National Book Award for Translated Literature

Last updated
National Book Award for Translated Literature
Awarded forOutstanding literary work in translation.
LocationNew York City
First awarded1967-1983, 2018
Website National Book Foundation

The National Book Award for Translated Literature is one of five annual National Book Awards recognising outstanding literary works of translation into English administered by the National Book Foundation. This award was previously given from 1967 to 1983 but did not require the author to be living and was for fiction only. It was reintroduced in its new version in 2018 and was open to living translators and authors, for both fiction and non-fiction. [1]

Contents

The award recognises one book published by a U.S. publisher located in the United States from December 1 to November 30. The original text need not have been published in the year of the award submission, only the translated work. For the Translated Literature award neither author nor translator are required to be U.S. citizens.

Entries for the National Book Awards are open from March until May. A longlist is announced in September with the shortlist announced in October. The winner is announced in a ceremony in November. The prizes are split equally between the author and the translator. [2]

Awards

This list only covers the current version of the National Book Award for Translated Literature from its new inaugural addition in 2018. Winners from 1967 to 1983 are covered in the complete list of winners of the National Book Award.

Blueribbon icon.png = winner.

2018

The prize was judged by Karen Maeda Allman, Sinan Antoon, Susan Bernofsky, and Álvaro Enrigue and chaired by Harold Augenbraum. The longlist was announced on September 12. [3] The finalists were announced October 10. [4] The winner was announced on November 14. [5]

2018 National Book Award for Translated Literature honorees
AuthorTitleOriginal LanguageTranslatorCountry of PublicationPublisherResult
Yoko Tawada The Emissary Japanese Margaret Mitsutani Flag of Japan.svg  Japan-Flag of Germany.svg  Germany New Directions Publishing Winner
Négar Djavadi Disoriental French Tina Kover Flag of Iran.svg  Iran-Flag of France.svg  France Europa Editions Finalists
Domenico Starnone TrickItalian Jhumpa Lahiri Flag of Italy.svg  Italy Europa Editions
Olga Tokarczuk FlightsPolish Jennifer Croft Flag of Poland.svg  Poland Riverhead Books
Hanne Ørstavik LoveNorwegian Martin Aitken Flag of Norway.svg  Norway Archipelago Books
Roque Larraquy ComemadreSpanish Heather Cleary Flag of Argentina.svg  Argentina Coffee House Press Longlist
Dunya Mikhail The Beekeeper: Rescuing the Stolen Women of IraqArabic Max Weiss Flag of Iraq.svg  Iraq-Flag of the United States.svg  USA New Directions Publishing
Perumal Murugan One Part WomanTamil Aniruddhan Vasudevan Flag of India.svg  India Black Cat
Tatyana Tolstaya Aetherial WorldsRussian Anya Migdal Flag of Russia.svg  Russia Alfred A. Knopf
Gunnhild Øyehaug Wait, Blink: A Perfect Picture of Inner LifeNorwegian Kari Dickson Flag of Norway.svg  Norway Farrar, Straus and Giroux

2019

The prize was judged by Keith Gessen, Elisabeth Jaquette, Katie Kitamura, and Shuchi Saraswat and chaired by Idra Novey. [6] The longlist was announced on September 17. [7] Finalists were announced on October 8. [8] The winner was announced on November 20.

2019 National Book Award for Translated Literature honorees
AuthorTitleOriginal LanguageTranslatorCountry of PublicationPublisherResult
László Krasznahorkai Baron Wenckheim's Homecoming Hungarian Ottilie Mulzet Flag of Hungary.svg  Hungary New Directions Publishing Winner
Khaled Khalifa Death is Hard Work Arabic Leri Price Flag of Syria.svg  Syria Farrar, Straus and Giroux Finalists
Scholastique Mukasonga The Barefoot Woman French Jordan Stump Flag of Rwanda.svg  Rwanda Archipelago
Yoko Ogawa The Memory Police Japanese Stephen Snyder Flag of Japan.svg  Japan Pantheon Books
Pajtim Statovci CrossingFinnish David Hackston Flag of Finland.svg  Finland Pantheon Books
Elaine Brum The Collector of Leftover SoulsPortuguese Diane Grosklaus Whitty Flag of Brazil.svg  Brazil Graywolf Press Longlist
Nona Fernández Space InvadersSpanish Natasha Wimmer Flag of Chile.svg  Chile Graywolf Press
Vigdis Hjorth Will and Testament Norwegian Charlotte Barslund Flag of Norway.svg  Norway Verso Books
Olga Tokarczuk Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead Polish Antonia Lloyd-Jones Flag of Poland.svg  Poland Riverhead Books
Naja Marie Aidt When Death Takes Something From You Give it BackDanish Denise Newman Flag of Denmark.svg  Denmark Coffee House Press

2020

The prize was judged by Heather Cleary, John Darnielle, Anne Ishii, and Brad Johnson and chaired by Dinaw Mengestu. The longlist was announced on September 16 [9] and the shortlist on October 6. [10] The winner was announced on November 18. [11]

2020 National Book Award for Translated Literature honorees
AuthorTitleOriginal LanguageTranslatorPublisherResult
Miri Yu Tokyo Ueno Station JapaneseMorgan Giles Riverhead Books / Penguin Random House Winner
Anja Kampmann High as the Waters RiseGerman Anne Posten Catapult PressFinalists
Jonas Hassen Khemiri The Family ClauseSwedish Alice Menzies Farrar, Straus and Giroux / Macmillan Publishers
Pilar Quintana The BitchSpanish Lisa Dillman World Editions
Adania Shibli Minor DetailArabic Elisabeth Jaquette New Directions Publishing
Cho Nam-Joo Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 Korean Jamie Chang Liveright / W. W. Norton & Company Longlist
Perumal Murugan The Story of a GoatTamil N. Kalyan Raman Black Cat / Grove Atlantic
Fernanda Melchor Hurricane Season Spanish Sophie Hughes New Directions Publishing
Linda Boström Knausgård The Helios DisasterSwedish Rachel Willson-Broyles World Editions
Shokoofeh Azar The Enlightenment of the Greengage TreePersianAnonymous Europa Editions

2021

The prize was judged by Jessie Chaffee, Sergio de la Pava, Madhu H. Kaza, and Achy Obejas and chaired by Stephen Snyder. The longlist was announced on September 15 and the shortlist was announced on October 5. The winner was announced on November 17. [12]

2021 National Book Award for Translated Literature honorees [13]
AuthorTitleOriginal LanguageTranslatorPublisherResult
Elisa Shua Dusapin Winter in Sokcho French Aneesa Abbas Higgins Open Letter Books Winner
Ge Fei Peach Blossom Paradise Chinese Canaan Morse New York Review Books Finalists
Nona Fernández The Twilight ZoneSpanish Natasha Wimmer Graywolf Press
Benjamín Labatut When We Cease to Understand the WorldSpanish Adrian Nathan West New York Review Books
Samar Yazbek Planet of ClayArabic Leri Price World Editions
Maryse Condé Waiting for the Waters to RiseFrench Richard Philcox World Editions Longlist
Bo-young Kim On the Origin of Species and Other StoriesKorean Joungmin Lee Comfort and Sora Kim-Russell Kaya Press
Elvira Navarro Rabbit IslandSpanish Christina MacSweeney Two Lines Press
Judith Schalansky An Inventory of Losses German Jackie Smith New Directions Publishing
Maria Stepanova In Memory of MemoryRussian Sasha Dugdale New Directions Publishing

2022

The prize was judged by Nick Buzanski, Veronica Esposito, Ann Goldstein (Chair), Rohan Kamicheril, and Russell Scott Valentino. The longlist was announced on September 14 and the shortlist was announced on October 4. The winner was announced on November 16. [14]

2022 National Book Award for Translated Literature honorees
AuthorTitleOriginal LanguageTranslatorPublisherResult
Samanta Schweblin Seven Empty HousesSpanish Megan McDowell Riverhead Books / Penguin Random House Winner
Jon Fosse A New Name: Septology VI-VIINorwegian Damion Searls Transit BooksFinalists
Scholastique Mukasonga KibogoFrench Mark Polizzotti Archipelago Books
Mónica Ojeda JawboneSpanish Sarah Booker Coffee House Press
Yoko Tawada Scattered All Over the Earth Japanese Margaret Mitsutani New Directions Publishing
Mohammed Hasan Alwan Ibn Arabi's Small DeathArabic William M Center for Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Texas at AustinLonglist
Shahriar Mandanipour Seasons of PurgatoryPersian Sara Khalili Bellevue Literary Press
Olga Ravn The EmployeesDanishMartin AitkenNew Directions Publishing
Saša Stanišić Where You Come FromGerman Damion Searls Tin House Books
Olga Tokarczuk The Books of Jacob Polish Jennifer Croft Riverhead Books / Penguin Random House

2023

Members of the prize jury are: Geoffrey Brock, Arthur Malcolm Dixon, Cristina Rodriguez, T. Denean Sharpley-Whiting, and Jeremy Tiang (Chair). The longlist was announced on September 13. The winner was announced on November 16, 2023. [15]

2023 National Book Award for Translated Literature honorees
AuthorTitleOriginal LanguageTranslatorPublisherResult
Stênio Gardel The Words That RemainPortuguese Bruna Dantas Lobato New Vessel Press Winner
Bora Chung Cursed BunnyKorean Anton Hur Algonquin Books / Hachette Book Group Finalists
David Diop Beyond the Door of No ReturnFrench Sam Taylor Farrar, Straus and Giroux / Macmillan Publishers
Pilar Quintana AbyssSpanish Lisa Dillman World Editions
Astrid Roemer On a Woman's MadnessDutchLucy ScottTwo Lines Press
Juan Cárdenas The Devil of the ProvincesSpanishLizzie Davis Coffee House Press Longlist
Jenny Erpenbeck Kairos German Michael Hofmann Coffee House Press
Khaled Khalifa No One Prayed Over Their GravesArabic Leri Price Farrar, Straus and Giroux / Macmillan Publishers
Fernanda Melchor This Is Not MiamiSpanish Sophie Hughes New Directions Publishing
Mohamed Mbougar Sarr The Most Secret Memory of Men French Lara Vergnaud The Other Press

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References

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