Last Thursday, the Nobel Prize for Literature was awarded to two white Europeans: Olga Tokarczuk (one of the odds-on favorites going into the announcement) for 2018 (aka the “Year that the Sexual Abuse Scandal Killed the Nobel”) and Peter Handke for 2019.

I never wanted to write a Nobel Prize post—these posts are meant to be about baseball and the process of reading. Ģą˝´«Ă˝ using different outlooks (like Big Data and sabermetrics) to come up with fun, weird ways to provoke people to think about books and publishing in a more nuanced, different way. Do they succeed? Probably not! But I’ll be back soon with a “normal” post about reading Saer’s The Regal Lemon TreeĚý(forthcoming from Open Letter in winter 2020) without any recollection of what the book was about and being totally knocked sideways on several occasions, wishing someone elseĚýwas in charge of writing jacket copy so that I could get a handle on what this book wasĚý˛ą˛ú´ÇłÜłŮ.Ěý

But for today? Let’s talk about fascism, two moments in history, and whether the Nobel Prize is totally bankrupt or not.

*

Scene: Thursday Morning. 4:30am. I wake up in an excited panic. There was speculation that Can Xue or Dubravka Ugresic could win the Nobel Prize. The committee had stated, publicly—although, as we came to find out, facetiously—that they had been too Eurocentric and would be looking to other parts of the globe for their big honor. So, Can Xue? Or Murakami? Probably Murakami. And probably Olga Tokarczuk—the committee will want to be “of the moment,” and given the way the English-speaking world serves as the de facto force behind what is popular and trendy (both of the recent titles from Tokarczuk to come out in English translation are from 2007 and 2009, but we’ll come back to that in her section), it felt like a foregone conclusion.

Text conversation with Will Evans after his Braves went down 10-0 in the top of the 1st inning.

In the midst of a Cardinals blow out in game 5 of the NLDS (which is pretty much the pinnacle of hope and joy for me) I had a dream moment . . . a second where I thought, “what if?” I mean, a Swedish (!!) press had contacted us about Can Xue’s rights earlier in the week—just as her odds shifted. Is that’s a coincidence? A conspiracy? A reason for hope? A prank??

But deep down, I knew. IĚýknew. Would it be great to sell more copies in a week than we have in all eleven years of our notable, but financially suspect existence? Fuck and yes it would! But, you, know, there are only like 50 other living authors equally deserving of a million dollar literary award and a place in history . . . it all feels like a coin flip, and there are three things I don’t think exist in today’s world: true democracy, anything resembling meritocracy, and good luck for anything Chad W. Post is involved in.

It took until 4:36am to figure out what the time it was in Sweden—not time for the announcement!—and then it took until 6ish to finally fall asleep, cautiously hoping that I’d wake up and the world would be a different place.

Fast-forward to 7:15am. ±á˛ą˛Ô»ĺ°ě±đ!Ěý±á˛ą˛Ô»ĺ°ě±đ!ĚýSure, he’s an Important European Author, butĚý±á˛ą˛Ô»ĺ°ě±đ!ĚýThis guy was friends with Slobodan Milošević, who, if you’re too young to know the history of the Yugoslav War and his attempts at genocide, well, let’s just say he’s one of history’s greatest monsters. Full stop. Don’t @ me with equivocations. If you encourage people to slaughter others based on their nationality, you are 100% a piece of shit.

Are Handke’s books good? I haven’t read all of the recent ones, but the early ones are, yes. Really good. But ¸é±đ±č±đłŮľ±łŮľ±´Ç˛ÔĚýis boring and solipsistic, and the second-half of his career feels like someone so intent on loving themselves that they don’t realize how far up their own ass they are.

From Wikipedia, which I’m quoting because . . . well, you’ll see:

My Year in the No-Man’s-BayĚý(:ĚýMein Jahr in der Niemandsbucht) is a 1994 novel by the Austrian writerĚý. It follows a writer’s attempt to describe a metamorphosis he went through two decades earlier, when he stopped being confrontative and instead became a passive observer. The task proves to be difficult and most of the book is instead concerned with the lives of the narrator, his family and the people in the Paris suburb where he lives. The book is 1066 pages long in its original German. It was published in English in 1998, translated byĚý.

When the English translation was published in 1998,Ěý‘s critic wrote: “Despite attaining moments of stylistic lucidity worthy ofĚý, the narrator more often comes across as gloomy and hostile. Nonetheless, numerous trenchant moments of insight make this work intriguing and provocative.”ĚýĚýreviewed the book forĚý. He described it as “one carefully observed image after another expanding into a cinematically eternal present tense”, which according to Siegel means that “in a sense, then, Handke’s novel is an argument for the superiority of film to the novel”. The critic continued: “Though at times intellectually bracing, this can make for pretty arid reading. And Handke’s attempts at elevating his epic of self-regarding banality often make matters worse. Rejecting character, plot and psychology as mere fictions, he relies on an ostentatious thematic framework that winds up being more implausible than any old-fashioned novelistic trick.” Publishers WeeklyĚýcalled the English translation “impeccable”, while Siegel called it “clumsy and overliteral”.

Yeah, I’m good. I’ve read this sort of man for many many years. And I really, really liked it. But then again, there are a million dudes writing in this same way, who may not get the international play (why do some writers succeed and not others? definitely not because of talent, I’ll guarantee you that), none of whom told Bosnian Muslims that the was faked and said “You can stick your corpses up your arse!” when called out on his wild claims. Christ. This guy. Really. A łľľ±±ô±ôľ±´Ç˛ÔĚýdollars.

And that’s just the start of it! Here are the screen caps I frantically took at a red light, driving my son to school, ˛őłŮłÜ˛Ô˛Ô±đ»ĺĚýthat anyone who’s openly friends with war criminalsĚýwon the Nobel Prize for Literature:

I know it’s long, butĚýread this. AndĚýread it here.ĚýWhy? Because it’s been completely deleted from Wikipedia. Not bits and pieces—the whole thing. .

The victors write history. Which is why “Never Forget” is not a phrase, but a warning.

*

While at that same red light, I whipped off an ill-conceived tweet (when are my tweetsĚý˛Ô´ÇłŮĚýill-conceived) and gotĚýso worked upĚýabout the podcast Tom Roberge and I were about to record. It’s called “Don’t Give a Million Dollars to a Fascist” and it is FIRE.

It also earned me the designation—on Twitter, the home of all intellectual thought?—as the “most insufferable man in publishing.” Which is AMAZING. I added this to my bio and will be riding it to the grave.

Chad W. Post, the “most insufferable man in publishing” died on XX in the year XXXX. He is known for: a) being blocked by Roxane Gay because of a drunken Super Bowl exchange regarding a half-time show, shitty referees, and nonsense (which he regretted all his years), b) complaining on Three Percent that no one liked his books (making it easier not to like his books), and c) the fact that he was very, very short, with a nasty balding situation.

I get the ire. The backlash to the “Handke doesn’tĚýdeserve it” backlash. I really do. There are authors I/we like that are not good people. And the work and the human who makes the work are two separate things—when you’re talking just about books. When you’re talking about giving someone a million dollars and a permanent spot in history? . . . I’m not so sure that argument holds. Or maybe it would’ve held, if the committee hadn’t had said anything. Instead of expanding their scope to, I don’t know, anyone in Latin America? Asia? Africa? Last I checked, Poland and Austria were very, very European. (And don’t pull this “Eastern Europe” shit. The center of Europe moved East very fast with Brexit.) And very, very, very white.

The thing is, you can claim that the Nobel is only about an author’s work, that the work is not the same as the person, but for an award of this stature that’s given out once a year to an author and their corpus, it comes to function as an award for the author themselves—at least in the minds of tens of thousands of people around the world. So whether you feel like the Nobel Prize for Literature should “only be about the work” or not, it functions as something larger within culture, and as a result, the Swedish Academy needs to keep that in mind.

I think someone subtweeted about me, claiming that my Handke outrage was linked to the fact that Dubravka Ugresic didn’t win. This isn’t entirely true. Am I upset that Dubravka didn’t receive the prize? Not exactly. Once you’ve been a bridesmaid for so long, it’s impossible to get angry when you miss the bouquet once again. But I am irritated on her behalf, since anyone who suffered through the Yugoslav War will 100% have their PTSD triggered when a genocide apologist who supported war criminals is awarded a million dollars. Especially women who suffered horribly through this conflict. It’s really cool that some white Austrian can take a shit on a region, and still be rewarded for it. Bully for him. It’s like telling Trump that “it’s OK, at least you’re trying.”

Dubravka was literally threatened by nationalists of the Handke sort. She was doxed in the national paper. People thought it was their patriotic duty to threaten her physically. Her work is still discriminated against because she’s not on board with ugly nationalist sentiments. She’s written more about border crossings, immigration, the impact of violence in the Balkans, the power of art, creation and the culture industry, than any living writer.

So, sure, Handke is a very talented Classic Male European Writer, but given the Academy’s statements, the scandal last year, the fact that most people think of them as a joke—a group of old white men selecting the buddies and idols they’d like to hang out with—that the impact of their decision far exceeds what it rationally should, that it would’ve been easy to choose anyone else . . . That’s why people say #EatShitHandke and #GivetheNobeltoDubravka. (No one actually says that, but they could and should. Hell, add #BoycottTheNobel to that.)

Again, white middle-aged literary guys—I’m one of you. I’m all about Art First. Ģą˝´«Ă˝ complicated prose that’s contemplative and very wedded to History and Ideas. I’m all of those things, and I know why you’re pissed at the backlash against Handke, who embodies this very particular viewpoint more than anyone else I can name. (Just look at his pictures and you know what his books are like.) But you’re wrong this time. This isn’t the moment to try and stand for that argument. We live in the worst possible timeline, with everything completely falling apart—to pour fuel on that fire in order to defend your rights to choose whichever White Euro Male you want to receive Alfred Nobel’s money? That’s just plain irresponsible.

Dubravka and Can Xue and Everyone Else has to wait another year. And next fall, we’ll all be disappointed again. It’s an impossible situation. And, man, if an author Open Letter published won? The “we don’t even know who this is” think-pieces would lead me to suicide or heart attack. (THAT IS NOT A JOKE.) Instead of stumping for Dubravka, I think what we should argue for is the complete dissolution of the Swedish Academy. They’ve outlived their usefulness, are a pathetic group of trolls, and can’t even explain their decisions in English.

Seriously, this is your defense of Handke?

for an influential work that with linguistic ingenuity has explored the periphery and the specificity of human experience.

You know what that sounds like? Senility.

Even a random word generator can do better.

*

On the flip side—and there are think pieces to be written about this, about the two sides to the Nobel coin—Olga Tokarczuk is great! I’ve met her in person, and she’s really fun. Besides, she has dreads, and her books are good. Her first translator, Antonia Lloyd-Jones, is one of my favorite people to see at book parties. Jennifer Croft—who did Flights—and is working on The Books of JacobĚý(which would make a good Two Month Review book?) translates from PolishĚýandĚýSpanish, and received a for her memoir, ±á´Çłľ±đ˛őľ±ł¦°ě.ĚýThese are talented, deserving artists—congrats to all of you! (And all of Olga’s other translators. I don’t know who they are, but it should be noted that these books are available in more languages than just Polish and English.)

Without neglecting any of the current players in Olga Tokarczuk’s current English-language moment—Riverhead, Fitzcarraldo—I want to go back in time. To 2002. To when the world first discovered Olga’s writing.

2002 was the year that Tokarczuk’s fifth book,ĚýHouse of Day, House of NightĚýcame out from Granta UK in Antonia Lloyd-Jones’s translation. One year later, it was available stateside from Northwestern University Press as part of their “” series, which, if you don’t already know and you like Euro-lit, get thee to a library and/or used book store.

I have two personal comments about this series, one that could get me in a lot of trouble if powerful people ever read this blog: 1) This series changed my reading life, and 2) It’s the reason Sessalee Hensley at Barnes & Noble doesn’t really carry our books. (“Translations don’t sell. I carried Northwestern for years.” That’s verbatim.)

ąó°ů´ÇłľĚýThe Guardian‘s review ofĚýHouse of Day, House of Night:

Olga Torkarczuk claims her place among the greats of Polish letters with House of Day, House of Night

What other nation can boast two living Nobel laureates – Wislawa Szymborska and Czeslaw Milosz – and, in the late Zbigniew Herbert, a poet at least their equal? Add to these Ryszard Kapuscinski, Slawomir Mrozek and Pawel Huelle and the debt we owe to Polish letters becomes clear. It’s a distinctive list that draws on a powerful collective faith and an irony that often seems the only sane approach to the cruel joke of Polish history.

With House of Day, House of Night, her first full-length work here,ĚýĚýcan rightfully take her place among these writers. It is not so much a novel as a collection of linked short narratives, found stories, hagiography and incidental observations and is a delight to read – wonderfully inventive and by turns comic, tragic and wise.

That’s some strong praise from aĚý±ą±đ°ů˛âĚýwell-respected source!

How did the Northwestern edition do?

From the Northwestern book page (which has the same reviews as Amazon.com):

When I whinge and whinge about how American book culture is stupid . . . yes, I’m being a pompous, insufferable dick. But, c’mon. That’s it? Nothing onĚýPublishers Weekly . . .Ěýwho LOVED her new books.

Is History nothing but a Tale of Good Timing? Or something more sinister? A way of making sure power stays in power? Or a cruel joke? It’s easy to lean into any of these interpretations—especially if you read this book (in 2003!) and pursued Olga for years, but have been denied for one person’s opinion or another’s. (What is it like to be self-confident?)

Let’s flash ahead to Olga’s best book:Ěý, which was translated by Antonia Lloyd-Jones as well and published by the incomparable Twisted Spoon. (So many good books! So little attention from American booksellers/reviewers/readers. Personal recommendation: Ěýby Hermann Ungar.)

As you can see from ,ĚýPrimevalĚýgotĚýway way wayĚýmore play than House of Day, House of Night. Although, again, noĚýPW, but there isĚýBooklist.ĚýNoĚýNew York Times, but aĚýWords Without Borders review. TheĚýReview of Contemporary Fiction reviewed it (probably why I knew of this particular book) and World Lit Today, but, let’s be honest: today’s tastemakers don’t care about RCF or The Modern Novel, although check this blurb from Malvern Books (!!):

This is Primeval: an enclosed snow globe, a world in itself, which it may or may not be possible to ever leave. Outside, wars rise and then break like waves, disgorging soldiers and refugees through the border of Primeval, whose residents are swept up in the flood without always being entirely certain whether the outside world really exists. [. . .] History, in this novel that spans the bulk of the twentieth century, is a thing that happens elsewhere, a dream that, like Goya’s Sleep of Reason, gives birth to monsters.

No other indie bookstores have mentioned this title to me over the past nine years. But I did buy my copy from City Lights way back when.

*

What is history if not for its forgotten players?

Olga’s Nobel is going to be about Riverhead and Fitzcarraldo because, well, memory is short and immediate. And good for them! That tracks, makes sense, and will keep two admirable publishers publishing good books for decades to come. But if she’s such an obvious Nobel Prize candidate, why do her four English translations have these pub dates: 2002, 2010, 2018, 2019? Four books in 17 years? Here’s her bibliography (arranged as if by a madman on the “infallible” Wikipedia):

What are we even doing here? Is there a meaning or message behind the awarding of the Nobel Prize? Is it just random? Is it about trends and popularity and Man Booker Awards and glorification of those who got there at the right moment? Is History written not by the victors, but by the people with the best timing?

*

This is actually supposed to be a post about Susan Harris, editorial director of Words Without Borders, former editor-in-chief of Northwestern University Press, and publisher of threeĚýNobel Prize winners—all of which came after her tenure at NUP ended.

In addition to doing Olga Tokarczuk in 2003, she publishedĚýtwoĚýHerta Mueller books—Land of Green Plums, which she acquired paperback rights to from a commercial house, and Traveling on One Leg, which was hers alone—and a couple Imre Kertesz titles—FatelessĚýshe inherited, but Kaddish for an Unborn Child, she acquired. And, because she was “let go” in March 2002, just months before Kertesz won the Nobel Prize, her editorial contributions were erased from history. She got none of the profile pieces, none of the glory or recognition.

*

Except among us.

Thank you, Susan, and I can’t imagine how weird it must be to “win” three times, and yet . . . But then again, is there an organization focused on international literature that’s more respected than Words Without Borders? The Grandmother of All Websites, WWB is legit AF. They’re theĚýGrand StreetĚýof post-millennium publishing. Wait, you don’t know ·Éłó˛ąłŮĚýGrand Street is?

It’s really exciting to see this award continuing, and interesting to see who will win, since there are dozens of deserving candidates out there.

Dear Colleagues:

Words without Borders is seeking nominations for the 2015 Ottaway Award for the Promotion of International Literature. Named in honor of our first board chair, the Ottaway Award recognizes individuals who have taken extraordinary steps to advance literature in translation. In accordance with the mission of Words without Borders, the awardee will be selected on the basis of his or her efforts to build cultural understanding by advancing popular awareness of international writers and literatures.

The Ottaway Award is presented each fall at the annual Words without Borders Gala in New York City.

As a member of our community, we hope you will take the time to help us find our 2015 honoree by a nomination through our by Friday, March 6, 2015. Only those nominations submitted via our online form will be reviewed. The recipient will be announced in April.

We look forward to receiving your nomination and encourage you to circulate this message within your networks.

Sincerely,
Karen Phillips
Executive Director

Here’s all the information:

The Ottaway Award

Named in honor of the first chair of Words without Borders, the James H. Ottaway, Jr. Award for the Promotion of International Literature recognizes individuals who have taken extraordinary steps to advance literature in translation in the United States. In accordance with the mission of Words without Borders, the awardee will be selected on the basis of his or her efforts to build cultural understanding through the publication and promotion of international literature. In 2013, esteemed book editor Drenka Willen received the inaugural Ottaway Award. The 2014 award will be presented at our annual gala dinner in New York on Tuesday, October 28, 2014.

Nomination Instructions

We welcome your nomination of an editor, publisher, agent, philanthropist, or other translation advocate who has taken extraordinary steps to advance literature in translation in the United States. Please note that the Ottaway Award is not intended to recognize a particular work or works of translation. All nominations will be kept confidential.

Please complete the form below and submit it by Friday, May 2, 2014 via email to Karen Phillips (Karen [at] wordswithoutborders.org).

I. NOMINATOR INFORMATION

1. Name:

2. Affiliation (if applicable):

3. Contact email:

4. Contact phone:

II. NOMINEE INFORMATION

1. Name:

2. Affiliation (if applicable):

3. On the following page, please briefly describe the nominee’s achievements in promoting international literature:

The deadline for nomination submissions is Friday, May 2, 2014. Please send nominations and direct questions about award eligibility to Karen Phillips at karen@wordswithoutborders.org.

Ģą˝´«Ă˝ Words without Borders

Founded in 2003, Words without Borders promotes cultural understanding through the translation, publication, and promotion of the finest contemporary international literature. Our publications and programs open doors for readers of English around the world to the multiplicity of viewpoints, richness of experience, and literary perspective on world events offered by writers in other languages. We seek to connect international writers to the general public, to students and educators, and to print and other media and to serve as a primary online location for a global literary conversation.

Every month we publish eight to twelve new works by international writers at wordswithoutborders.org. We have published works by Nobel Prize laureates J.M.G Le Clézio and Herta Müller, Mahmoud Darwish, Etgar Keret, Per Petterson, Fadhil Al-Azzawi, W.G. Sebald, and Ma Jian, as well as hundreds of new and rising international writers. To date we have published well over 1,700 pieces from 120 countries and 101 languages.

Words without Borders is building an education program that will provide educators with resources and content to more readily incorporate contemporary international literature into their classes. The program, Words without Borders Campus, will include a second Web site, already in development, as well as an ambitious author-classroom program that facilitates direct interactions between authors and students. We hope that in reaching out to students we can create a passion for international literature, a curiosity about other cultures, and inspire true world citizens.

In addition, we’ve partnered with publishing houses to release print anthologies. To date we have released Words without Borders: The World through the Eyes of Writers (Anchor Books); Literature from the “Axis of Evil”: Writing from Iran, Iraq, North Korea, and Other Enemy Nations (The New Press); The Wall in My Head: Words and Images from the Fall of the Iron Curtain (Open Letter); The Ecco Anthology of International Poetry; Tablet and Pen: Literary Landscapes of the Middle East; and our first e-anthology, Words without Borders: The Best of the First Ten Years.

So, instead of investing in lame chocolates, or those gross crunchy heart candies, or a pandora necklace from Kay’s Jewelers, you should give your Valentine’s Day budget over to a more worthy cause . . .

This month we’re showcasing the sparkling innovations in form and literature produced by the members of the Oulipo. The Paris-based literary collective explores how literature might arise from structures, rules, and constraints, working within restrictions—alphabetical, narrative, rhythmic, metric—to set genres and language loose. tour of an apartment building maintains a strict numeric unity in lines and words. travels through a gradually dwindling alphabet. claims a chain of possessives, and offers a rogue reading of Proust. In playing with poetic forms, finds sonnets easy as pi, and extends the sestina. And aphorisms offer less than meets the eye. Guest editor and translator provides a useful key to the considerations at play in both French and English versions. Join us in marveling at the verbal gymnastics of the writers, and at the dazzling ingenuity of the translators.

To regular readers of Three Percent, it’s clear that anything Oulipo would appeal to us—even more so if Daniel Levin Becker is involved. We’ve run a mini-dissertation on the Oulipo to tie into the publication of his book, and we also had him on a podcast to talk about the same thing. And with so many great Oulipians involved, this is guaranteed to be one of WWB’s great issues.

Sticking with DLB for a moment, and to give anyone who’s not already brain-deep in Oulipianism a bit more of a context, here’s an excerpt from the introduction to this issue:

As the prevailing image used by book reviewers to praise literary translations is that of transparency—limpid, pellucid, crystalline—it seems clear, so to speak, how ready we are to think of language as a window onto meaning. Whatever difficulties a translator may have encountered in carrying that meaning over into a new syntactic, lexical, and cultural idiom, we tend to expect his or her fingerprints to be wiped away by the time the text arrives before us, and for the resulting view to be more or less the same as the view enjoyed by the native reader. For better and occasionally for worse, we tend to be correct.

The Oulipo—ouvroir de littérature potentielle, or workshop for potential literature, a Paris-based literary collective dedicated to exploring how literature might arise from structures, rules, and constraints borrowed from linguistics or mathematics or parlor games—presents an uncommonly acute challenge to that expectation. To write an Oulipian text is both to draw a picture and to solve a puzzle, and more often than not these two missions blur together to the point where it becomes impossible to discern where the language ends and the meaning, such as it is, begins.

So, as you might imagine, things get doubly complex when a second language comes into play. Each language is a system unto itself, with its own rules and cheat codes, its own alliances and enmities and tunnels and trapdoors—and since exploiting all of these is the very essence of Oulipian methodology, since language is not only the raw material of an Oulipian experiment but also its demonstrandum, we might ask what, in this context, translational transparency even means. What happens when, to bedevil McLuhan, the window is the view?

The selections in this issue are an attempt to hint, by demonstration, at the range of potential answers to those questions.

Exactly. Now go

Well, to celebrate their first 10 years, WWB has released a special anthology that’s definitely worth buying—not only because it’s loaded with great writing, but also because sales of this volume go to support one of the best nonprofit publishing organizations in the country.

This volume celebrates WWB’s tenth anniversary with fiction, poetry, and essays from our first decade, translated from Dari, Rajasthani, Tigrinya, Urdu, and Yoruba, among others. The collection embraces many moods: antic tales of love triangles, deceptively sweet old ladies turned homicidal, somber accounts of bloody wars and political conflicts, and sly subversion of pompous clergy and other authorities.

There are tales of fantasy from Poland, Canada, and France, and grittier pieces from the many contributors—Iraq’s Najem Wali, Iran’s Kader Abdollah, El Salvador’s Horacio Castellanos Moya, Morocco’s Abdellah Taïa—who have had to flee their birthplaces and write from exile.

The selection of poetry varies from rhapsodic to whimsical: Slovenian lyricism; Polish and Catalan self-portraiture; Argentine and Japanese revelations. And we include two fine essays that provide a road map for full appreciation of both international writing and the translator’s role.

Contributors include Kader Abdolah, Adolfo Albertazzi, Justyna Bargielska, Lúcia Bettencourt, Carmen Boullosa, Horacio Castillo, Ismat Chughtai, Vijay Dan Detha, André Pieyre de Mandiargues, Louis de Paor, Nicholas Dickner, Ernest Farrés, Gabriella Ghermandi, Marek Huberath, Akinwumi Isola, Etik Juwita, Ilya Kaminsky, Rivka Keren, Nomura Kiwao, Fatos Lubonja, Leila Marouane, Mohammad Hussain Mohammadi, Horacio Castellanos Moya, Ambar Past, Tomaž Šalamun, Teresa Solana, Andrés Felipe Solano, Abdellah Taïa, Goli Taraghi, Jyrki Vainonen, Lawrence Venuti, Najem Wali, Ghirmai Yohannes, Yu Hua, Motoya Yukiko, and Zheng Xiaolu.

It’s available in ebook form for $11.95 from and

Here is a picture from the party. And yes, that is Susan Harris with J-Franz.

Executive Director, Words Without Borders
Full time, From Home (May change in future)
Reports to: Board of Directors

Words without Borders (wordswithoutborders.org) promotes cultural understanding through the translation, publication, and promotion of the finest contemporary international literature. Our publications and programs open doors for readers of English around the world to the multiplicity of viewpoints, richness of experience, and literary perspective on world events offered by writers in other languages. We seek to connect international writers to the general public, to students and educators, and to print and other media and to serve as a primary online location for a global literary conversation.

Words without Borders is currently a virtual organization, searching for office space.
The executive director oversees the day-to-day operations, including all fundraising activity, management and oversight of the finances, oversight of programs, including the development of the education program, and supervision of staff and volunteers. The executive director works closely with the board of directors to establish policy, seek out new sources of funding, and ensure sound financial oversight.

Responsibilities include:

Fundraising and Financial Management:
• Responsible for all aspects of Words without Borders fundraising, including grant applications, corporate, foundation and private philanthropy, individual donations, and special events.
• Plan and execute annual gala for 200+ supporters.
• Work closely with the WWB board and staff to cultivate, engage, and steward donors at all levels of giving.
• Ensure prudent fiscal management of WWB, including establishment of salaries, management of expenses, strategic financial planning, and preparation of quarterly financial reports and annual budgets.
• Create Annual Report
• Work with independent auditor in the preparation of annual statements and 990

Supervision of Staff and Volunteers:
• Direct a virtual office of 2 full-time and 1 part-time employees, as well as volunteers, to execute WWB’s mission.
• Encourage professional development and continuing education of the staff.
• Provide regular feedback and advice to the staff, including annual performance reviews.

General:
• Oversee all programming, including Words without Borders, print and eBook anthologies, and education programming.
• Report to the WWB board of directors on programming, fundraising, finances, events, publications, personnel, strategic planning, and other matters.
• Coordinate full-board and committee meetings and ensure that members are provided with regular financial and programatic updates.
• Schedule and attend quarterly meetings of all board committees.
• Work with the WWB board to develop and implement a strategic plan and fundraising plan for the organization.
• Articulate Words without Borders mission to funders, volunteers, the educational community, and the media.
• Guide all external relations and collaborations, including website, publications, annual fundraising appeals, and public relations.

Qualifications:
• 3-5 years in nonprofit management and fundraising, with a background in the literary arts or literary arts education
• Grant-writing experience with a proven track record
• Experience planning and managing events
• Experience using Quickbooks or similar accounting software and knowledge of standard accounting practices
• An understanding of online publishing/media, including interpreting analytics, with experience in building audiences and conducting outreach via social media.
• Knowledge of Salesforce or similar CRM programs, HTML, and Photoshop a plus

Compensation package includes medical, dental, and eye, including dependents, after one month, and retirement contributions of 10% of salary after 2 years.

Please submit a cover letter and resume to jobs@wordswithoutborders.org.

His letter is reprinted in full below, but to cut to the chase, you just have to fill out this form and mail it to him.

Dear Friends,

Earlier this year Words without Borders announced the creation of the James H. Ottaway Award for the Promotion of International Literature. Named in honor of our first chair, The Ottaway recognizes an individual who has helped promote cultural understanding through the promotion of literature in translation in the United States.

As a member of our community I am hoping you will help us find our first honoree by completing and submitting the attached nomination form by May 3, 2013. The recipient will be announced in June and the award will be presented at our October 29, 2013 gala.

You are welcome to forward this nomination form to anyone who might be interested.

I thank you in advance for your assistance. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,

Joshua Mandelbaum
Executive Director

P.S. Although the award is for the promotion of literature in translation in the U.S., you do not have to reside in the United States to make a nomination.

There you have it. Now get out there and nominate!

The Ottaway is named in honor of the organization’s first chair and current Chair Emeritus, James H. Ottaway, Jr., in recognition of his leadership during the organization’s formative years. It will be first presented at WWB’s 10th anniversary dinner in October of this year and thereafter at the organization’s annual benefit dinner to an individual whose work and activism have supported the mission of Words without Borders, of promoting cultural understanding through the publication and promotion of international literature. [. . .]

Nominees for The Ottaway will be solicited from the large community of translators, authors, publishers, agents, editors, and activists, and the final honoree chosen by a select jury. The Ottaway will not honor a translated work or body of work, but instead honor individuals who have succeeded in furthering literature in translation in the United States.

There are so many great individuals who deserve to win this (including one who will be speaking with my class in the near future), and I’m personally just glad that such a thing exists. Thanks, WWB and James H. Ottaway, Jr.!

For more information, please contact Joshua Mandelbaum at joshua [at] wordswithoutborders.org.