@grantrintoul.bsky.social
New for #WITMonth, three short stories by Jacqueline Harpman in We Were Forbidden, translated by Ros Schwartz: 1streading.wordpress.com/2026/08/04/w...
We Were Forbidden
The recent success of Belgian writer Jacqueline Harpman’s I Who Have Never Known Men (originally translated into English in the 1990s alongside the novel Orlanda) has finally led to more of her wor…
1streading.wordpress.com
New for #WITMonth, three short stories by Jacqueline Harpman in We Were Forbidden, translated by Ros Schwartz: 1streading.wordpress.com/2026/08/04/w...
We Were Forbidden
The recent success of Belgian writer Jacqueline Harpman’s I Who Have Never Known Men (originally translated into English in the 1990s alongside the novel Orlanda) has finally led to more of her wor…
1streading.wordpress.com
New on the blog today, my thoughts on THE TRANSIT OF VENUS by Shirley Hazzard. A stunning novel about love, chance, fate, power dynamics & moral integrity, fully deserving of its status as a modern masterpiece. I loved the subtle use of foreshadowing here! jacquiwine.wordpress.com/2026/08/04/t...
The Transit of Venus by Shirley Hazzard
First published in 1980, The Transit of Venus is the third novel by the Australian writer Shirley Hazzard, an author I’ve been circling for some time. It’s also one of the best novels I’ve read so …
jacquiwine.wordpress.com
A pleasant day trawling the charity shops of Edinburgh. Shout out if you've read any of these.
Lloyd Cole in fine voice @thequeenshall.bsky.social tonight, with a transcendent cover of David Bowie's Can You Hear Me.
Last night, when the moon slipped into my attic-room disguised as an oblong of light, I sensed she’d come to commiserate. It was August. She travelled with a small valise of darkness… —Kathleen Jamie, “Moon” from SELECTED POEMS, (Picador, 2018) #poem #poetry www.panmacmillan.com/authors/kath...
New for #WITMonth, six of the best women in translation from Peirene Press: 1streading.wordpress.com/2026/08/01/w...
Women in Translation with Peirene Press
The Mussel Feast by Brigit Vanderbeke Brigit Vanderbeke’s The Mussel Feast, translated by Jamie Bulloch, is a classic example of allegorical fiction, taking afamily meal as the starting point of a …
1streading.wordpress.com
New for #WITMonth, six of the best women in translation from Peirene Press: 1streading.wordpress.com/2026/08/01/w...
Women in Translation with Peirene Press
The Mussel Feast by Brigit Vanderbeke Brigit Vanderbeke’s The Mussel Feast, translated by Jamie Bulloch, is a classic example of allegorical fiction, taking afamily meal as the starting point of a …
1streading.wordpress.com
That strange face in the mirror: Maybe This Time by Alois Hotschnig, translated by @tesslewis.bsky.social roughghosts.com/2026/08/01/t...
That strange face in the mirror: Maybe This Time by Alois Hotschnig
The stamps on the envelope were still moist. I noticed they were foreign. As I got to the window I realized that I was, in fact, in another country, somewhere unfamiliar. I didn’t know where. To co…
roughghosts.com
As #WITMonth approaches, here are some of my favourite women in translation in Penguin Classics, including Tove Ditlevsen and Irmgard Keun. 1streading.wordpress.com/2023/07/24/w...
Women in Translation in Penguin Classics
Women in Translation Month, which takes place each August, is an annual celebration of women writers from around the world, writing in languages other than English, started by Meytal Radzinski in 2…
1streading.wordpress.com
My post on twelve excellent books worth considering for #WITMonth featuring authors such as Samanta Schweblin, Han Kang, Marlen Haushofer, Inès Cagnati and more. readersretreat2017.wordpress.com/2026/07/30/w...
Two great books from @fitzcarraldoeds.bsky.social - Maria Stepanova's The Disappearing Act and Helene Bessette's Twenty Minutes of Silence - but the summer is still young!
One Bright Book@onebrightbook.bsky.social · last wk.Tell us about the best book you've read this summer
New on the blog today, WOMEN WRITERS IN TRANSLATION - some book recommendations for #WITMonth. Featuring books by Mariana Enriquez (tr. Megan McDowell), Irmgard Keun (tr. Michael Hofmann), Claudia Piñeiro (tr. Frances Riddle) and more! #BookSky 💙📚 jacquiwine.wordpress.com/2026/07/29/w...
Women Writers in Translation – some book recommendations for #WITMonth
As many of you know, August is #WITMonth (Women in Translation), a celebration of books by women writers, initially written in languages other than English and then translated for English-speaking …
jacquiwine.wordpress.com
This remains one of my most memorable experiences in a theatre ever.
National Theatre of Scotland@ntsonline.bsky.social · last wk.Twenty years ago this week, Black Watch first shocked, thrilled and moved audiences in its world premiere at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. To celebrate the anniversary, this Saturday night BBC Scotland will air a special filmed performance of the production which put NTS on the world stage.
With Great Granny Webster coming from Virago next month, and Corrigan next year.
JacquiWine@jacquiwine.bsky.social · 3w agoFrom the archive for Caroline Blackwood #BornOnThisDay in 1931, my thoughts on THE FATE OF MARY ROSE. A brilliant, pitch-black exploration of how a mother's protectiveness towards her child can tip over into an unhealthy obsession. Highly recommended! 💙📚 jacquiwine.wordpress.com/2025/01/07/t...
Never mind the Booker, Donald Antrim has a new novel coming out!
Jason Arthur@jasonarthur.bsky.social · last wk.Wonderful to see @lukekennard.bsky.social's praise for Donald Antrim's My Eliot. ‘Perhaps one of the most sorely missed novelists of the last couple of decades for his humanity, intelligence & deceptive lightness of touch...Made me laugh, made me cry, made me wish I had my own enchanted parsnip’
Those looking for a modern version of Homer could do worse than Alessandro Baricco's An Iliad, translated by Anne Goldstein, which retells the story in the voices of twenty-one of the characters.
Osamu Dazai’s books have become a surprise literary hit in recent years. I spoke to his translator and publishers to find out why, and how the shorthand of bleak nihilism in his work isn’t always true:
From author to anime hero: the unlikely revival of a Japanese literary star
More than seven decades after they were first released, the dark novels of Osamu Dazai have become a publishing sensation, as a new generation of readers engage with his bleakness, humour and brillian...
theguardian.com
Andres Barba's new book reminded me of this 'ghost' book, translated by Lisa Dillman, which was going to be published by Hispabooks.
“I fall awake and think, I want to go home”: Is Beauty Good by Rosalind Belben @nyrb-imprints.bsky.social @andotherstories.bsky.social roughghosts.com/2026/07/27/i...
“I fall awake and think, I want to go home”: Is Beauty Good by Rosalind Belben
I think, it doesn’t matter where I am, whether calm or with nerves shot to pieces, in the mountains, in towns, sleeping well or sleeping badly, it doesn’t matter, I am quite lost, wherever I am. I …
roughghosts.com
Andres Barba's new book reminded me of this 'ghost' book, translated by Lisa Dillman, which was going to be published by Hispabooks.
"...a bewildering tapestry of myth and lore..." #twistedspoonpress #20BOS26 Book 18 kaggsysbookishramblings.wordpress.com/2026/07/27/a...
“…a bewildering tapestry of myth and lore…” #twistedspoonpress #20BOS26 Book 18
Back in 2017 I discovered the German-Czech author, Johannes Urzidil, when a collection of his short Bohemian fables was published by Pushkin Press. I thoroughly enjoyed these stories, so when the P…
kaggsysbookishramblings.wordpress.com
Some recent secondhand arrivals: Hanna Krall as I've long intended to read more of her after loving Chasing the King of Hearts; Janet Frame because why have I not read her; and a less well known Brian Moore.
Continuing my read through of the winners of the James Tait Black Memorial Prize with the fourth winner from 1922, David Garnett's Lady into Fox, which is exactly as described: 1streading.wordpress.com/2026/07/25/l...
Lady into Fox
The fourth winner of the James Tait Black Memorial Prize remains one of the most unusual. Lady into Fox was David Garnett’s first novel – or, at least, the first novel he published under his own na…
1streading.wordpress.com
Continuing my read through of the winners of the James Tait Black Memorial Prize with the fourth winner from 1922, David Garnett's Lady into Fox, which is exactly as described: 1streading.wordpress.com/2026/07/25/l...
Lady into Fox
The fourth winner of the James Tait Black Memorial Prize remains one of the most unusual. Lady into Fox was David Garnett’s first novel – or, at least, the first novel he published under his own na…
1streading.wordpress.com
"Every brave man is brave in his own way." #vasilygrossman #fromthefrontline #20BOS26 Book 17 kaggsysbookishramblings.wordpress.com/2026/07/24/e...
“Every brave man is brave in his own way.” #vasilygrossman #fromthefrontline #20BOS26 Book 17
Back in 2013 I read my first Vasily Grossman book, “An Armenian Sketchbook”, translated by Robert and Elizabeth Chandler, and was bowled over by his writing. I commented at the time tha…
kaggsysbookishramblings.wordpress.com
New on the blog today, a mid-year round-up featuring my favourite books from Jan to June 2026 - highlights from 6 months of reading. Including novels by Anita Brookner, Penelope Mortimer, Rumer Godden, Olivia Manning, Henry Van Dyke & more! #BookSky 💙📚 jacquiwine.wordpress.com/2026/07/24/m...
My favourite books from Jan – June 2026
Now that we’re well into July, I thought it might be interesting to put together a mid-year review, summarising my reading highlights from January to June. I seem to say this every year, but 2026 i…
jacquiwine.wordpress.com
A great production of Lear @pitlochryft.bsky.social with Maureen Beattie as Lear - the female lead successfully bringing a different dimension to Shakespeare's character, particularly towards the end.
