ENOUGH SAID

you could all just read 'mobylives' for yourselves (and you should) and spare me the shame of my constant stream of recycled content. then again, i'd have to go to lesser content for my frantic placeholder posts, so maybe you should just take them from me.

i started reading there not long after falling for the melville house catalog, which i did specifically for its rich offerings of literature in translation, a sub-section of the book market that is disappointingly under-appreciated in this country. regardless (or perhaps because its staff and leadership balk at our paucity of good new translations), melville house keeps them coming. it's an inspiring dedication.

today at 'moby lives': a post "in support of translation." despite one of its books having won it last year, melville house has withdrawn from all future involvement with the best translated book prize since learning that the prize will now be underwritten by amazon.com.

...we mean to offer a much more genuine support to translation in America than taking part in a ruse leading to its further denigration. What’s more, we mean to make a more genuine statement of support for the independent publishing and bookseller community.

we may need better access to books not written here and in our language, but i'm somehow swelling with pride at being an american. thanks, melville house. and take that, king george.