Vietnamese literature constantly "goes abroad"

The two titles above were translated by Nha Thuyen and Kaitlin Rees. These are the same translators who previously translated "I see yellow flowers in the green grass". These two works will be introduced at Tre Publishing House's booth at the 75th Frankfurt International Book Fair (Germany).

Many works are copyrighted

The work "I see yellow flowers in the green grass" was published in 2018 in Vietnam and by 2020, Hannacroix Creek Books had purchased the copyright to publish and release in the US. The book is currently also available on Amazon.

Writer Nguyen Nhat Anh has had many works copyrighted and published abroad (Photo provided by Tre Publishing House)

Writer Nguyen Nhat Anh has had many works copyrighted and published in many languages ​​such as: "Mat Biec" (Japanese version 2004), "Cho toi xin mot ve di tuoi tho" (Thai 2011, Korean 2013, English 2014, Japanese 2020), "Co gai den tu hom qua" (selected to be included in the Vietnamese language teaching program of MV Lomonosov Moscow University 2012), "Toi thay hoa vang tren co xanh" (Japanese 2017, English 2018), "Di qua hoa daisies" (Japanese 2020), "Toi la Beto" (Korean 2021).

Some works of Nguyen Nhat Anh are translated into English.

Previously, some Vietnamese literary works were also translated into foreign languages ​​such as "Just closed eyes and opened the door" by writer Nguyen Ngoc Thuan (copyright sold to Korea and Hungary) with the English translation titled "Open the window, eyes closed". The work "Endless field" by writer Nguyen Ngoc Tu was translated into Korean by translator Ha Jae Hong (a graduate student of Vietnamese literature) and published by Asia Publishers in Korea.

The most prominent is the "Illustrated History of Vietnam" series (launched in 1997) which launched a color, English version in 2021. The published titles include: "Born of Dragons and Fairies", "The Trung Sisters", "Ngo Quyen defeats the Southern Han Army", "Emperor Le Dai Hanh", "The Dawn of Thang Long", "Ly Thuong Kiet", "The Second Victory against the Mongols", "The Lam Son uprising"... The English color version was translated by the British-Vietnamese couple Patrick Barry and Mai Barry. The translation is in a storytelling style, trying to convey information accurately while being consistent with the way of thinking and speaking of native British people.

Empathy in readers

Writer Nguyen Nhat Anh said: "All my books translated into foreign languages ​​have been contacted by foreign publishers and translators themselves. But with "I see yellow flowers on green grass", Tre Publishing House took the initiative in everything. This is a very encouraging signal and a very commendable effort."

According to Mr. Nguyen Thanh Nam - Deputy Director, Editor-in-Chief of Tre Publishing House - this year, for the first time, Tre Publishing House will have its own booth at the 75th Frankfurt International Book Fair. The two English titles of writer Nguyen Nhat Anh published this time will contribute to enriching the list of books introduced to international friends. Accordingly, the Publishing House will introduce to the world publishing community its outstanding books on topics such as history, culture, literature, etc.; especially a series of works translated into English or copyrighted in many countries around the world by famous Vietnamese writers such as Nguyen Nhat Anh, Bao Ninh, Nguyen Ngoc Tu, Nguyen Ngoc Thuan, Duong Thuy, etc.

According to a representative of Tre Publishing House - which has translated many Vietnamese literary works into foreign languages ​​- the unit is making great efforts to proactively translate Vietnamese works into English to introduce them to the world, to foreign readers as well as Vietnamese people abroad. When choosing works to translate, books in the literary genre are always the top choice, because they easily evoke empathy in readers from any culture.

Insiders say that translating works is not simple, translating books is more difficult and arduous than writing books because English and Vietnamese grammar are not always consistent in details such as punctuation, capitalization, and presentation. Translator Phan Thanh Hao said that it is impossible to translate without a native speaker editing it. "Ma Van Khang and Nguyen Khai's books were included in the book exhibition at the Massachusetts School library or used as study materials for American students. If I translated without American writer Wayne Karlin editing them, I would not be confident," she said.

There are also books that use technology to translate, but the work will not create much effect because it lacks emotion. People in the industry affirm that to translate a poem or a short story into English, "many people can translate", but to make the work read and understand by British or American readers, it is impossible without a native speaker with expertise to help edit.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/van-nghe/van-chuong-viet-nam-khong-ngung-xuat-ngoai-20230919212520546.htm