The man shook her hand. The woman sat down opposite, with her handbag between her feet, feet which were half-exposed in low-heeled slingbacks. The man looked over the top of his glasses at her. “Are you feeling okay?” “Yes.” “Would you like any water?” “No.” “Tea, coffee…?” “No.” “Esther Salarrue Arribalzaga.” “Yes.” “Okay […]
Translation
I’d Rather Not Have to Lie
Ship of Dreams (Sueños del Atlántico)
by Ezequiel Naya, translated from the Spanish by Sam Simon
In a boat that drifts through the South Atlantic, close to what we as Argentines call the Malvinas, and that on English maps they figure as the Falklands, I face the important though sad task of searching for and rescuing the dreams of Argentine soldiers (sometimes we also rescue English dreams) that were lost in […]
2 Poems
by Miguel Avero, translated from the Spanish by Jona Colson
Exemplary You glimpse a slight copy of liquid belly. Talk about the wind, breed waves on each page, breeding breezes on their veneers. You examine that other in the water-logged bookshelf. Give a meticulous detail of tears opting down very tense cheeks. But this one you pose in your hands (leaves fall apart like butterflies […]
I
by Roger Lindo, translated from the Spanish by Matthew Byrne
Pero yo ya no soy yo … [But I am not myself anymore …] – Federico García Lorca, Romance sonámbulo Sometimes I dream I’m waist-deep in a sea of dwarf water lettuce other times, I’m traveling interminably on the highway and my countenance is reflected in the green reflections of what I did […]
Until Our Mouths Hurt
by Aida Moradi Ahani, translated from the Persian by Siavash Saadlou
This is a family photo, with a note on the back that says, Autumn of 1986. The two sitting over on the blanket are my mom and dad, and the two chortling girls of kindergarten age chasing each other on the lawn behind them are me and my sister. Once again, they’d taken us […]
The Craft of Knives
by José Pedro Leite, translated from the Portuguese by Richard Simas
In the middle of winter, I discovered an invincible summer inside me. -Albert Camus (from Part III of “The Invention of Summer”) My idea […]
M.
by Sofia Ciriello, translated from the Italian by Scott Belluz
There was a crack in the wooden floor underneath the living room table. In fact, it had always been there. The split was barely noticeable, widening in the middle to form an oval, almost like an almond. Sara had looked at it many times but that day was different: the light touched it differently so […]
So Much More
by Marco Angelini, translated from the Italian by Scott Belluz
Lara is over at my apartment. I made her linguine with homemade pesto and fried zucchini blossoms because I know she likes them. We ate lunch in the kitchen then moved into the living room which is also my bedroom. It’s big so everything fits. I showed her the window frame I’d painted a creamy […]
The Snow Kept Falling by Stanislav Stratiev
(Translated from Russian by Risa Shargel)
Translator’s Note: Under communist rule, the government strongly discouraged celebration of religious holidays. In a pragmatic nod to the difficulty of stopping Christmas celebrations altogether, the government used a carrot-and-stick approach to associate the celebrations with the New Year’s holiday instead. Much as the church had earlier absorbed pagan traditions such as survakane into Christmas, […]
[The nightingale is plucking out its feathers.] by Mirza Sakit
(Translated from Azerbaijani by Murad Jalilov and Kevin Rabas)
The nightingale is plucking out its feathers. So what if it pulls them all out? I bought you a flower. You said it had faded. It fades. So what? Are you done judging me or with your jealousy tests? It’s just two kisses on the cheek. So what? At night, you set two shot glasses […]
