15 Brilliant Novels in Translation Published This Century

When we read books representing cultures other than our own, our world grows larger. In celebration of World Book Day on April 23, we're highlighting the growing popularity of novels in translation. In recent years, sales of translated fiction have increased significantly as readers become more attuned to the value of exploring different cultures and perspectives.

Immerse yourself in another culture by way of a really good story. These fifteen translated novels, all published in this century, represent just a tiny sliver of the bounty that exists in international literature. They include tales big and small, tragic and whimsical, inspirational and horrifying.

Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón (Spain), translated from Spanish by Lucia Graves

Barcelona, 1945: A city slowly heals in the aftermath of war as Daniel, an antiquarian book dealer's son mourning the loss of his mother, finds solace in a mysterious book. But when he sets out to find other books by the author, he makes a shocking discovery. Stephen King declared it "one gorgeous read."

2666 by Roberto Bolaño (Chile), translated from Spanish by Natasha Wimmer

One of the top ten books of the twenty-first century according to The New York Times, this was the acclaimed author's last novel before his 2003 death at age fifty. The story revolves around an elusive German author and the epidemic of unsolved female homicides in a fictional city inspired by Ciudad Juárez, Mexico.

The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yoko Ogawa (Japan), translated from Japanese by Stephen Snyder

He's a brilliant math professor with a peculiar problem—ever since a traumatic head injury, he has only eighty minutes of short-term memory. She is an astute young housekeeper hired to care for him. As they meet anew each morning, a strange and beautiful relationship blossoms between them.

Let The Right One In by John Ajvide Lindqvist (Sweden), translated from Swedish by Ebba Segerberg

Already the basis of several successful book-to-screen adaptations, this horror novel takes us back to 1981. The body of a teenager is found in a Swedish suburb, emptied of blood. Twelve-year-old Oskar has some ideas about it, but murder isn't the first thing on his mind. A strange new girl has moved in next door.

Human Acts by Han Kang (Korea), translated from Korean by Deborah Smith

From the Nobel Prize-winning author of The Vegetarian, comes this tale of a young boy killed amid a violent student uprising in South Korea. This tragic episode unfolds in a sequence of interconnected chapters as the victims and the bereaved encounter suppression, denial, and the echoing agony of the massacre.

The Door by Magda Szabó (Hungary), translated from Hungarian by Len Rix

Magda is a writer, married to an academic. Emerence, an illiterate and impassive peasant, is Magda's housekeeper. Emerence takes over Magda's household, becoming indispensable to her. This new translation of the masterwork, first published in 1985, won the 2006 Oxford-Weidenfeld Translation Prize.

Beauty Is a Wound by Eka Kurniawan (Indonesia), translated from Indonesian by Annie Tucker

This award-winning epic, combining history, satire, and romance, begins: "One afternoon on a weekend in May, Dewi Ayu rose from her grave after being dead for twenty-one years." The tale of a beautiful prostitute and her four daughters explores Indonesia's troubled past and the offhand greed of colonialism.

The First Wife: A Tale of Polygamy by Paulina Chiziane (Mozambique), translated from Portuguese by David Brookshaw

After twenty years of marriage, Rami discovers that her husband has been living a double—or rather, a quintuple—life. Tony, a senior police officer in Maputo has apparently been supporting four other families for many years. Rami remains calm and plots to make an honest man out of him.

My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante (Italy), translated from Italian by Ann Goldstein

Named the #1 best book of the century by the New York Times, this novel is the first installment in the sweeping Neapolitan quartet, tracing the friendship between Lila, a fiery powerhouse, and Elena, the bookish narrator. After meeting as ten-year-olds in post-war Italy, the two maintain a complex lifelong bond.

Elena Knows by Claudia Piñeiro (Argentina), Translated from Spanish by Frances Riddle

After Rita is found dead—her death deemed a suicide—the investigation is quickly closed. But her sickly mother, Elena, is determined to find out what really happened. This unique tale, shortlisted for the 2022 Booker Prize, interweaves crime fiction with intimate tales of morality and search for individual freedom.

Bad Habit by Alana S. Portero (Spain), translated from Spanish by Mara Faye Lethem

Raised in an impoverished blue-collar Madrid neighborhood during the '80s and '90s, a young trans woman struggles to find her place. This mesmerizing coming-of-age novel combines the raw realism and vulnerability of Shuggie Bain and Detransition, Baby with the poignant sensibility of Pedro Almodóvar.

The Understory by Saneh Sangsuk (Thailand), translated from Thai by Mui Poopoksakul

The lovable, yarn-spinning monk Luang Paw Tien, now in his nineties, is the only person in his village who remembers power and plenitude of the jungle before agrarian and then capitalist life took over his community. Now he regales the children of his village nightly with tales from his younger years.

Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk, translated from Polish by Antonia Lloyd-Jones

In this Nobel Prize winner, Janina's reputation as an oddball and a crank in her remote Polish village is amplified by her not-so-secret preference for the company of animals over humans. When villagers start turning up dead, Janina inserts herself into the investigation, certain that she knows whodunit.

Reinbou by Pedro Cabiya (Dominican Republic) translated from Spanish by Jessica Powell

In 1976 Santo Domingo, a young boy uncovers the real story behind the murder of his father ten years prior. In the process, events that unfolded during and after the war are revealed, unleashing a series of small revolutions in his community that, in turn, unravel other intrigues from the Civil War of 1965.

Sisters in Arms by Shida Bazyar (Germany), translated from German by Ruth Martin (2024)

Hani, Kasih, and Saya have shared a deep friendship ever since they were kids. After years apart, the three young women meet again for a few days. As it becomes clear that they can't escape the racism that has taken root, their friendship gives them stability. Until one dramatic night shakes everything up.

Expand your horizons and travel the world with one of these globetrotting reads!

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Read more by Ashly Moore Sheldon