This is an archived issue of Belletrista. If you are looking for the current issue, you can find it here
Belletrista - A site promoting translated women authored literature from around the world
Photo of Herta Muller photo of beribboned books imagedescription

In Praise of Herta Müller: Winner of the 2009 Nobel Prize for Literature

Holiday shopping? Let us help you with the readers on your list!

Carolyn Kelly Muses about the Booker, the Frankfurt Book Fair, and the German Book Prize.

Welcome to the second issue of Belletrista! After the heady response to our launch issue, we're thrilled to be back to celebrate more astonishingly diverse works from talented women the world over. In this issue, you'll find alluring reviews of books from Mexico, Iceland, Sri Lanka, Turkey, Russia, and more. Don't miss the informative feature on the Ugandan women writers' association, Femrite, and the enlightening companion article profiling meritorious Ugandan authors. We've also, in our unique way, endeavored to shed some light on the Booker, Nobel and Giller Prizes. Finally, with the holidays in mind, we offer a host of gift suggestions to help you find the best picks for yourself, and the book-loving folk in your life. Happy (armchair) travels!

Reviews
Below are a tantalizingly small selection of this month's reviews....
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SOME DREAM FOR FOOLS
Faiza Guene
Translated from the French by Jenna Johnson

This mostly-optimistic young lady is not your typical youth. She is a streetwise tomboy who has learned to take care of herself...
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Reviewed by Akeela Gaibie-Dawood
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WOMAN ON THE OTHER SHORE
Mitsuyo Kakuto
Translated from the Japanese by Wayne P. Lammers

Recently translated into English, this acclaimed Japanese novel focuses on two 35-year-old women who meet and form an unlikely friendship. They are the classic polar opposites: the unmarried career woman and the homemaker ...
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Reviewed by Kathleen Ambrogi
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MY SOUL TO TAKE
Yrsa Sigurdardóttir
Translated from the Icelandic by Bernard Scudder and Anna Yates

In the starkly beautiful countryside of Iceland's west coast, a woman's body is found, badly beaten and with common sewing pins stuck in the bottom of her feet...
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Reviewed by Kate Morgan
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THE BRIDGE OF THE GOLDEN HORN
Emine Sevgi Ozdamar
Translated from the German by Martin Chalmers and John Berger

The Bridge of the Golden Horn is the story of Turkey and ultimately the story of every struggle, oppression and revolution.
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Reviewed by Andrew Stancek
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THE LIEUTENANT
Kate Grenville

The Lieutenant is an historical novel set mainly in the early years of the first British colony which was established in 1788 at Sydney Cove, Australia.
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Reviewed by Meg Merrylees


FEMRITE and Ugandan Women Writers
Map of Uganda
A peek into an dynamic organization created to nurture women writers and a deeper look at five of its splendid writers.
Women Writers Dominate the Giller Prize
Photo of Kim Echlin, Annabel Lyon and Alice Munro
An unprecedented ten of the twelve long-listed books were written by women writers. Three remain on the shortlist. Joyce Nickels takes us on a whirlwind tour of the authors and their books...
New Biographies of Women Authors
Photo of actor representing the Alcott family
2009 has been a great year for biographies (and at least one documentary). Check out our list.
New and Notable Books
Photo of a pile of books
Our latest collection of intriguing titles for November and December.