February 05, 2010

Translators Just Need to be Loved


To: Chad Post, Publisher, Open Letter Books

From: Paul Richardson, Publisher, Russian Life

Dear Mr. Post: This is in response to your blog post about our comparative analysis of the competing translations of Ilf and Petrov's Zolotoy Telyonok which our two companies have released.

Let me begin by saying that we feel your publishing company is doing great work bringing so many important foreign works into English. In just three years you have created a really excellent list, and we can only hope it will continue to grow and flourish, especially with Russian authors.

While some parts of our analysis may have struck the wrong tone, nowhere did we attack you or your edition, and we are surprised that you chose to respond with a tirade rather than with a thoughtful, professional analysis, since that would have been more interesting to readers genuinely interested in translation (versus, say, scandal lampreys who are interested in seeking out controversy for its own sake).

Our goal was to encourage debate about the merits of different translation approaches and results, not to start a brawl or descend to Panikovsky-and-Balaganov-style shoving and “Who do you think you are?” That would certainly not be in keeping with the reputation for quality we have carefully nurtured over the 20 years we have been publishing books, maps and magazines on Russia.

We apologize for any remarks in our comparisons that may have struck you as offensive. That was not our intent. Therefore, we have reviewed these web pages and reworded any comments that might possibly be misread.

We have a great deal of respect for Helen Anderson and Konstantin Gurevich’s work and we feel that both the Open Letter edition and the Russian Life edition are significant improvements over the previous two English translations from 1932 and 1961. Furthermore, we believe that both translations contribute to what is, after all, our shared goal: making the wonderful works of Ilf and Petrov available to an English-speaking audience.

There are a few points from your post that we would like to address.

We reply “well, yes, of course” and “well, no, of course not” to your claims that we are biased and illegal.

We clarify three points: First, "bold typography" refers not to the use of a bold typeface, but to the manner in which we stylized Ilf and Petrov's interstitial signs, telegrams and so forth.

Second, we did not state an intention to make Ostap Bender a household name in the US, but to make known to a US audience a character who is a household name in Russia.

Third, all of our books are widely available, be it directly from us, through Amazon, BN.com, Amazon UK, numerous small online retailers, or through any bricks and mortar bookstore which is supplied by Ingram Books.

Finally, we made a regrettable error in trusting that the Los Angeles Times' passage was a correct reflection of the translated paragraph as it stands in your edition. That has been fixed and I apologize for this and how it misrepresented your company's work.

Let me end by repeating how much we respect Open Letter for doing so much to bring the best of world literature to American readers. We for our part hope to encourage thoughtful comparison of these two editions, because too often the translator’s work remains “invisible” to reviewers of translated works. Such a comparative exercise will hopefully lead to greater appreciation of the art and craft required to render fiction well in translation. More importantly, though, it could lead to a greater appreciation by non-Russian-speakers of the inimitable style and verve that made Ilf and Petrov such beloved writers. I hope we can both agree that this would be the best possible outcome.

With best regards,

Paul Richardson
Publisher 
Russian Life

Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

The Moscow Eccentric

The Moscow Eccentric

Advance reviewers are calling this new translation "a coup" and "a remarkable achievement." This rediscovered gem of a novel by one of Russia's finest writers explores some of the thorniest issues of the early twentieth century.
Fearful Majesty

Fearful Majesty

This acclaimed biography of one of Russia’s most important and tyrannical rulers is not only a rich, readable biography, it is also surprisingly timely, revealing how many of the issues Russia faces today have their roots in Ivan’s reign.
Moscow and Muscovites

Moscow and Muscovites

Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin. 
Dostoyevsky Bilingual

Dostoyevsky Bilingual

Bilingual series of short, lesser known, but highly significant works that show the traditional view of Dostoyevsky as a dour, intense, philosophical writer to be unnecessarily one-sided. 
Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

A book that dares to explore the humanity of priests and pilgrims, saints and sinners, Faith & Humor has been both a runaway bestseller in Russia and the focus of heated controversy – as often happens when a thoughtful writer takes on sacred cows. The stories, aphorisms, anecdotes, dialogues and adventures in this volume comprise an encyclopedia of modern Russian Orthodoxy, and thereby of Russian life.
Turgenev Bilingual

Turgenev Bilingual

A sampling of Ivan Turgenev's masterful short stories, plays, novellas and novels. Bilingual, with English and accented Russian texts running side by side on adjoining pages.
The Latchkey Murders

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...
The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.  
Marooned in Moscow

Marooned in Moscow

This gripping autobiography plays out against the backdrop of Russia's bloody Civil War, and was one of the first Western eyewitness accounts of life in post-revolutionary Russia. Marooned in Moscow provides a fascinating account of one woman's entry into war-torn Russia in early 1920, first-person impressions of many in the top Soviet leadership, and accounts of the author's increasingly dangerous work as a journalist and spy, to say nothing of her work on behalf of prisoners, her two arrests, and her eventual ten-month-long imprisonment, including in the infamous Lubyanka prison. It is a veritable encyclopedia of life in Russia in the early 1920s.
At the Circus (bilingual)

At the Circus (bilingual)

This wonderful novella by Alexander Kuprin tells the story of the wrestler Arbuzov and his battle against a renowned American wrestler. Rich in detail and characterization, At the Circus brims with excitement and life. You can smell the sawdust in the big top, see the vivid and colorful characters, sense the tension build as Arbuzov readies to face off against the American.
Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955