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ISBN: 9781607747109
Hardcover, 112 pages (6.9 x 7.8 x 0.6 inches)
Publisher: Ten Speed Press
Retail: $14.99
About the book: Did you know that the Japanese language has a word to express the way sunlight filters through the leaves of trees? Or that there's a Finnish word for the distance a reindeer can travel before needing to rest?
Lost in Translation brings to life more than fifty words that don't have direct English translations with charming illustrations of their tender, poignant, and humorous definitions. Often these words provide insight into the cultures they come from, such as the Brazilian Portuguese word for running your fingers through a lover's hair, the Italian word for being moved to tears by a story, or the Swedish word for a third cup of coffee.
In this clever and beautifully rendered exploration of the subtleties of communication, you'll find new ways to express yourself while getting lost in the artistry of imperfect translation.
About the author: Ella Frances Sanders is a twenty-something writer and illustrator who intentionally lives all over the place, most recently Morocco, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland. She likes to create books with real pages while drawing freelance things for charming people, and she is not afraid of questions or bears. You can find her at ellafrancessanders.com
My thoughts:
Cute little book! Lately we've been focusing a lot on words of other languages as we attempt to learn a second language (in the mix are German, Spanish, and Japanese). This little book is right up our alley.
Here are a few pages/words that we especially enjoyed.
"Hiraeth: Welsh, n. a homesickness for somewhere you cannot return to, the nostalgia and the grief for the lost places of your past, places that never were."
"Komorebi: Japanese, n. the sunlight that filters through the leaves of the trees."
"Drachenfutter: German, n. literally, "dragon-fodder." The gift a husband gives his wife when he's trying to make up for bad behavior."
I really liked the different words that were chosen for the book. Some, like the very first word, PALEGG (I had to cap it all so the computer wouldn't change it!), which is Norwegian, deals with food, followed by a word that means to be moved to tears (the Italian word for being moved to tears by a story). The words are wonderful because if we really think about it, our English equivalents are often choppy or just not right. It's hard to find the right word sometimes. This little book is full of ways to say what can't be said with just one word in English.
In the 'about this book' blurb, it says that we get a glimpse into the cultures of some of the people that speak these languages, and I think this is very true. I think I must be Swedish- as "tretar" makes so much sense for a third cup of coffee, which leads to "fika", drinking coffee and breaking from the daily routine.
Two more words that I really liked were commuovere, which is that Italian word mentioned above, and tsundoku, Japanese for a book that has been purchased but not read and then piled with other books that have the same fate. My daughter went through the book and took some for her commonplace book.
We all like this book and would recommend it to others who enjoy words and/or original illustrations. It's small and easy to read, again and again.
***Disclaimer: I received this book free from the publisher via Blogging for Books for the purpose of this review. All opinions are my own or those of my family. No compensation was given. See Disclosure/Policies.***
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