In a trend driven by young people, translated literature is on the rise.
In 2022, sales of translated fiction increased by 22 per cent, with research conducted by the Booker Prize showing that 48 per cent of these were attributed to under 35s.
Attitudes towards translations are changing, as these figures demonstrate. What may have once been seen as inaccessible or unappealing is becoming steadily more widely read. However, in proportion with most of the rest of Europe, the UK still publishes far less translated fiction, meaning that our reading habits and subsequent sales lag behind.
For those unsure where to start with reading translated fiction, here’s a selection of brilliant titles from Japan, France, Finland and South Korea.
Before the Coffee Gets Cold series, Toshikazu Kawaguchi (translated by Geoffrey Trousselot)
A staggeringly popular series since its publication in 2019, Before the Coffee Gets Cold is oddly comforting in its depiction of a time travelling cafe, hidden away in the backstreets of Tokyo. At only 224 pages, it’s a brilliant, unintimidating introduction to Japanese fiction. There are four books in the series, with a fifth expected later this year.
The Inseparables, Simone de Beauvoir (translated by Lauren Elkin)
Thought of as her ‘lost novel’, The Inseparables was written by acclaimed writer and feminist theorist Simone de Beauvoir in 1954, but only published in 2021, thirty five years after her death. Inspired by the author’s own relationship with her best friend, it tells the story of an intense friendship between two young girls as they grow up side by side. The Inseparables is also an approachable entry point to Beauvoir’s work, and Elkin’s translation from the French is excellent.
The Summer Book, Tove Jansson
Best known for her Moomin series, Tove Jansson was a Swedish-speaking Finnish author and artist. One of six novels that she wrote for adults, The Summer Book is an enchanting, soothing tale of a grandmother and granddaughter who spend a summer together on an island in the gulf of Finland. It beautifully captures the intergenerational relationship between the pair, with humour and a quiet wisdom.
Kim Ji-young, Born 1982, by Cho Nam-ju (translated by Jamie Chang)
Responsible for kickstarting a new feminist movement in South Korea, Kim Ji-young, Born 1982, is exceptionally powerful in its presentation of the ordinary. Following an “everywoman” living in an apartment on the outskirts of Seoul, it highlights the disillusionment of a woman who is told over and over again that she should be content with her place in an unfair world. Poignant and painfully familiar, it is a must-read in contemporary Korean fiction.
“Letter-writing at a portable desk with quill, inkwell, seal and an open book bound with clasps on a reading stand … and a clock and bell (Antwerp, 19th c.)” by takomabibelotis licensed under CC BY 2.0