The Mookse and the Gripes discussion

Tilted Axis was founded by Man Booker International winning translator Deborah Smith in 2015.

Tilted Axis is a not-for-profit press on a mission to shake up contemporary international literature.

Tilted Axis publishes the books that might not otherwise make it into English, for the very reasons that make them exciting to us – artistic originality, radical vision, the sense that here is something new.

Tilting the axis of world literature from the centre to the margins allows us to challenge that very division. These margins are spaces of compelling innovation, where multiple traditions spark new forms and translation plays a crucial role.

As part of carving out a new direction in the publishing industry, Tilted Axis is also dedicated to improving access. We’re proud to pay our translators the proper rate, and to operate without unpaid interns.

There is a sale on their subscriptions if taken out before 11 January - code EARTHPIG2019

https://www.tiltedaxispress.com/store...

Upcoming Tilted Axis books recently added to GR (some of which don't have full details like ISBN and cover yet - do add if you hear about them and are a GR librarian)

Tokyo Ueno Station, Yu Miri tr Morgan Giles (February) - Japan

Sergius Seeks Bacchus, Norman Erikson Pasaribu tr Tiffany Tsao (March) - Indonesia - poetry collection

The Yogini, Sangeeta Bandyopadhyay tr Arunava Sinha (July) India, Bengali

The Language of Bees, Hamid Ismailov tr Shelley Fairweather-Vega (September) -

That Spot Upon Your Face, Sema Kaygusuz tr Nicholas Glastonbury (November) - Turkey

In February, they are also publishing a series of 4 chapbooks of feminist poetry not included in the main subscription list:
https://www.tiltedaxispress.com/store...

Desires Become Demons: Four Tamil Poets ed. & tr. Meena Kandaswamy

Moon Fevers: Poems by Nhã Thuyên

Night: Poems by Sulochana Manandhar Dhital (Nepal)

Against Healing: Nine Korean Poets ed & tr Emily Jungmin Yoon


They were awarded PEN translation grants in 2018 for some other upcoming titles:
https://www.englishpen.org/press/pen-... (July)
• Where the Wild Ladies Are by Aoko Matsuda, translated from Japanese by Polly Barton. Tilted Axis Press, 2019. Country of origin: Japan
https://www.englishpen.org/translatio... (December)
* Strange Beasts of China by Yan Ge, translated from Chinese by Jeremy Tiang. Tilted Axis, May 2020. Country of origin: China
* Dreams by Rajathi Salma, translated from Tamil by Meena Kandasamy. Tilted Axis Press, October 2020. Country of origin: India

Do they publish mostly poetry?

Historically has been entirely novels but they are publishing this year some poetry outside of their subscription.

I’ll bookmark them and get on an email list. Thank you,

Paul wrote: "There is a sale on their subscriptions if taken out before 11 January - code EARTHPIG2019

https://www.tiltedaxispress.com/store..."

Slightly in two minds about the fact that I renewed the day before getting the email about this offer! I could have got a great bargain, but on the other hand, the extra money goes towards a very adventurous publisher, so I don't mind too much.

I see they offer both print and ebooks. Does anyone know if they offer a P & E bundle with their subscription?

I think it's one or d'other.

The subscription seems to be for print books. Some presses give you free ebook downloads with a print subscription. Others charge a little extra. I will send them an email to ask.

I may have griped somewhere or other about the crappy customer service at Tilted Axis but I have recently learned that they have hired someone new, and I have not only finally gotten a reply to my many queries but I was given free ebook downloads for all their books. So I take back what I have said (I just can't remember where I said it). Their customer service is much improved! Thank you Tilted Axis!

Great stuff!

Well.....

Having said that they were tweeting yesterday about the signed copies of their latest on sale at Foyles. So two of us tweeted back and asked a) where are our copies and b) signed we assume?

They did to be fair reply quickly but answers were a) ah yes good point we ought to send those out and b) no those are for bookshops.

I still think they don't really support their subscribers.

Yeah, that is definitely not good customer service. It is really too bad. There are a lot of good little presses out there. I don't see Tilted Axis lasting too long with that kind of attitude.

That is the kind of thing that a more customer-service / sales minded staff member might advise against in future. That mass signing would have been planned before she started there. The flurry of responses and free ebooks sounds like a good start in sorting it out.

Having finally got my copy of Tokyo Ueno Station tried to open in to read only to find every second page is joined to the previous page at the top - i.e. its been bound before being properly cut (or not cut after it was bound - not sure how these things happen)

So had to tear each page apart at the top - with some obvious adverse consequences so I now have a book with ripped pages.

How very retro! Needs a paper-knife. (Though for the actual pre-20th century style the pages would have to be joined at the side edge, not the top)

I probably should have used a paper knife (and to be fair there were some perforations), but what I did do didn't end well.

You need a paper knife!

I need books that come in a fit state - I can almost guarantee the signed copies in Foyles for non subscribers are properly formatted.

Another subscriber on Twitter received a copy with the words printed at an angle to the vertical - which to be fair did support the Titled Axis brand.

My (unsigned) copy arrived last week and is in perfect order. I think you should ask for another copy, Paul. It's really annoying to get a book that is so imperfect.

I did mention it to them and they did offer another to be fair: their customer services seems a lot more responsive now especially via Twitter - I declined as I don't keep books anyway so two seems too many (although this one I think will have to go in bin once read as I can't really give it to a library or charity shop).

Wow, you don't keep your books! Do you keep any of them or is it a firm policy to give them away once you've read the books? I keep most of them which mean there is a hell of a lot of books around. Pretty much every flat surface has books on it. THEY GIVE ME JOY!!

I have a one in one out policy on my shelves. Which means they are pretty much full now of my personal pantheon of “read every book” authors (Krasznahorkai, Ishiguro, Ferrante, Sebald etc). Even signed personal copies of prize winning novels seldom make the cut!

From experience it can be dangerous to loan Paul books as he often sells them.

If I lived near Paul I'd stalk him to see when he was taking books to charity shops!

WndyJW wrote: "If I lived near Paul I'd stalk him to see when he was taking books to charity shops!"

Me too, Wendy! I'd watch until he came out and dash in to get some of those signed books.

Maybe check them for my name first and let me have my copies back. I am pretty sure Paul sells most of them.

Will do. But do you write your name inside the books?

Tilted Axis 2020 subscription now available including a list of books:

https://www.tiltedaxispress.com/store...

And - special code: enter 'WIT2019' at checkout for a 20% discount

Delighted to see two bulky books in the mail today, Of Strangers and Bees by Hamid Ismailov and Every Fire You Tend by Sema Kaygusuz, the final TA titles of the year. Now if only this autumn wasn’t so busy I’d get around to reading these soon...

Yay - mine arrived yesterday & now I have a pile of new books to read again!

A largely positive review for Of Strangers & Bees, from Marcel Theroux in the Guardian a few days ago: https://www.theguardian.com/books/201...

I think I remember reading on another thread that Tilted Axis doesn’t submit for the International Booker. Is that the case? They have a book shortlisted for the Warwick Women in Translation Prize, so they must submit to some prizes.

David, I ordered the Hamid Ismailov trilogy based on your recommendation. Now if you could kindly supply me with the time to read them all I would be most grateful.

I just read the Theroux review and am now really eager to start these!

Would that I could, Wendy!

I remember us speculating that might be the case - Deborah Smith seemed to have some issues with the award as I recall - but we I think weren’t sure.

Incidentally, if anyone is looking for a short read after the Olga Tokarczuk, Tomb of Sand is a meagre 725 pages.

25% off sale - AUGUST22

Chance to buy the International Booker winner for those who haven't read it

(and speculation here they didn't enter the prize turned out to be wrong!)

I'm trying to work out how to fit Tilted Axis's edition of Yu Miri's The End of August into my schedule, hoping it's as good as it sounds. Seems this edition won't be available in the US, there it's being published by Riverhead Books. I can't find the Tilted Axis edition on GR only the Riverhead one, so if any librarians fancy adding it that would be great. I love the cover design so a shame not to be able to link to it. I assume it's not likely to be a favourite of yours Paul simply because it's so long, although the element of Korean history might tempt you?

I noticed that too. The Tilted Axis edition for A Book, Untitled also needs to be added.

It's so frustrating when you can't find things on here, the IYAGI series I mentioned in another thread is also missing, although the titles are all listed on Amazon.

On the IYAGI series, the last books in the Yeoyu series were I think all added by me. Generally I think I have to add more than 10% or so of the books I read.

I picked up the Tilted Axis Yu Miri / Morgan Giles book at a bookshop this week where I was attending the launch of Isabel Waidner’s new novel.

Or rather the Yu Muri as mine has it. The first batch had a printing error and were recalled but mine was one of the handful that survived the purge. When it wins the International Booker it will be worth a fortune as a collectors’ item, as the bookseller (who also runs Peninsula Press) told me.

I tend to hide from talk of books and fortunes, as someone who donated a proof of the first Harry Potter to a local charity shop before it was actually published! I had no sense that it would be so successful, the style didn't appeal to me at all, it was just one in a pile of proofs passed on by a bookseller friend.

That's ... unfortunate. It's probably also in someone's attic who doesn't realise it's worth a fortune

Alwynne wrote: "I can't find the Tilted Axis edition on GR only the Riverhead one, so if any librarians fancy adding it that would be great. I love the cover design so a shame not to be able to link to it."

So I've tried but herein lies the issue with Goodreads - Amazon bots plus well-meaning but blundering librarians (which includes me) = chaos.

I was wondering where the original was - checking the logs, turns out the person who added the Riverhead edition overwrote the Japanese original rather than adding a new addition. (Added - although a version of original has survived so I may have maligned them)

And the Tilted Axis version does exist, added by the Goodreads/Amazon bot. Except without any details of the author etc - literally just the cover page and the ISBN - which then wonderfully prevents you from adding a new book with the same ISBN. I'm told - although not happened to me yet - that the Amazon bots also have a habit of overwriting details of books which have been added.

I think I've added it now https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

(although usually best to check some time later as the system doesn't properly merge books immediately)

Paul wrote: "I think I've added it now https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

(although usually best to check some time later as the system doesn't properly merge books immediately)"

Thanks Paul, appreciated!

So that took me about 20 minutes. Then I look at the 8 books in the Iyagi series ....

Impressively Philip Gowman at London Korean Links has managed to add them all already to his database of Korean literature which is the most definitive list of books in translation. I hoping to meet up with him Monday, as we've never met before.

https://londonkoreanlinks.net/imprint...

See here https://londonkoreanlinks.net/books/l... for his list of upcoming books which he updated regularly - and if he's missed something he's delighted to get a message to suggest adding it

Far better than Goodreads

Paul wrote: "So that took me about 20 minutes. Then I look at the 8 books in the Iyagi series ....

Impressively Philip Gowman at London Korean Links has managed to add them all already to his database of Korea..."

It is an excellent resource, I think I got my list from there via their newsletter. But I'm signed up to so many things I start to lose track.