I’m really happy with my results for literature in translation. Eleven languages were represented by 24 books. Here is the breakdown by original language:
- Japanese (5)
- French (4)
- Hungarian (4)
- Icelandic (2)
- Norwegian (2)
- Russian (2)
- German (1)
- Chinese (1)
- Italian (1)
- Swedish (1)
- Spanish (1)
The list below is by author nationality. If a book is set in a different country, it is noted. Also, some of the authors have moved from their original country, and if known, that is also indicated. Twenty-one countries were represented by 75 different books. I didn’t count the US authors at the bottom of the list in the totals, but I did note the settings of those books just for general interest.
Argentina
- The Book of Murder by Guillermo Martinez
Australia
- The House at Riverton by Kate Morton (set in Great Britain)
- Breath by Tim Winton
Canada
- Sitting Practice by Caroline Adderson
- Cat’s Eye by Margaret Atwood
- Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood
- The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood
- Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
- Anne of Avonlea by L.M. Montgomery
- Anne of the Island by L.M. Montgomery
- Kanada by Eva Wiseman (set in WW II Europe)
- The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway (set in former Yugoslavia)
- The Road Past Altamont by Gabrielle Roy (originally in French)
- Life of Pi by Yann Martel
- Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen (now lives in U.S.)
- Jacob Two-Two’s First Spy Case by Mordecai Richler
- Bear by Marian Engel
- The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson
- Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) by Anne-Marie MacDonald
- Atmospheric Disturbances by Rivka Galchen (U.S., but born in Toronto and on GG shortlist)
- A Certain Mr. Takahashi by Ann Ireland
China
- Sky Burial by Xinran (set in Tibet; author now lives in Great Britain)
Czech Republic
- The Castle by Franz Kafka (originally in German)
France
- Snow by Maxence Fermine (set in Japan)
Great Britain
- The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon
- 2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke
- The Sister by Poppy Adams
- On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan
- Daughters of the North by Sarah Hall
- What Was Lost by Catherine O’Flynn
- The Photograph by Penelope Lively
- Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner
- The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (now lives in U.S.)
- Children of Men by P.D. James
- Roald Dahl’s Book of Ghost Stories, edited by Roald Dahl
- The Twits by Roald Dahl
- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J. K. Rowling
- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling (2003, 896 pp.)
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling (2005, 652 pp.)
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
Hungary
- Embers by Sandor Marai
- Kaddish for a Child not Born by Imre Kertesz
- Detective Story by Imre Kertesz (set in South America)
- Esther’s Inheritance by Sandor Marai
Iceland
- Independent People by Halldor Laxness
- The Pets by Bragi Olafsson
India
- The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga
Iran
- Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi (now lives in France)
- Persepolis II by Marjane Satrapi (now lives in France)
Ireland
- The Gathering by Anne Enright
- The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry
- Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer
- Netherland by Joseph O’Neill (set in US and UK)
- Dracula by Bram Stoker (set in London and ‘Transylvania’)
Italy
- Silk by Alessandro Baricco (set in Japan)
Japan
- Strangers by Taichi Yamada
- After Dark by Haruki Murakami
- Silence by Shusaku Endo
- X-Kai- by Asami Tohjoh
- Vampire Hunter D by Hideyuki Kikuchi
Nigeria
- Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
- Purple HIbiscus by Adichie
Norway
- Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson
- Kristin Lavransdatter 2: The Wife by Sigrid Undset
Russia
- Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov (later lived in U.S.; set in U.S.; originally in English)
- Broccoli and Other Tales of Food and Love by Lara Vapnyar (now lives in US)
- Sofia Petrovna by Lydia Chukovskaya
- Taras Bulba by Nikolai Gogol (set in Ukraine)
South Africa
- Life & Times of Michael K by J. M. Coetzee
Sudan
- The Translator by Daoud Hari
Sweden
- The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
Zimbabwe
- Zenzele by J. Nozipo Maraire (now lives in the US)
U.S. authors with books in foreign settings
- The Only Road North by Erik Mirandette (Africa)
- Maus I by Art Spiegelman (set in WW II Europe and the U.S.)
- Maus II by Art Spiegelman (set in WW II Europe and the U.S.)
- Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri (various world locations)
- Einstein’s Dreams by Alan Lightman (Austria)
