“Taiwan Travelogue,” a Mandarin-language novel written by Yang Shuang-zi and translated into English by Lin King, has won the National Book Award for Translated Literature presented by the U.S.-based National Book Foundation, the Ministry of Culture said Nov. 21.
Set in 1938 during Japanese colonial rule (1895-1945), the novel is a bittersweet love story between a Japanese novelist and her Taiwanese interpreter. It was recognized for its artful exploration of language, history and power.
According to the MOC, the novel was a sensation when the Mandarin edition was published in 2020. It won Taiwan’s highest literary honor, the Golden Tripod Award, the following year.
The English translation was made possible with MOC support, and it became the first literary work from Taiwan to win the National Book Award for Translated Literature, the highest award of its kind in the U.S. The Japanese translation also won Japan’s 2024 Best Translation Award, another first for Taiwan.
In her acceptance speech, Yang said that Taiwan has continuously faced the threat of invasion by another powerful nation for more than a century, contributing to the Taiwanese people’s complicated relationship with their national and ethnic identity. Writing about the past is a means of moving toward the future and examining what it means to be Taiwanese, she added.
Yang also thanked the MOC for supporting her project from its inception in 2018 to the publication of the English translation in the U.S. this November.
Born in the U.S. and raised in Taiwan, King said the novel explores the essence of translated literature, adding that the English version aims to convey the spirit of the original story rather than offering a Westernized adaptation.
The MOC said it is planning a series of book tours involving Yang and King to promote the novel in New York, Los Angeles and Houston next year. (SFC-E)
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from Taiwan Today – Top News