Miami Celebrates Literature in Translation

by Aída Bardales -- Críticas, 10/15/2007

One of the nation’s largest literary events, the Miami Book Fair International (MBFI) brings together over 250 publishers and booksellers and over 350 authors to celebrate international literary culture. Essentially an international fair due to it’s draw, it will host more than 60 Spanish and Latin American writers this year, including Luis Leante [Mira si yo te querré (“See How Much I Love You”), Alfaguara, 2007], César Vidal [El testamento del pescador (“The Fisherman’s Testament”), Rayo/Planeta, 2007], and Álvaro Vargas Llosa [El regreso del idiota (“Return of the Idiot”), Random House Mondadori, 2007]. Organized by the Florida Center for the Literary Arts and Miami-Dade College, the fair will take place November 4–11 at the Miami Dade College Wolfson Campus.

Following those professional days, the MBFI exhibition halls will be open during the street fair Nov. 9–11. On Saturday, Nov. 10, a special panel will pay tribute to the 40th anniversary of Gabriel García Márquez’s Cien años de soledad (One Hundred Years of Solitude). For an updated list of authors taking part in the Ibero-American Authors Program and the Congress of Authors’ Evening With… program, go to www.miamibookfair.com/.

The new Translation Marketplace

Additionally, on November 8th, the MBFI has joined forces with BookExpo America (BEA) to present the Translation Marketplace, a one-day summit on world literature and translation. Sponsored by Críticas, Publishers Weekly, and Library Journal, the seminar is limited to editors, publishers, literary agents and scouts, and others in the trade, and will address an array of issues, such as world literature, foreign rights, and licensing. 

Some of the panels taking place throughout the day include “The Portuguese Tale,” which will focus on books from Portugal, Brazil, and Africa; “Word Has It: The Agents Buzz,” featuring literary agents who focus on translations, including Sanford Greenburger agency’s Carol Fredericks and, from Spain’s Carmen Balcells Agency, Carmen Pinilla; and “Review This, Please,” with U.S. book review editors revealing some of the challenges and pleasures of reviewing works in translation. Also, the panel “Latin American Literature in Translation” will provide U.S. editors and publishers with insight into contemporary Latin American literature and authors.

For more information or to register, go to www.thetranslationmarket.com.