Best Literary Translations
In April 2024, Deep Vellum published the first edition of an annual anthology that I co-founded with World Literature Today editor Daniel Simon: Best Literary Translations. This annual volume is co-edited by Noh Anothai, Öykü Tekten, Kọ́lá Túbọ̀sún, and me. As translators, the four of us work in and from languages from diverse geographies: Asia, the Middle East, Africa and the African diaspora, and the Americas. We four co-editors comb literary journals and magazines for translations of poetry, short prose (both fiction and nonfiction), and hybrid-genre works. We invite literary journal editors to nominate works they have published. And anyone who had work published in a US-based or US-affiliated literary journal or magazine during the previous year is eligible to submit their work. Our debut 2024 volume, showcasing translations published during 2022, was guest edited by poet, translator, and essayist Jane Hirshfield.
You can order Best Literary Translations from Deep Vellum here. Please request that your local library buy a copy!
Book Release Events
During April, May, and June 2024, both in-person and virtual events will be happening across the country to celebrate the release of Best Literary Translations. Check back for more events and more details about the events listed here! All these events are free and open to the public.
Saturday, April 20, 2024, 4:00 pm PDT ~ in-person event ~ Medicine for Nightmares, San Francisco ~ with contributors Armen Davoudian, Eirill Falck, Dmitri Manin
Sunday, April 21, 2024, 3:00 pm CDT ~ in-person & live streamed event ~ with the Sant Jordi Festival, at Seminary Co-Op Bookstore, Chicago ~ live event with co-editor Noh Anothai and contributors Izidora Angel and Lizzie Davis
late April 2024 ~ virtual, streaming event ~ Sant Jordi Festival, Chicago ~ with contributors David M. Brunson, Bernard Capinpin, Anita Gopalan, Michelle Mirabella, Maurice Rodriguez, and others
Thursday, April 25, 2024, 7:00 pm EDT ~ in-person event ~ PRINT: A Bookstore, Portland, ME ~ with co-editor Wendy Call and contributors Muntather Alsawad and Jeffrey Clapp
Thursday, May 2, 2024, 7:00 pm PDT ~ virtual event open to the public ~ University of Southern California, Los Angeles ~ with guest editor Jane Hirshfield, co-editors Noh Anothai & Kóla Túbòsún, and contributors Edith Adams & Anita Gopalan
Tuesday, May 7, 2024, 6:00 pm EDT ~ in-person event ~ Epilogue Books & Café, Chapel Hill, NC ~ with co-editor Wendy Call and contributor Gustavo Pérez Firmat, in conversation with recent (2019-2022) Carrboro Poet Laureate Fred Joiner!
Monday, May 20, 2024, 7:00 pm PDT ~ in-person event ~ North Figueroa Bookshop, Los Angeles ~ with co-editor Wendy Call and contributor Edith Adams
Monday, June 17, 2024, 4:00 pm PDT / 7:00 pm EDT ~ virtual event ~ hosted online by Third Place Books of Seattle ~ with co-editors Noh Anothai & Kóla Túbòsún, and contributors Jeanine Legato & Sherod Santos
See the Deep Vellum Events page for more event info!
The Spring 2025 edition of Best Literary Translations, highlighting the best of 2023 literary translations published in US-affiliated literary journals, is guest edited by novelist, poet, translator, and essayist Cristina Rivera Garza.
Submissions of work published during 2024 will open in October 2024. To familiarize yourself with the process, you can read the guidelines and FAQ for the 2025 edition here. Please spread the word!