Istros Conversations

Novelist and poet, Dušan Šarotar, talks to fellow poet Stephen Watts about migration, translation, and trying to find words which go beyond pictures: all themes in his latest novel, 'Panorama'. Come and join us on Red Lion Square for a conversation about all the joys of collaboration and the subtleties of language.

#DušanŠarota #Slovenia #translation #StephenWatts #poetry

Philosophers Nigel Warburton and Slavoj Žižek join Jela Krečič to discuss her new novel, ‘None Like Her’, a hapless tale of the fruitless search for a perfect partner. The nature of love and marriage, as well as comedy are hot topics of discussion!

The book is published this November by Istros Books in cooperation with Peter Owen Publishers as part of the Peter Owen World Series: Slovenian Season

Author Evelyn Farr talks about about her latest book, 'I Love you Madly' (Peter Owen, August 2016) - which brings together the collected letters of Marie- Antoinette and her Swedish lover, Count Fersen. Written in both French and English editions by the author, this is a book which will change perceptions of the French queen for ever. Listen to the story of how Evelyn discovered and broke the secret code used between the lovers in order to hide their affair from the royal court and the king, and how the contemporary French establishment has reacted to these revelations.

After more than 200 years, the truth revealed at last....

Translators Mevlut Ceylan, Christopher Buxton, Stephen Watts and John Hodgson in conversation with Christina Pribicevich- Zoric discuss their experience of bringing the Balkans westwards through translation. Should translators be slavish to the original or write for their new readers? Can a translator know a language 'too well'?

A panel discussion on whether translators aim to be invisible or consider themselves a second author? which took place at Balkan Day II: A Rich Heritage of Stories at the British Library, 24th June 2016.

The History and Present State of Albanian Literature in Kosovo and Albania. Leading Albanologist Robert Elsie gives an overview of evolution of creative writing in Albania and Kossovo since its beginnings.

A lecture given at the British Library on the occasion of Balkan Day II: A Rich Heritage of Stories, 24th June 2016.

John Hodgson, translator of Ismail Kadare and Fatos Lubonja, talks about his work as a translator and interpreter from Albanian to English. John is one of only two literary translators working from Albanian today. 'The False Apocalypse' by Fatos Lubonja, was published by Istros in 2014 and focuses on the financial and social breakdown of society in post-communist Albania, in 1997.

Writer and translator, Christopher Moncrieff, talks about his work on the up-coming title, 'Diary of a Short-Sighted Adolescent': a lost novel by Mircea Eliade now in English for the very first time.

Translator from Slovene, Rawley Grau, talks to poet Stephen Watts about his experience of working on the novel, Dry Season. The book won the EU Prize for Literature for its author, Gabriela Babnik, and is a fascinating, intricate exploration of a love affair between a European woman and an African man.