Fair: The Life-Art of Translation is out today! + Spring tour dates
My new book Fair: The Life-Art of Translation is out today!
You can get it in all good independent bookshops and directly from Prototype in two colour-ways:
Sea-blue and pier black: Fair: The Life-Art of Translation by Jen Calleja - Prototype
Fairground primary colours (only from indie bookshops and Prototype): Fair: The Life-Art of Translation – indie bookshop special edition by Jen Calleja - Prototype
Anthony Cummins reviewed it for last weekend’s Observer New Review and he said this about it: “Its invigorating candour and vivid quiddity feels audacious, polemical, essential.” There are some other nice things people have said about Fair at the end of this newsletter…
You might have also seen me getting warmed up for the book’s release via my article for ArtReview on translation and fidelity: Why should a translation be “faithful”?
BOOK TOUR!
I’m going on big Spring and Autumn tours to celebrate the book’s release. Here are all the Spring dates:
23 May - Translated By Festival, Bristol w/ Polly Barton *DONE*
4 June - University of Brighton, Brighton and online w/ Kate Briggs (in-person and online, click through registration to select your option) https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage
5 June - Pages of Hackney, London w/ Jack Young *SOLD OUT*. Waiting list: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/fair-jen-calleja-in-conversation-with-jack-young-tickets-1295667539489
11 June - October Books, Southampton w/ Toby Litt https://octoberbooks.org/pages/events
12 June - Book Hive, Norwich w/ Philippa Snow (Fair/Goblinhood double launch) Jen Calleja: 'Fair: The Life-Art of Translation' & 'Goblinhood' - The Book Hive
16 June - Mount Florida Books, Glasgow Jen Calleja | Fair | 16th June @ 7pm – Mount Florida Books
17 June - Golden Hare, Edinburgh w/ Camilla Grudova Fair Event, with Jen Calleja - Tuesday 17th June 2025 – Golden Hare Books
18 June - 1b Books, Newcastle upon Tyne FAIR: The Life-Art of Translation by Jen Calleja at 1b Books event tickets from TicketSource
19 June - Fitzcarraldo Editions Summer Party - Reading from The City and the World *SOLD OUT*
24 June - Five Leaves Books, Nottingham w/ Olivia Hellewell Jen Calleja on translation – Five Leaves Bookshop
26 June - Margate Bookshop, Margate (booking info available soon, contact bookshop)
Autumn tour TBA, with dates in Birmingham, Durham, Stockport, and more.
Safe to say, I won’t be doing any more books/touring for a long while after this, so come out and see me to chat about this book and/or Goblinhood, Vehicle, Dust Sucker, I’m Afraid That’s All We’ve Got Time For…
On Fair
“It is no mean feat to build a fair as inventive, as informative, as inclusive to everyone along the translation experience spectrum, and yes, I’ll say it, as goddamn FUN as this one, but Jen Calleja has gone and done it.” – Polly Barton
“Jen Calleja has turned the odd life of a literary translator into a startlingly real work of art, as exquisitely and playfully constructed as a novel by Georges Perec. I feel like I’ve just been to an actual fair!”– Anton Hur
“Fair is both a unique exploration into the role of the translator and a profound meditation on language, nationality, and class. It’s also very funny. Reading it reminded me that a wealth of creativity lies within us all regardless of upbringing or (lack of) societal expectations. Truly inspiring work.” – Susan Finlay
“There is no profession in the cultural sphere that is more underappreciated than that of the literary translator. [Calleja], more than anyone I know, is working to change that.” – Gregor Hens
“With the singular brilliance, generosity and commitment to formal innovation that characterise her expansive body of work, Jen Calleja has gifted us a wholly indispensable fairground tour. Essential reading for anyone interested in translation, translations and the working conditions of those who write them.” – Kate Briggs
“Most publishers don’t even want translators’ names on a book jacket… Calleja’s genre-busting memoir laughs in the face of all that, with cheek and joy” – Anthony Cummins, The Observer
——
Goblinhood: Goblin as a Mode (Rough Trade Books)
___
Woo hoo! I preordered my circus colours copy from Prototype at the weekend! Happy pub day 🥳