I normally read books by Swedish authors in Swedish, but this one was less than $1 at the thrift store. It was a nice, hefty hardback edition with large text which felt like a luxury.
I had never heard of this author before, but it sounded good so I gave it a go. I read it in one sitting. I was exhausted afterwards, but it was so gripping I could not put it down. It’s not a heavy read though, so if you are a quick reader you could easily read it over a couple of hours.
The book is set in present-day Stockholm, in places I know very, very well. The translation was excellent, although a bit too UK-centric in places. Part of it dealt with the education system and that is so specific to each country that I would have used more general terms to make this book more accessible to international readers.
Translating novels is a real art, because you have to be not only correct also true to the style of the writer and the world of the book. AI translations of novels are pretty obvious still, but I guess they will get better, putting another profession out of work.
I am not a good enough writer or translator to translate novels. I translate technical documents and legislation because I have deep knowledge of the field. Due to the development of AI, I do way fewer translations than I used to, which I don’t mind because I am first and foremost a teacher with good knowledge of specialist terms.
I read somewhere that the Swedish translation of Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy is much-debated. I have never been able to get to grips with the books, even in the native English. Plus they have so many strident devoted fans. Imagine having to translate them!