Literature in translation – a Christmas idea?
There was a feature on BBC Radio 4’s Broadcasting House this morning about the low popularity of translated works in the UK.
One of the most remarkable things you notice when looking at research on the reading habits of British people is the low popularity of translated works. Less than 3% of books sold in the UK are translations from other languages – and less than 1% of fiction sold is translated. This contrasts sharply to other countries: in Germany, 13% of books are translations. In both Spain and France, translated works represent around a quarter of all books sold, whilst in Slovenia, it’s a whopping 70% (Source).