  • @BenRogersWPG
    @BenRogersWPG Рік тому +1

    Excellent video!

  • @the_eerie_faerie_tales
    @the_eerie_faerie_tales Рік тому +1

    Added to my TBR:
    What You Are Looking For is in the Library
    Honeybees & Distant Thunder
    Walking Practice
    Mary or the birth of Frankenstein

  • @effloress
    @effloress Рік тому +1

    Okay....looks like I'll be picking up that Nesbo novel 👀

  • @literarylove123
    @literarylove123 Рік тому +1

    Well, now I need to read all of these books.

  • @Barryislarge
    @Barryislarge Рік тому +1

    I've got Aoyama's novel on my bookshelf, I do the thing that book people do. Buy books before finishing off others 😅

  • @gennaroleggemanga2853
    @gennaroleggemanga2853 Рік тому +1

    After watching this video, I found a signed copy of The Night House at Waterstones and - while I’m more about supporting independent bookshops - I snatched it like it was fate. Am I in for some Christmas horror vibe?

  • @o_o-lj1ym
    @o_o-lj1ym Рік тому

    Our Share Of Night is another great one

    • @o_o-lj1ym
      @o_o-lj1ym Рік тому

      Oh whoops that was last year. What is time lmao

    • @WillowTalksBooks
      @WillowTalksBooks  Рік тому

      Yeah I think that was my number one last year!

    • @o_o-lj1ym
      @o_o-lj1ym Рік тому +1

      @@WillowTalksBooksas it should 😂

  • @the_eerie_faerie_tales
    @the_eerie_faerie_tales Рік тому +3

    Have you read Our Hideous Progeny? by C.E. McGill. It's a queer gothic scifi historical fiction, inspired by Mary Shelley/Frankenstein. And the cover is absolutely stunning. I just recently added it to my TBR so thought I would mention it. 😊

    • @WillowTalksBooks
      @WillowTalksBooks  Рік тому

      Yep! One of my big regrets this year is not doing a video on it, so I tried to make up for that by featuring it in lots of list videos 😅

  • @carolinaroveroni8101
    @carolinaroveroni8101 Рік тому

    As a Brazilian seeing non Brazilian people reading our stuff makes me feel seen, we have wonderful literature that's hardly ever talked about by others. I highly recommend Clarice Lispector to you if you haven't read her before, also Machado de Assis (a classic) and Hilda Hilst if you can find translations of her, I think you'd love her dirty, pornographic work.

  • @spexi513
    @spexi513 Рік тому +1

    ‘Stuff that Dads read on the beach” 😂 ☠️ 😂

  • @XOXOLOLA100
    @XOXOLOLA100 Рік тому

    I was wondering : what are your parameters for a good translation? How can you tell as a book critic that a translation is good, assuming you are not familiar with the language of origin? ( aside from generally enjoying it of course)

    • @WillowTalksBooks
      @WillowTalksBooks  Рік тому +2

      It’s a tough question to answer, honestly, but literary translators are also writers. They can’t just literally translate word-for-word. They have to translate the tone and feel of a book into a language that carries feeling differently. So when a translation is written with flow and beauty and humour, just like any other novel, you can usually attest that the translator is talented. If a translation is wooden and flat, it was probably translated lazily and without imagination.

    • @XOXOLOLA100
      @XOXOLOLA100 Рік тому

      Thank you 🙏🏻

  • @lilybirdfly
    @lilybirdfly Рік тому

    Do you follow Jenvcampbell? It seems like she might have similar book tastes to you.

    • @WillowTalksBooks
      @WillowTalksBooks  Рік тому +1

      I don’t follow her closely but I do know Jen, and I know she’s super popular :)

  • @janethansen9612
    @janethansen9612 Рік тому

    Very few of these are available where I am. So annoying.

  • @ThatNerdyMystic
    @ThatNerdyMystic Рік тому

    Please make a list of Palestinian authors and books.

    • @WillowTalksBooks
      @WillowTalksBooks  Рік тому +1

      I have been tempted to, but I didn’t want to appear as though I was somehow monetising genocide. Also, I’ve only read two or three and need to do more reading

    • @ThatNerdyMystic
      @ThatNerdyMystic Рік тому +1

      @BooksandBao I hear you about not wanting to monetize genocide. And I deeply empathize with your mental health declining after talking about Trans rights on the internet, because the hatred leveled at public figures is why I don't show my face on my channel...
      But I think any -rational- person, who understands the magnitude of what is going on in Gaza, would understand that getting the word out to more people is more important than the pennies you would make on the information being spread. To be honest, from the experience I've had already, it looks like YT is demonetizing anything to do with Gaza anyway.

  • @MB-hc9tk
    @MB-hc9tk Рік тому +2

    Yay!! Clicked in the second I saw this because I absolutely love everything I read from your recommendations, currently I’m reading Little by Edward Carey and if it doesn’t change towards the end I’d say it’s going to be one of my favourites! ❤ I know I say it a lot but thank you.
    Must. Resist. Urge. To. Get. All. These. Books. Right. Now!! 🫣👀😂

    • @WillowTalksBooks
      @WillowTalksBooks  Рік тому

      Little is absolutely in my top five :)

    • @MB-hc9tk
      @MB-hc9tk Рік тому +1

      @@WillowTalksBooks so far it’s amazing! I’m loving every page and the little drawings Awh! *chefs 😘kiss*