World Literature in Translation: Languages H-J

Hoping for a family reconciliation, a 90-year-old woman returns to the island prison where she was held by dictator Tito’s government after she made a decision that caused her to abandon her young daughter.

A. B. Yehoshua paints a warm and subtle portrait of a young girl at the cusp of her journey into adulthood.

An ingeniously plotted dark comedy by Noa Yedlin, "a master at tone" (Kirkus, Starred Review) about aging and friendship following a tight-knit circle of seniors as they attempt to hide the death of one of their best friends so he can win the Nobel Prize for Economics.

A mesmerizing novel about three generations of women who have lost each other—and the quest to weave them back into a family.

Rich with fantastical elements, folklore, and exuberant wordplay, Geetanjali Shree's magnificent novel explores timely and timeless topics, including Buddhism, global warming, feminism, Partition, gender binary, transcending borders, and the profound joys of life. Winner of the 2022 International Booker Prize.

This classic novel by an esteemed Hungarian author follows a young girl’s rebellious coming of age as storm clouds gather portending WW II.

Set in contemporary times, Baron Wenckheim's Homecoming tells the story of a Prince Myshkin-like figure, Baron Bela Wenckheim, who decides to return at the end of his life to the provincial Hungarian town of his birth.

Cold as Hell marks the start of a riveting, addictive new series from one of Iceland's bestselling crime writers.

When a deadly snowstorm strikes the Icelandic highlands, four friends seek shelter in a small, abandoned hunting lodge. It is in the middle of nowhere and there's no way of communicating with the outside world.

In a village of four hundred souls, the infinite light of an Icelandic summer makes its inhabitants want to explore, and the eternal night of winter lights up the magic of the stars.

"The English-language debut of Indonesia's greatest young novelist,

Happy Stories, Mostly is a short story collection by queer Indonesian author Norman Erikson Pasaribu. Blending together speculative fiction and absurdism, these stories ask what it means to be almost happy-to nearly find joy, to sort-of be accepted, but to never fully grasp one's desire.

De Giovanni is one of Europe's most renowned and versatile mystery writers. His award-winning and bestselling novels, all of which take place in Naples, engage readers in gripping tales of Europe's most fabled, atmospheric, dangerous, and lustful city.

Camilleri's Inspector Montalbano series has always been greatly praised for its atmospheric, sensual descriptions of Sicily, with its cool beaches and rustic delicacies, it's pure escapism.

In this modern translation and exquisitely crafted portrayal of domestic life, Forbidden Notebook centers the inner life of a dissatisfied housewife, Valeria Cossati, living in postwar Rome.

Told against the backdrop of Naples in the 1960s, a city that itself becomes a vivid character in this lush, atmospheric novel, The House on Via Gemito is a masterpiece of Italian fiction, one that is steeped in Neapolitan lore.

Sandro Veronesi's masterpiece-eminently readable, rich in insight, and filled with interesting twists and revelations-is a portrait of human existence, the vicissitudes and vagaries that propel and ultimately define us all.

The first novel from award-winning author Gianfranco Calligarich to be published in English, Last Summer in the City is a witty and despairing classic of Italian literature.

In this coming-of-age story, Giovanna seeks her true reflection in two kindred cities.

Two teenagers spend the best days of their lives together, but belonging to opposite worlds may eventually tear them apart forever.

Nine mesmerizing stories saturated in the details of Roman life that showcase Jhumpa Lahiri's extraordinary range and virtuosity.

In the fifth book in the sensational, cozy Before the Coffee Gets Cold series translated from Japanese, the mysterious café where customers arrive hoping to travel back in time welcomes four new guests.

The cult Japanese bestseller about a female gourmet cook and serial killer and the journalist intent on cracking her case, inspired by a true story.

Books, cats, first love, fantasy -- The Cat Who Saved Books is a story for those who know books are so much more than words on paper.

A love story, a quest, an ode to books and to the libraries that house them, and a parable for these strange post-pandemic times, The City and Its Uncertain Walls is a singular and towering achievement by one of modern literature's most important writers.

Dreamlike, sometimes shocking, and always strange and wonderful, Earthlings asks what it means to be happy in a stifling world.

This charming and magical novel, inspired by the myth of cats returning favors to those who care for them, reminds us that it's never too late to follow our stars.

A heartwarming, life-affirming novel about a magical photo studio, where people go after they die to view key moments from their life-and relive one precious memory before they pass into the afterlife.

Japanese literary sensation Fuminori Nakamura's latest novel is as a dark look into human psyche--what turns someone into a killer?

Akira Otani's English-language debut moves boldly through time and across gender, stretching the definitions and possibilities of each concept....this lean, mean thriller proves that bonds forged in fire are unbreakable..

The internationally beloved author of Kitchen and Dead-End Memories returns with a beautiful and heartfelt story of a young woman haunted by her childhood and the inescapable bitterness that inevitably comes from knowing the truth.

A beloved bestseller in Japan, The Restaurant of Lost Recipes is a tender and healing novel that celebrates the power of community and delicious food.

Detective Galileo, Keigo Higashino's best loved character from The Devotion of Suspect X, returns in Silent Parade, a complex and challenging mystery.