Shadow IFFP shortlist

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Well the proper IFFP shortrlist came out today from Booktrust  .Their choices are –

By night the mountain burns by Juan Tomas Avila Laurel

Translator Jethro Soutar

Colorless Tazaki and his years of pilgrimage by Haruki Murakami

Translator Philip Gabriel

F by Daniel Kehlmann

Translator – Carol Brown Janeway

The end of days by Jenny Erpenbeck

Translator Susan Bernofsky

In the beginning was the sea by Tomas Gonzalez

Translator – Frank Wynne

While the gods where sleeping by Ervin Mortier

Translator – Paul vincent .

Now it has become tradition for the shadow jury to decide there own shortlist from the longlist and this year it is the longlist plus one .I’ve fallen behind in reviews have read all but two of the longlist and was fairly happy with our shortlist .

Shadow shortlist 

The End of Days by jenny Erpenbeck 
Translator – Susan Bernofsky
Zone by Mathias Enard 
Translator – Charlotte Mandell
The Ravens by Tomas Bannerhed 
Translator Sarah Death
The Dead Lake by Hamid Ismailov 
Translator – Andrew Broomfield
Bloodlines by Marcelo Fois 
Translator – Silvester Mazzarella
Translator – Philip Gabriel
I’ve manage to review five of our shortlist , we share two books with the actual shortlist we will announce the winner the day before the actual winner .

 

Independent foreign fiction prize longlist 2015

Well we finally get to see what us shadow IFFP folks will be reviewing over the next few weeks .I managed to guess two right   in my prediction post .I have read 7  of the longlist five I ve reviewed leaving me 8  read so here is this years longlist .A good year for what is 25 years since the prize started .I ve

 

Longlist

 

 

 

 

all info thanks to Booktrust 

 

 

 

My IFFP prediction post 2015

Well its become a bit of a tradition to do a post every year predicting the longlist for the IFFP .Well I’m honoured that they choose a thursday , next thursday for #translationthurs – my weekly meme that has grown over the years .So what books do I think will make the longlist ? I’ve mix books I’ve read with those I haven’t yet got too , but feel have a good shout .So for world book day , the prize that maybe fully brings the world of books to the uk readers the IFFP

Bonita Avenue  by Peter Buwalda

A tale of a Dutch family just as the internet is taking of and a family member using the darkest corner of the internet .I have this from library to read .

Look who’s back by Timur Vermes

Look who's back

I loved this and especially the way Jamie seemed to capture Hitlers voice so well in English . The story of what happens when Adolf hitler returns to present day germany a wonderful satire

Never any end to paris by Enrique Vila Matas

Never any end to Paris

The writers young life in Paris as a novel what wasn’t to love in this one .

sworn virgin cover Elvira Donessworn virgins by Elvira Dones

 

 

A lifting of the age-old tradition of  women become men to take over before during and after . One those books that make you think does this really happen 

Bilbao – New York – Bilbao  by Kirmen Uribe

 

 

 

A book about a writer writing a book about the small fishing town he grew up in whilst on a plane to new york . One my favourites of last year 

Harraga by Boualem Sansal

Two generations of women trap in a house in Algeria .Showing how much more has to change despite the arab spring a great book from a brave writer .

The mirror of beauty by Shamsur Rahman Faruqi

the mirror of beauty

I reviewed this a couple years ago when I was kindly sent the indian release .But the uk release came out last year and it is a translation from Urdu by the writer himself .

The portrait by Willem Jan Otten

the-portrait_300dpi-280x430

A painting of a dead boy tells its story a wonderfully unique book 

Dead lake by by Hamid Ismailov

the dead lake

A boy takes a swim in a lake in the soviet hinterland and never grows any more . As with every year Peirene could have more than one on the list .

Zone BY Mathias Enard

zone_cover

A new publisher and a great choice of this massive french novel about a train trip to rome  in a slightly different europe .

The tower by Uwe Tellkamp

 

A story of one family during the time of the former East Germany .Epic novel one of two that should be there .

Confessions by Jaume Cabre

 

 

 

Now I loved this when I read it but it got put to one side so will need a review and lets hope it was entered . the story of violence through time one man and an instrument epic catalan fiction .

Indigo by Clemens J setz

 

Childern dying of Indigo a teacher tries to find out the truth .An experimental novel from Austira .

In the end I went mainly with my favourites others I think my make actual list include the Quebert novel , Murakami ,Peterson , Nevo novels from last year all three have been on longlist before .Juan Marse is another book I read but didn’t review and he is considered Spain’s best writer of last 25 years .

What were your favourites last year ?

 

 

 

 

Winston’s library books

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Well I fetch earlier this week four books from library I had ordered in this wad the first it was mentioned in an end of year choice by someone I can’t quite remember who .But idea of following a modern retake of Steinbecks travel with Charles , well the Dutch travel writer Geert Mak did just that .I am reading this and finding it more a discourse on a lost America than a real retracing of the journey so much .But still enjoying it and giving me a chance to read travels with Charley at the same time .The other three books fall into the possibility of been in the IFFP longlist so have got to read if I get chance over next couple of months .

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Neuland by Eskhol Nevo a pair of tales in one novel the gather story coming to the promised land after the second world war and the next generation escaping and travelling the world to find themselves
Bonita Avenue by Peter Buwalda may be the next great Dutch novel a family tale of a family that seem perfect to cracks and Internet porn start showing all isn’t as it seems
F by Daniel Kehlman the story of three brothers a priest artist and financier all about to step into problems of their own

Well I choose these as they all appeared on Boud Tonkin’s end of year list at the independent and over last few years I have found a this a partial guide to what may appear when the IFFP comes out .

What books have you got from the library this year ?

March 2023
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