The Life-Changing Celebrity Book Club

For the past few years, I’ve been trying to read more works in translation and have found the experience of reading books not written for English-speaking audiences eye-opening. This is one of many reasons I’m rooting for the continued success of Tilted Axis, a small publisher bringing its titles to the U.S. this year. Tilted Axis publishes the kinds of works in translation that tend to be ignored by bigger publishing houses or houses unwilling to take risks on works that don’t fit a certain mold. Tilted Axis, on the other hand, publishes more and different Asian works, including queer and feminist reads, and looks beyond white academia when it comes to the translators themselves. They’re working to not only get works previously inaccessible into the hands of English-speaking readers, but also to broaden the horizons of publishing. The publisher’s willingness to take risks has paid off in award-winning and critically acclaimed books. They’re a publisher to take note of and I personally look forward to checking out their catalog. If you need a reason to read more works in translation, here’s this, from Tilted Axis’ publisher Kristen Vida Alfaro:

At a moment when nationalism and isolationism are rising in both Europe and the United States, the window that literature can provide into other cultures feels essential, Alfaro said.

“What we publish, and who we are and the community that we’ve created, it’s exactly what this climate is trying to eradicate,” she said.

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”The beauty of the Imagination Library is that it unites us all—regardless of politics—because every child deserves the chance to dream big and succeed.”

With U.S. literacy on the decline, we could use all the help we can get.