August is Women in Translation Month!

August 1, 2016 Jyotsna Sreenivasan

August has been designated as a month to focus on translated literature by women. In honor of Women in Translation Month, I’ve written a guest post over at For Books’ Sake, a web site devoted to writing by women. Please check out my post, “Historical Fiction in Translation”!

Historical Fiction by Women, About Women

By Jyotsna Sreenivasan

Historical fiction is, arguably, among the oldest kind of literature. The ancient epics (such as the The Odyssey and The Ramayana) are stories of male heroes and kings of long past.  Women were relegated to supporting roles: Penelope waiting patiently for Odysseus to return;  the devoted wife Sita following King Rama into the forest.

My new site, HerStoryNovels.com, focuses on historical fiction by women, about women. Organizations like VIDA: Women in Literary Arts (http://www.vidaweb.org/) have been pointing out that women authors are often not taken as seriously as men authors; not reviewed in prestigious publications as often; not awarded as many prizes. Women authors writing about women characters face even steeper odds. I hope my site can help shine the light on women historical fiction authors writing about women characters.

I’m focusing on classic and “literary” historical fiction, and steering away from romances and mysteries, partly because these are the kinds of books I enjoy, and partly as a way to keep my site manageable. I am aiming for comprehensive lists of books (see the sidebar). Every week or so, I review a book that I have read and enjoyed, whether or not it is a recent book. I’m especially interested in featuring “neglected classics” – women authors who, for whatever reason, are unjustly forgotten.

If you have suggestions for books that fit my criteria and that are missing from my list, please send me an e-mail to: jyotsna1sree@gmail.com. I’m looking forward to discovering more neglected classics!