Upcoming on Three Percent

Now that school is back in session (speaking of which, if there are any U of R students reading this—or friends of U of R students—we still have a couple internship openings, so e-mail me if you’re interested), we’re really getting back into the swing of things with the site. I know it was a bit quiet over the summer . . .

Anyway, next week I’m going to post an updated Translation Database (will there be more translations in 2009 than in 2008? Most pressing question for the fall, right?) and a preview of some forthcoming September translations. I also want to do a feature on American University of Cairo paperbacks that were recently released (there is no better publisher of modern and contemporary Arabic literature), and we’ll be posting reviews of Bolano’s The Skating Rink and Viel’s Beyond Suspicion sometime soon. We’ll also have a new featured independent store of the month on Tuesday . . .

This fall is also packed with publishing related trips. In early September I’m off to the Reykjavík International Literary Festival where I’ll give a presentation on ebooks and translations. (And which I promise to post here as well.)

I’ll also be moderating the European Book Club discussion of Jerzy Pilch’s The Mighty Angel on September 15th, so if you want to come harass me you’re interested in Polish lit you should definitely sign up. (I’ll stand by this as being one of the funniest, most compelling books we’ve published to date.)

Speaking of publications, The Discoverer — the amazing follow-up to The Seducer and The Conqueror — releases in a couple weeks. I’ll post an excerpt soon. But the quickest way to get this is to subscribe. (Yes, this is some blatant Open Letter advertising. Again, end of the week, end of summer, please forgive me.) And for everyone sick of my half-sheet renewal forms, you can actually now renew online at this same page.

We’re also kicking off the next Reading the World Conversation Series season in October with a visit from Jorge Volpi, who is one of the founding members of the Crack group (“crack” as in “break” with derivative magical realism) and author of Season of Ash.

And Frankfurt—which I’ll be writing for again this year—is just over the horizon . . . As is the Best Translated Book Award . . .

Sure, it’s always a bit sad when Labor Day comes (especially sad if it can’t even mark the end of summer because of the need to get kids back into school before the calendar intended), but really, screw it. Nothing happens in the summer. All the exciting book things take place in September through November . . .