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Ararat in English: 'Vondel Translation Prize 2009' for Sam Garrett
American-born Sam Garrett (1956) has been awarded the Vondel Translation Prize 2009 for his translation of Frank Westermans 'Ararat', published by Harvill Secker.
Earlier, this English edition of 'Ararat' was shortlisted for the Boardman Taskerprize 2008: 'Wholly engaging, thought-provoking...the mountain as metaphor sits subtly behind the explorations in this book. Shortlisted because it asks us to think deeply with its author' - jury of Boardman Taskerprize for mountain literature.
'If any book, so far this year, justifies the value of translation... it is Westerman's [Ararat]' - The Times
'A short book of stupendous richness ... written with enough knowledge, craft and competence to keep the drowsiest of readers wide awake from first to last' - Alexander Waugh, The Spectator
'As illuminating as the skyline of the mountain itself' - Cambio 16.
'a sciencethriller... Westerman is a genius - a real discovery for both laymen and insiders' - Deutschlandradio Kultur
'...more fascinating than many highly praised novels' - Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
'[There is a] poetic, novelistic logic behind the author's search... It is Westerman's calm intelligence and freshness of perspective that makes his book so appealing.' - The Sunday Times
'thought-provoking and beautifully written/the book is much more than a travelogue. Westerman has achieved his aim - to climb the mountain - and has found an answer of sorts of how science and religion can coexist.'' - Adam LeBor in The Literary Review.Ararat was short-listed for the prestigious AKO-literature prize 2007, the Bob den Uyl-price for travel literature and for the Eureka-prize for best popular science book. Please contact rights manager Marijke Nagtegaal for more info. See also the: NLPVF Rights sold: Harvill Secker (English) Siruela/Debolsillo (Spanish) Fondo de Cultura Económica (Spanish, Latin-American), Bourgois Editeurs (French), Ch. Links Verlag (German), Iperborea (Italian), Iskry (Polish), Durieux (Croatian) and Turbine (Danish).
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Japanese edition of 'El Negro'
Publisher Otsuki Shoten (Tokyo) has bought the Japanese translation rights for El Negro and I.
In Turin at the Bookfair (May 17th) and in Milan (May 19th) Frank Westerman and publisher Iperborea have presented the Italian
'El Negro e io'.
Swedish literary magazine 00TAL has highlighted Westermans work in its summer 2008 issue.
'El Negro' has been published so far in German (Links Verlag), French (Bourgois), Czech (Pistorius), Catalan (Viena), Spanish (Océano) and Italian (Iperborea). Everywhere, the book is getting excellent reviews.
'Gripping. Unusually readable. A book that introduces you competently into important themes.' Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.
'Striking in its capacity of transmitting the taste of reality in a strong and original language.' Le matricule des anges.
'Really thrilling...Frank Westerman supplies effective ammunition against certainties.' Süddeutsche Zeitung.
Translations will follow in English (Harvill Secker) and Japanese. 'El Negro en ik' was awarded the Golden Owl-prize for Literature 2005, was shortlisted for both the Bob den Uyl-award for travel literature and the AKO-prize for Literature 2005.
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Rights of 'Engineers of the Soul' sold to nine countries
NB:Swedish edition by Nya Doxa was released in autumn 2008. The English translation will be out in spring 2010.
Rights sold:
Harvill/Secker (UK, in prep.), Ch. Links (Germany, 2003) and Berlin Taschenbuch Verlag (Germany, 2005), Christian Bourgois (France, 2004), Siruela (Spain, 2005), Debolsillo (Spain, 2009), Feltrinelli (Italy, 2006) Sinisukk (Estonia, 2006), Iskry (Poland, 2007), Durieux (Croatia, 2007) and Nya Doxa (Sweden, 2008).
Engineers of the Soul was shortlisted for both the AKO Prize and the Golden Owl (Dutch and Belgian 'equivalents' of the Man Booker Prize) and was awarded the Dr. Wijnaendts Francken and the J. Greshoff Prize.
Praise for 'Engineers of the Soul':
'A dramaturgic masterpiece' - Frankfurter Rundschau
'In the style of Bruce Chatwin, [Westerman] writes an account of an eye-opening journey' - Liberation
'My favorite book in my own publishing house? Ingenieure der Seele' - publisher Christoph Links, in Buchmarkt
'The best book about Russia that I've read in years' - Wladimir Kaminer, review in TAZ
'It is cultural history, political history, history of mentality, a travel journal and ‘the making of’ all in one…surprising and original, and how meticulously researched and well written it is! The man deserves a prize and a lifelong research grant.' - de Volkskrant
'Westerman offers us one of the most lucid dissections of the stalinist System [...] Engineers of the Soul is an insurpassable example of this work of clarification.' - El País
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The Republic of Grain (new edition) in German translation
In September 2009 Ch. Links Verlag from Berlin has published the German translation of the new and extended edition of Frank Westerman's bestselling title The Republic of Grain (over 80.000 copies sold).
'Is it ages since you read a good book? Well, open The Republic of Grain. Passion and rage, doom and misery, power and powerlessness will be your lot. Westerman has written a masterpiece. On the human, sociological, historical level... magnificent.' - De Morgen.The Republic of Grain has been awarded the Lou de Jong-prize. Please contact rights manager Marijke Nagtegaal for a sample translation. More English info at: NLPVF
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