Category Archives: World Literature

**Books translated from the original language to English**

It Is Wood, It Is Stone – Gabriella Burnham

(reviewed by JD Jung) “I don’t even think I want to flee anymore. I thought that was what I wanted, but I think more so I wanted to disappear. I wanted to become so unburdened that I would actually become … Continue reading

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Nairobi Noir (Akashic Noir Series) – edited by Peter Kimani

(reviewed by JD Jung) > “In this concrete jungle, the hunters and herders live on. As do the hunted…” This summarizes the essence of Nairobi Noir, a collection of fourteen stories released early this year from the Akashic Noir Series. … Continue reading

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The Stone Building and Other Places – Asli Erdogan (Author), Sevinç Türkkan (Translator)

(reviewed by JD Jung) “When they’ve had their fill of despair, of stories, crimes, sins, confessions- each one the same as any other –they leave the back alleys behind and revert to their destiny, picking up where they left off. … Continue reading

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The Man in the Cellar – Palle Rosenkrantz

(Reviewed by Heidi A. Swan) I was captivated by the voice of the author from the very beginning. It is a translation of the best-selling novel by the Danish novelist, Palle Rosenkrantz, and was written over one hundred years ago. … Continue reading

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Lives on Fire – Rosie Scott

(Reviewed by JD Jung) When I travel to a new city, I love to pop into independent bookstores. So, when I ran across Hard To Find Bookshop, a second-hand bookstore in Auckland, New Zealand, I just had to enter this … Continue reading

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My Neighbour Osama Bin Laden – Yslar Tatuky

(Reviewed by JD Jung) #CommissionsEarned What happens when one puts Osama bin Laden and Salman Rushdie at the same dinner table? Yslar Tatuky is such a person as he has grand, though idealistic, hopes for humanity in his novel, My … Continue reading

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The 6:41 to Paris – Jean-Philippe Blondel, (Translated from the French by Alison Anderson)

(Reviewed by JD Jung) “What I feel now is pure hatred. And that surprises me—because I’m not like that, particularly toward someone I haven’t seen in what must be at least twentyfive years…I can’t help but sneak looks at him.” … Continue reading

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Sleepless Night – Margriet de Moor (Translated from the Dutch by David Doherty)

(Reviewed by JD Jung) “The love, the hatred, the fascination with everything he had or had not done, fascination that spiraled into fervid curiosity. Into obsession. Into madness.” A teacher combats her insomnia by baking cakes in the middle of … Continue reading

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Amsterdam Noir (Akashic Noir Series) -René Appel and Josh Pachter (Editors), Josh Pachter (Translator)

(Reviewed by JD Jung) “It wasn’t until he’d come to see me a dozen times that he told me he wanted to concentrate on women who looked like the victims who’d escaped from him his first time around.” This man … Continue reading

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Broken Humanity – Karine Vivier (Author), Kirsty Catriona Olivant (Translator)

(Reviewed by Heidi A. Swan) Reader beware: this story is about people involved in child kidnapping and child deaths. Wanting to turn away from such a topic, I was lured inside, like a child promised treats which can only be … Continue reading

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