A Guide to Spanish Literature in Translation - by Lawrence J Olszewski (Paperback)

About the Book

"There's more to Spanish literature than Don Quixote. In addition to Cervantes's immortal classic, Spain produced the earliest evidence of works in a Romance dialect, gave birth to the picaresque genre, and introduced the Don Juan figure to the world. This guide analyzes the merits and shortcomings of nearly 300 English translations of 100 major works of Spanish literature in poetry, prose, and theater. Each entry first summarizes the importance of the author and the work and then discusses the elements of the translations including source text, formats, supplementary material, translators' methodology, and a commentary that evaluates the fidelity and readability of the translations and the utility of the supplementary material."-- Provided by publisher.

Book Synopsis

There's more to Spanish literature than Don Quixote. In addition to Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra's immortal classic, Spain produced the earliest evidence of works in a Romance dialect, debuted the picaresque genre, and introduced the Don Juan figure to the world.

This guide analyzes the merits and shortcomings of nearly 300 English translations of 100 major works of Spanish literature in poetry, prose, and theater. Each entry summarizes the importance of the author and the work; discusses elements of the translations such as the source text, formats, supplementary material, and translators' methodology; and provides commentary that evaluates the fidelity and readability of the translations and the utility of the supplementary material.

About the Author

Lawrence J. Olszewski (PhD, Spanish literature, The Ohio State University) is a career librarian (most recently as director of the OCLC Library) and former library school faculty member at Kent State University. He is also a translator and contributor to professional literature, especially reviews of Spanish and Latin American literature in translation for over forty years.