Found in Translation: How Language Shapes Our Lives and Transforms the World

by Nataly Kelly, Jost Zetzsche

Translation. It's everywhere we look, but seldom seen--until now. "Found in Translation" reveals the surprising and complex ways that translation shapes the world. Covering everything from holy books to hurricane warnings and poetry to peace treaties, Nataly Kelly and Jost Zetzsche offer language lovers and pop culture fans alike an insider's view of the ways in which translation spreads culture, fuels the global economy, prevents wars, and stops the outbreak of disease. Examples include how translation plays a key role at Google, Facebook, NASA, the United Nations, the Olympics, and more.

Genres: Nonfiction, Language, Linguistics, History, Sociology, Business, Psychology

288 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 2, 2012

About the author

Nataly Kelly is a seasoned business leader, international business expert, and longtime Harvard Business Review contributor on the topic of global business who is dedicated to empowering business leaders to strategically expand internationally.

She is currently Chief Growth Officer at Rebrandly, a global software firm with customers in more than 100 countries. Previously, Kelly served at HubSpot as Vice President of Marketing, Vice President of International Operations and Strategy, and Vice President of Localization, where she helped drive international expansion.

To help business leaders expand internationally and gain a competitive advantage, Kelly is launching Take Your Company Global: The New Rules of International Expansion (Berrett-Koehler Publishers) on September 26, 2023. She is the first author to detail the new realities of international expansion and share a comprehensive guide for businesses that seek to grow globally in a predictable, sustainable, and effective way. Connect with her at borntobeglobal.com.

Reviews

[Allison · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although it is clear that the authors have interviewed a wide and impressively varied group of people to produce this book on the importance of translation, the final product is unfortunately shoddy and thin. Every single anecdote within the book is fascinating, but to each the authors have usually dedicated hardly two pages. In an effort to be comprehensive they have drowned themselves in examples, cheapening all of them through sheer volume and illuminating none. None of the topics are given the time or depth they deserve, and the authors have instead settled on providing a grandiose hack conclusion to each brief story that is usually something along the lines of "translation is necessary for global communication and it effects every industry." This statement, already painfully obvious to anyone with a passing interest or familiarity in language (actually, scratch that, anyone with a brain who thought about it for two seconds) was reiterated more times than I could count within the book until I found myself rolling my eyes at the repetition and unoriginality of the message.

Like I said, this book contains small glimmers of fascinating subjects - the first instances of simultaneous interpretation at the Nuremburg trials, missionaries trying to find translations for "God" in foreign countries, the development of Google Translate, etc., all of which are topics I would have loved to have explored further. (How were the interpreters for Nuremburg chosen? Did they make any crucial mistakes? How implicated were they in the war beforehand? Did people worry abou them being biased? Do any of them have PTSD from the process? Are they sworn to secrecy? Spoiler alert: none of these questions are answered.)

On a whole, it is clear the authors must be fascinating people with a wealth of information and ideas to share, and it is a huge shame that they seem to be so worried about simplifying these topics to make them "interesting to the layperson" that they are now devoid of any interest at all.

Final note - I would not have finished this book if it hadn't been a requirement for a class.

[John Cooper · Rating 3 out of 5]

I heard an interview with authors Kelly and Zetzsche on NPR. They were smart and engaging, so I read their book. Unfortunately, I found it thin: it's primarily a collection of anecdotes and case studies illustrating the importance of translation in the modern world. While many of the stories are mildly interesting—who knew that IKEA's practice of naming high-end items after Swedish places and lowly items (doormats, toilet seats) after Danish places is viewed by many as an obvious way of tweaking the Danes?—if you come to the book already understanding that translation is important and makes an impact, the repeated attempts to persuade you of that will quickly become wearying. I'd recommend this book to people who do not work with words for a living and who have not traveled much in non-English-speaking countries: the issues the book discusses may be new to you.

[Meg - A Bookish Affair · Rating 4 out of 5]

To me, translation is absolutely fascinating. You take one idea in one language and turn it into something that someone else with a different language, a different culture, and perhaps a different life experience can fully understand and digest. In a way, it is sort of a real-life magic trick, which is a very cool way to think about it.

"Found in Translation" is really a book about the importance of translation in a place where we don't all share the same language, culture, or experiences. Translation is how we understand each other. The book is full of real life examples and anecdotes of why translation itself as well as the way one translates is so important. Some of the examples are sort of funny and some even made me actually laugh out loud.

This book thoroughly covers why translation is important but it does not really go further than that, which makes the book a little basic but still very enjoyable. I thought the book was fairly well written but I felt like the author could have done a little more to explain some of the foreign language in the book (for example, it's not easy for an English speaker with little knowledge of the Cyrillic alphabet to look at a Russian word and really "get" what it is saying. All I can say is that I am happy that I know how to at least sound out words written in Russian).

Bottom line: This a good book for anyone who enjoys the art of language.

[Guna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is basically a book of praise telling everyone that translation and interpreting are the two whales (or turtles, or elephants, whichever you prefer) upon which the world rests. And it's true, at least, you're gonna believe it if you read the book. One can only marvel at the tremendous impact translation has on every aspect of our lives - from business and entertainment to saving lives and bringing people together. It is chock full of examples of how, well, to use the title of the book, language shapes our lives and transforms the world (no need to worry about old and dusty examples from 'The 1950s Book of Examples', the situations presented are fresh and amusing).
The book's written in a simple, lively and flowing language, without stuffing it with all kinds of specific terms or philosophical soliloquies, so it would make a great read not only for translators, interpreters or language lovers (who probably already know the importance of translation), but anyone who is ready to see that the world would stop turning if the ability to translate suddenly disappeared for good.

[Bridget · Rating 3 out of 5]

The underlying, constant refrain of this book is, "have you ever noticed how the world runs on translation?" If your answer to that question is, "well, actually, yes," then this book will be of only mild interest to you. This was the case for me since I used to work at a translation company and I have a degree in linguistics and we've lived overseas for a while. Almost nothing this book had to say was new to me, down to the particulars of some of the central anecdotes. And that's ok, because:

If you really have never given the above question much thought, then this book will be a treat. It is a very anecdotal, non-technical, unintimidating look at the world of translation and interpretation, and will probably change the way you look at the next bilingual road sign or instruction manual that you see, and perhaps the world in general.

I recommend it, but only for those who are interested in learning more about the role of translation in the world but don't know much about it.

[Yun Zhen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really readable book that brought a rather interesting topic to light. The anecdotes included are really interesting and varied. And since the entire book is made up of anecdotes, that makes the entire book pretty interesting.

The book covers areas where translation affects our lives and by the end of the book, you realise that it's everywhere. Though the authors do tell you exactly that at the start of the book, it's only at the end do you see the scale at which translation impacts our lives.

One story that stood out for me was how the Icelandic airlines used translation to bring their world to others instead of bring others to their world (read the book to understand) and the pride they take in their own language and culture is... wow.

But since the book was just a lot of anecdotes, it tends to stop at surface-level most of the time only.

[Dan]

heard a discussion with author on Lexicon Valley podcast - she was interesting - hope the book is, too.

[Tori · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this in 2025 so some things are obviously outdated and I also found one little thing ("Şerefe" translated as "To your health" was a bit odd, but hey, it happens). In any case, as a translator myself, I probably was not the direct audience for this book. It was delightful to read anecdotes from other translators and interpreters! (Plus, I love Star Trek). After reading this book, I feel cooler. Hah!

[Viviana · Rating 3 out of 5]

If this is a book for the general public, I am sure that at one point or another it will become boring. If this is for potential professionals in translation, then it is a great book for them to get a very good set of good and bad experiences of future colleagues, as well as many ideas for potential work. I, as a professional of the translation and interpretation industry, found myself identified with many of the stories from my fellow colleagues. Unfortunately, by the end of the book I found myself bored with data I am not vey interested in. I liked it, but I would have expected more from the authors than just trying to glorify a profession that is as old as humanity. Interpreters and translators help the world communicate, it is as simple as that.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

LIke others who've commented here, I looked for this book after hearing an interview with one of the authors (Nataly Kelly) on the podcast "The World in Words" with Patrick Cox. It's an interesting collection of anecdotes and trivia with cultural, historical, or linguistic explanations when needed. I'm a language and literature professor, so I'm sure I'll recount some of these tidbits in my classes when the need arises, and it will: much of what we do is convince students (and sometimes even colleagues and administrators) of the reasons why language studies are important.

[James Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most of the content of this book could be summarised as: "Translation is important". A worthy and necessary lesson, aimed mostly at English-speakers who almost never have to navigate content in other languages. It's not such a necessary lesson if you happen to live in a non-English speaking country, and speak or write in a foreign language and English practically every hour of every day. Other parts of the book contained lessons like: 'Translation is interesting" or "Translation is difficult", "Translation is funny". I would have enjoyed a bit more of these.

[Piotr Kalinowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've got this book as a Christmas present at the office for helping them out with translations. I really liked all the anecdotes, and the examples showing, how important it may be to get a translation right, even though I have personally only worked as a technical translator. Now every time I will again come across a lousy translation I will be hoping some managers read this book. It still happens. It is actually quite frightening that even Apple gets it wrong from time to time.

[William · Rating 3 out of 5]

Satisfying, yes -- but I was hoping for more analysis about translation issues (not academic studies, by any means, but rather more insight). The anecdotes are enlightening and entertaining. But what, for example, is the most difficult language to translate into English, and why? Can we chart the number of characters Roman-based alphabet languages need on average to say the same thing (i.e., is French almost always longer than its English equivalent)? Etc.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating look at how translation and interpretation have a huge impact on the increasingly "small world" we live in. Also lots of great examples from history. I found it very engaging, especially for someone who loves language.

[Thomas Andrikus · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the best book I've read in 2012.

It is of such a quality that I fear if I review it after reading it only once, I will not do this book justice.

Hence, I shall return with a review of the book the second time I read it.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this light-hearted but fascinating book.
It ought to be on the reading list of all secondary school children (and careers advisors) to make more people aware of the benefits and joys of learning a language.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's probably because of my expectations, because while the stories were interesting and entertaining, I just expected... more. Maybe less stories that are just about a page long and more insight into them?
Still, as I said, the stories were interesting enough and well-written, so I enjoyed them.

[Laura Lpz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It showed me, actually more like it proved to me how important translation is. This books is perfect for translation trainees because it will empower you and will reinforced the reason why you chose this path.

[Louise Chambers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heard an interview on PRI's The World in Words. Podcast. With the inimitable Patrick Cox. Requested that my library purchase.

Not really finished. Due back at library. Must finish later.

[Joy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just heard about this book on the Lexicon Valley podcast. So far, it is fascinating.

[Kelli Lynn Dwyer]

I just wanted to say that I'm very happy to have won and received this novel. A soon as I have a chance to read it I will be sure to write a proper review. Thank you!

[Ajla · Rating 4 out of 5]

This reminded me why I love my job.

[Eva · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some neat snippets, but for some reason the book's tone bothered me. Chirpy and all over the place. Anyway, kindle quotes:

As an interpreter for the Nuremberg trials, the international war tribunals organized by the Americans, British, and French, he interpreted for all twenty-four of the captured leaders of Nazi Germany. But what is remarkable about Peter is not just that he enabled this pivotal moment in human history to actually happen. What is nearly incomprehensible is that the men whose voices he embodied—day after day for ten months—were responsible for the death of his mother. And his father. And his grandmother. And his only sister. Peter’s entire family was killed at Auschwitz. He gave their murderers a voice in court, standing mere feet away from them as he did so. How - location 587


And what do these interpreters receive in exchange for their courage? An even greater risk of death than the soldiers themselves. In Iraq, interpreters were ten times more likely to be killed than were U.S. troops.7 - location 662


When it comes to linguistic preparedness, one saving grace of the United States could be its linguistic diversity. After all, one out of five people speaks a language other than English at home. - location 744


In 1992, Fahr was interpreting at the General Assembly as Boutros Boutros-Ghali was being sworn in as the secretary general of the United Nations. While interpreting, he made a mental note of the phrase eminent statesman in a speech designed to congratulate Boutros-Ghali on his new role as secretary general. Unfortunately, with the word statesman swirling around in his head, Fahr ended up saying that Boutros-Ghali was being sworn in as the secretary general of the United States. The General Assembly erupted in laughter. As the president of the General Assembly explained that the interpreter had made a mistake, Fahr had to eat humble pie and interpret those words too. The irony of the situation was not lost on the crowd, who roared with laughter yet again and then broke out into applause. “As a result,” Fahr says with a self-deprecating smirk, “I have the dubious distinction of being the only interpreter I know of to have received a round of applause in the General Assembly - location 867


As soon as Johnson and Obst found themselves alone in the room, the president turned to Obst, and asked in his heavy Texan drawl: “Mr. Interpreter, how shall we answer that?” Johnson knew that Obst had been briefed extensively on the necessary facts and figures. Obst quickly supplied the necessary information to the president. When the German leader returned, Johnson impressed him with a well-informed answer, after which the chancellor complimented him for a military expertise that Johnson was not otherwise known for. Another time when a difficult question came up, this time during a White House meeting, Johnson announced, “Let me consult the interpreter.” To his consternated advisers, the president explained, “They’ve been around.” Johnson sometimes asked advice from veteran interpreters, realizing that they had worked under previous administrations, giving them personal knowledge of foreign leaders and their negotiating styles. - location 881


IKEA depends heavily on catalog sales and invests significantly in this printed medium, which consumes a reported 70 percent of its annual marketing budget. In 2011, the company published nearly two hundred million catalogs in sixty-one editions and twenty-nine different languages. - location 994


Visit the Vatican, and you’ll even find an ATM with the Latin words Inserito scidulam quaeso ut faciundam cognoscas rationem (Please insert your ATM card and enter your PIN) on the touch screen. - location 1123


In 1977, Braniff International Airways put out an advertisement to promote the leather seats they’d installed in their new first-class cabins. However, the campaign’s slogan, “Fly in leather,” was translated for Spanish-speaking markets as Vuela en cuero. In Spanish, this was equivalent to saying, “Fly naked,” - location 1158


the keyword is Sam, because it rhymes with ham. In Spanish we need a name that rhymes with jamón. How about Ramón?” Thus Sam I am became Juan Ramón. With this cornerstone in place, it took Aida all of four hours to translate the rest of the book. - location 1444


The modern Chinese transcription for Jesus, Yesu (), is more clever and more fitting. According to Chinese name-giving customs, the first syllable of the transliteration of Jesus is the family name Ye, which Yesu shares with the Chinese Jehovah, Yehehua (). Su, the second syllable and Chinese given name of Yesu, has a number of meanings, one of which is “revive.” The name is thus a play on Yesu as the resurrected son of God, while at the same time transliterating the sound of Jesus. - location 1544


The Hebrew phrase tohu va vohu () in Genesis 1:2 originally meant formless (tohu) and empty or void (vohu), in reference to the state of things before creation. These terms also appear in Isaiah 34:11 and Jeremiah 4:23. However, the phrase eventually migrated into other languages and took on new meanings. For example, in French today, the term tohu-bohu means chaos or confusion. Tohuwabohu in German has the same meaning, as does tohuvabohu in Estonian and Hungarian. - location 1616


The toughest task for Peggy is adapting the novels both linguistically and culturally for Dutch-speaking readers. “I once left out a sentence about a woman being unable to live without a certain man in her life. I don’t know about other countries, but I felt that Dutch women wouldn’t like such an extreme degree of surrender—it would be a bit much.” - location 1797


how do you translate a word that can mean either blue or green? A surprising number of languages have a word that can mean both. Linguists actually use the word grue to refer to this phenomenon. - location 1946


The term Deaf is capitalized to denote people are typically deaf since birth or a very young age and who identify themselves as culturally deaf in addition to physically deaf. - location 2298


In fact, opera is the plural form of opus, which is Latin for “work.” - location 2354


One of the most embarrassing translation-related moments was when FIFA provided an interpreter for a press conference with the team from Slovenia. There was just one problem—the interpreter spoke Slovak, which is spoken in Slovakia, not Slovenia. - location 2588


One sign showed a list of prohibited items that could not be brought into the stadium. As with stadiums in most countries, the sign depicted things like motorcycle helmets and umbrellas. But as a clear reminder that the event was taking place in South Africa, the sign also showed pictures of Zulu shields and spears. - location 2613

[Elisabeth (Bouquins & Books)]

It is fashionable to complain about translations, but translation is essential to the modern world and is found in places where most people probably don't expect to find it. The authors gathered dozens of stories and examples on the role translation plays in our every day life. It is very interesting. Even though I am myself a translator and know quite a bit about the subject, I learned new things. Perhaps the only drawback of this book is that it is a collage of anecdotes. All the anecdotes are interesting, some made me laugh, but it doesn't add up to more than that. It lacked perhaps a main thesis or a general direction of some sort. But to get a glimpse of what translation is and what the work of a translator is, it is an excellent book.

[Joshua Shockley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh look another book that makes me want to be a translator. It did a great job of showing why translation is essential, how it's more complicated than we think, and how it influenced much of what we do and interact with. Everyone could enjoy this!

[Lonerr · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must-read for ambitious translators/interpreters, language enthusiasts and people who want to know about the adventures of language artists.

[Leah Dunbar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very brief snippets of information, wide ranging anecdotes but none too in-depth. Good for flipping through and for not thinking too hard (which was what I was going for).

[Isabella · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book gives a nice and extensive overview of types of translation and interpreting. It has nice anecdotes, although I wish we could hear more about the story than just a retelling of it. Nonetheless, I like how this book points out how prevalent translation is in the world and that it happens more than we think. It definitely showed me that there are so many options out there for aspiring translators/intepreters.

[Kerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This look into the world of translation is insightful, well-written, and educational. While it probably appeals more to communication professionals, particularly those working with or in other countries and with native speakers of other languages, than to a broad audience, the tone is more suited to the latter. The authors cover various subject area, including machine translation, translation for the arts and literature, translation in foreign diplomacy, sports translation, and medical translation. Any one of these topics could probably have a single volume devoted to it.

One assumption that the authors make is uninformed or not articulated well. They indicate that American students have little enthusiasm for learning different languages, but that doesn't describe the problem with language learning in the US. The problem isn't that students aren't enthusiastic. It's that languages are introduced at a late level, well after the sweet age where language learning is relatively easy as a child. By the time students are introduced to the prospect of learning another language, they're so hormone addled and concerned with how others see them to really pay attention to a subject that the entire system has told them isn't important and whose parents might even find it "useless" or "unAmerican." Then there's the problem of exposure outside of the 45-minute classroom setting. This is vastly different from other countries, where children begin to learn an important second language from a young age and then are increasingly exposed to that language as entire classes are taught in it (and maybe even a great portion of their fellow citizens speak that language). And in the case of them learning English, well, not only is it widely recognized as a "universal" language that parents may encourage them to learn, but it's a large one for popular culture. Placing the fault on American students for not learning languages seems a bit uncharitable when so many other factors are at play.

[Soobie is expired · Rating 3 out of 5]

That's another totally America-centered book.

The reason is probably explained somewhere in the book: Europe is a multi-language continent, while the U.S are thought to be monolingual. I mean, tons of people in Europe study a foreign language and they start thinking about translation. I remember, for instance, all the sentences that my middle-grade English teacher gave us to translate. I still think that those were a fantastic way to learn English. That teacher gave me a great grammar knowledge.

Apart from school work, most of what we watch on TV comes from the U.S. Most of the book we read come from another country and need translation. Angela Ragusa and Ilva Tron translated many books I've read when I was a kid and they were my heroes. And don't even get me started on the Japanese anime I used to watch in the afternoon. As much as the editors tried to mask the Japanese origins translating names and similar tricks, one could always tell they all came from a far away country.

So... Yeah, extremely U.S.-centered.

I wouldn't say I learnt something from this book. There's no theory about translation but a long series of case studies. A lot of translators/interpreters tell their stories about their job and that's it. The part about the different languages in which an internet page is offered... It's so silly. I'm Italian, I know that the original is usually written in English! My GR page is in English, my Kindle too; my cell phone is set in German (a perfect and simple encryption)

Interesting, yeah. But I expected some more meat in the book. In the end it just seems something the author wrote to support the cause of translators/interpreters.

Lots of trivia and nothing else.