In our afternoon reading: an interview with Daphne Palasi Andreades, revisiting a classic novel by Albert Camus, and more.
Translating “The Plague” During a Pandemic: An Interview With Laura Marris
Literary translation isn’t solely a desk job. In December 2019, a few months after agreeing to translate Albert Camus’s The Plague, Laura Marris traveled to Algeria, the author’s native country and the setting for his powerful portrait of a city enduring a deadly epidemic. Accompanied by Alice Kaplan, the author of the 2016 book Looking for The Stranger: Albert Camus and the Life of a Literary Classic, Marris walked the same streets as Dr. Bernard Rieux, the stalwart hero of The Plague. “That really helped the book,” she told me, “just in terms of seeing the landscape and getting the right names for trees, things like that. I think it’s always helpful as a translator to see the place where a book is set.”
Afternoon Bites: Darcie Little Badger’s Fiction, John Dennis Revisited, Translating Albert Camus, and More
In our afternoon reading: thoughts on Darcie Little Badger’s novel, an interview with Donika Kelly, and more.
We’ll be off tomorrow, with normal posting resuming on Friday.
Afternoon Bites: Kyle Lucia Wu on Books, Joshua Henkin Interviewed, Diamanda Galás Revisited, and More
In our afternoon reading: an interview with Kyle Lucia Wu, revisiting Albert Camus, and more.
Afternoon Bites: Penelope Fitzgerald, Writers on Re-Reading, Jenny Slate Interviewed, Stevie Wonder at MSG, and More
Alexander Chee on Penelope Fitzgerald, writers on revisiting their own work, notes on Stevie Wonder at MSG, and more.
Afternoon Bites: Hilton Als Interviewed, Kathleen Hanna’s Zine, Jerry Stahl, Malkmus Ice Cream, and More
This afternoon: Interviews with Hilton Als and Jerry Stahl, Stephen Malkmus gets an ice cream flavor, a look at a Kathleen Hanna-penned zine, and more.
Morning Bites: Albert Camus at 100, Talking Vollmann, Bechdel Ratings, Stanley Crouch Interviewed, and More
Celebrating the 100th anniversary of Albert Camus’s birth, Bechdel Test-based film ratings, a look at the works of William T. Vollmann, writing advice from Roxane Gay, and more.
Afternoon Bites: Kim Gordon on Body/Head, John O’Hara, Camus on Algeria, New Jesu, and More
Kim Gordon talks with Jessica Hopper, Jeff Jackson discusses his new novel, Lorin Stein on John O’Hara, new music from Jesu, and more.