While Just About is - for now! - an English-language platform and most of the books and comics we discuss here on JABC are first published in English, we all know there's far, far more to the world of literature than one language. In this bounty we're shining a spotlight on that world.
Please share one or more amazing novels or comics that were first published in any language other than English. They can be time-tested classics or brilliant contemporaries, and it's fine - preferable, in fact! - if they have been translated into English since their original publication, but that first run must be in any other language. Give us a few words of introduction, too: tell us about the book and what makes it so good, and tell us about their author, their life, and their work. Illustrations and cover art are optional, but encouraged.
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Hans Christian Andersen - Den Lille Pige med Svovlstikkerne(The little match girl)
It was originally published in Danish in 1845.
Growing up in the late 80s and early 90s I didn't have access to a lot of Western television channels and kids cartoons which were popular in other countries. I had a lot of illustrated books though, most of them from the Grimm brothers or Andersen. The little match girl was one of my favourites, but I can't really tell why. Maybe because after my father passed away I didn't have a very good childhood, and the visions the girl was seeing reminded me of the last peaceful Christmas I got to spend with my father.
There are many adaptations, probably one of my favourite is the live storytelling in the Efteling theme park in The Netherlands. The park has some modern rides as well, but the old-style fairy-tale inspired park is the part most worth seeing. The background noise at the beginning of the video is quite loud, but in return the story is clearly audible as well once they get inside.
For this bounty, I wish to highlight an absolute classic in the psychological and philosophical fiction genre. First published in 1866 in Russian, this novel delves into the complexities of human psychology, guilt, and morality. It’s a substantial work, featuring around 600 pages, and while it can be challenging to read, it’s one of those books that I believe every educated person should experience at least once. It is frequently included in college and university programs related to literature, law, and philosophy.
After briefly checking Amazon sales, I found dozens of editions translated into numerous languages, with over 15,000 positive reviews across many versions.
Every Man Dies Alone or Alone in Berlin Original in German: Jeder stirbt für sich allein
A novel by German author Hans Fallada, published around 1947. Based on a true story, Otto and Elise Hampel, who become part of the German Resistance but acting alone, mostly with letters.
One of the first Anti-Nazi books from a german Author after the World War 2.
I read this several times and every time i like it more and more.
One of the best books I know is "Grande Sertão: Veredas" by João Guimarães Rosa. It's a Brazilian book, published in 1956, is a masterpiece of Brazilian literature and is considered one of the most significant works in the Portuguese language.
The novel has left an indelible mark on Brazilian literature and world literature. It is studied in schools and universities across Brazil and has been translated into multiple languages, allowing it to reach a global audience. The novel has influenced countless writers and remains a cornerstone of literary discussions about the nature of storytelling, language, and the human experience.
"Grande Sertão: Veredas" is a complex and epic narrative set in the Brazilian sertão, a vast and arid backlands region. The story is narrated by Riobaldo, an old jagunço (a member of an armed group in the sertão), who recounts his life story to an unnamed listener.
It's a Brazilian book that is situated in an old Brasil and is about the life of lawyer that narrate all its life since his childhood and you be able to see the young promises to merry his childhood crush to your adulthood and see the high and downs in its life and face the dilemas that the characters itself are facing. It does't let things clear and that's the fantastic of it, feel and experience the doubts and feelings the character are probably feeling.
Well, as a Chinese, and also an Sci-fi enthusiast, I would definitely recommend 'The Three Body Problem' Trilogy(《三体》) written by Cixin Liu.
The trilogy narrate a story between human and alien, but they're not simply a fight-back-alien story. They discuss many profound issues, and the designs of plots are beyond your wildest imagination.
Liu, the writer of 'The Three Body Problem', once said that 'A good science fiction should be like a real history', and reading the Three Body trilogy is just like reading a real history which happen in the future.
I've gushed about this author on previous bounties but here is another excuse to gush about him again. Originally published in Japanese it made it's way to the UK and adapted to my native tongue and I fell in love with this book, the character, and the parallel world they are stuck in. It really engrossed me so much so that I took longer breaks during work to finish a chapter - the sign of an amazing book.
Despite the title - there is nothing to do with Big Brother or a dystopian nightmare. It is about two very different POV characters as they enter a parallel world seemingly similar to ours but has two moons. These characters are very different - a tutor and an assassin but you grow close to them as you learn about their background, story, previous history, and anticipate when their paths would cross.
Murakami injects a lot of his own interests and personality into the book too (an underlying theme in this novel). His passion of Italian food, exercise, women, coffee, and of course, music espeically jazz is very prominent in the novel that it also serves as review snippets of how he appreciates each one.
Lastly, I feel this is is the quintessential Murakami book. Mixing the relatable and mundane activity of everyday life with a dash of surreal and otherworldly paranormal intervention that makes it a hard to put down read
"Le Petit Prince" was originally published in French. It is a book with universal appeal, both for children and adults. Although at first glance it may seem like a children's story, the book addresses deep themes such as love, friendship, loneliness, loss, and the meaning of life.
I have 2 novels and 2 comic/manga books for this post.
1) Blue Exorcist - Originally published in Japan by Kazue Kato in 2009. The story follows Rin Okumura, a young man with unusual strength who discovers that he is the son of Satan. After Satan kills his foster father, Rin decides to become an exorcist to avenge him. This series takes its inspiration from different religions, mythology, and folklore. Including Christianity, Shinto, and Aztec.
2) Monkey/Journey To The West - Originally published in 16th century China during the Ming Dynasty by Wu Cheng’en, and later published/translated as an abridged version in the UK by Arthur Waley in 1942. The story follows a mystical monkey called Sun Wukong who searches for immortality, tries to overthrow the heavens, and sets out on a pilgrimage to the West along with other companions to retrieve ancient scriptures.
3) Naruto - Originally published in Japan by Masashi Kishimoto in 1999. One of the most popular manga series in the world. The story follows Naruto Uzumaki who aims to seek recognition from his village by becoming the Hokage, the leader of the village. The story has many themes such as coming-of-age, weak to strong, hard work, and Japanese Mythology.
4) Arsene Lupin, Gentleman-Theif - Originally published in France in 1905 by Maurice Leblanc. Arsene Lupin is a gentleman thief, meaning that he will often steal for the thrill, steal from wealthy individuals, or correct moral wrong. A majority of Lupin's books are short stories that follow his adventures in stealing from the rich or finding treasure. Leblanc seemed to have many inspirations for the creation of Lupin, this includes Rocambole who is another gentleman thief who was created by French novelist Pierre Alexis Ponson du Terrail and is considered to be Arsene Lupin’s literary ancestor. Two more influences are Sherlock Holmes and AJ Raffles, Sherlock even appeared in a few Lupin books sometimes going by the name “Herlock Sholmes (I think this was due to copyright issues). AJ Raffles was a gentleman thief from England who was created by E.W Hornung to be an inversion of Sherlock Holmes. Funnily enough E.W Hornung was the brother-in-law to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of the Sherlock Holmes stories.
The Stranger by Albert Camus - originally published in French.
Camus' work in general is amazing! the stranger is probably the best 'starter' book if you'd like to get into his work.
It is about a man who weeks after his mum's funeral, kills a man in Algiers. It is an absurdist book which explores the coldness of the protagonist to the events in his life and is quite distrubing.
This comic is one of my favorite comics. Why did I choose this comic, because this comic tells the story of a young man whose family was massacred by a demon, and only one of his younger siblings survived, and he became a demon, well .. the continuation of the story is the journey of the main character to take revenge, and prosper the world.
The sense of struggle of the main character is what makes me really like this story, especially since he never complains, and always works hard.
I am a fan of the LitRPG genre of fantasy novels, many of which could also be considered portal fantasy novels. There are a few good Russian authors who have written some of my favourites.
One that initially got me into the genre was Michael Atamanov with his series called Reality Benders.
Michael published his first novel online in 2014 and at this stage it appears he has about 25 books on Kindle that have been translated to English.
The Reality Benders series has a Russian protagonist (Gnat) who is recruited into a secret government project because he is very good at video games.
They are building a gaming cocoon based off blueprints provided by aliens that transfers the occupant into a game world that Earth is soon to merge with.
Gnat uses his boldness and cunning to get the better of aliens who rule this new world and to quickly 'level up' his stats and capture powerful equipment.
It's a very fun story to read and I would recommend the first several.
If on a winter's night a traveller by Italo Calvino is possibly one of my favourite novels of all time, because of how I've never been able to find anything else like it.
Written in the second person, the simplest way to describe it is as a book about books and reading. It's extremely witty, fast-paced and absolutely genius, fully aware of how absurd it gets at times. You the reader and You the character are distinct entities, something discussed numerous times throughout, although that doesn't stop the author from referring to either when its called for.
The main plot of the book is presented as a frame story where You (the character) are attempting to read a novel called "If on a winter's night a traveller" by Italo Calvino, but well, that doesn't exactly go as planned, with the second half of each chapter being the first section of another fictional novel, always different from the last.
The author, Italo Calvino, was an Italian author during the late 1940s through to the 1980s and was, at the time of his death, the most widely translated contemporary Italian author, and one of the most celebrated of all time.
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo series are great Swedish thrillers written by Steig Larsson. The books themselves are brilliant and the Swedish language movies are very well done. The English language version of the Dragon Tattoo movie didn't have the same impact though, despite having David Fincher at the helm.
Nonetheless, the books are Swedish movies are a brilliant read/watch!
This is one of my favourite books ever despite the fact that the sequels are very disappointing, the first is still a fantastic read.
A story about a young boy and his bookseller father who protect books that have been forgotten by the public. When the young boy picks a book to protect, he ends up getting entangled in the history of the book. A great read for book fans and people who like Barcelona
La vida de Lazarillo de Tormes y de sus fortunas y adversidades (English translation): The Life of Lazarillo de Tormes and of His Fortunes and Adversities
The oldest known edition is dated from 1554, the book is anonymous, till today nobody knows who wrote it. It's written in first person with a touch of dark and picaresque humor/, it feels like a long letter.
I read this book when I was a 12 years old kid and today in my 50's i still enjoy alot.
The novel EL CID CAMPEADOR translated like THE CID FORREST WARRIOR
Was a very interesting novel based in the real life Rui Diaz Vivar a National Hero from Spain 🇪🇸 that fight against the MOROS (The not Catholic in this years)
The most awesome of his life was that in his final war against the Islamic (SPOILER ALERT) just a few days to fight he dies but anyway his body was putting in his armor , over his horse and taked to the battle pretending to be alive
Brazilian literature is truly amazing. One of the books I would recommend is “The Posthumous Memoirs of Brás Cubas” by Machado de Assis. The author begins the book with the following sentence: “To the worm that first gnawed at the cold flesh of my corpse I dedicate these posthumous memoirs as a nostalgic remembrance”. From this you can already foresee the intensity that reading has in store for us.
