Anthea Bell
Encyclopedia
Anthea Bell OBE
(born 1936) is a British
translator
who has translated numerous literary works, especially children's literature, from French
, German
, Danish
and Polish
to English
. She is known for her numerous translations, including Austerlitz
one of the most significant German language
works of fiction for the period since the Second World War, and of the French Asterix
comics along with co-translator Derek Hockridge
.
, United Kingdom
. According to her own accounts, she picked up lateral thinking
abilities essential in a translator from her father Adrian Bell
, Suffolk author and the first Times
cryptic crossword
setter. She was educated at Somerville College, Oxford
.
She presently lives and works from Cambridge
, United Kingdom
. Her son, Oliver Kamm
, is a columnist for The Times
. Her brother, Martin Bell
, is a former MP
and a former BBC
correspondent, who is now an ambassador for UNICEF.
of the bande dessinée genre into English, most notably Asterix
– for which her innovative new puns have been critically acclaimed for keeping the original French spirit intact. Other notable comic books she has translated include Le Petit Nicolas
, Lieutenant Blueberry, and Iznogoud
.
She specializes in translating children's literature, and has re-translated Hans Christian Andersen
's fairytales from Danish for the publishing house of G. P. Putnam's Sons
. She also translated the Inkworld trilogy by Cornelia Funke
. Other work includes The Princess and the Captain (2006), translated from La Princetta et le capitaine by Anne-Laure Bondoux. A book aimed to the youth, but serious enough to be read by adults, The Satanic Mill
by Otfried Preußler
was translated by her from the German original Krabat.
Bell has also translated many adult novels, as well as some books on art history
, and musicology
into English. Her translations of W.G. Sebald's Austerlitz
(plus other works by Sebald), a large selection of Stefan Zweig
's novellas and stories, Wladyslaw Szpilman
's memoir The Pianist
, and E. T. A. Hoffmann's The Life and Opinions of the Tomcat Murr have been well received.
Bell was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2010 New Year Honours for services to literature and literary translations.
is unusual in that it is given to a publisher yet it explicitly references a given work, its translator and author. Its intent is to encourage the translation of children's works into English in order "to eliminate barriers to understanding between people of different cultures, races, nations, and languages."
Anthea Bell, translating from German, French and Danish, has been referenced for more works than any other (including publishers) in the history of the award:
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(born 1936) is a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
translator
Translation
Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. Whereas interpreting undoubtedly antedates writing, translation began only after the appearance of written literature; there exist partial translations of the Sumerian Epic of...
who has translated numerous literary works, especially children's literature, from French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, Danish
Danish language
Danish is a North Germanic language spoken by around six million people, principally in the country of Denmark. It is also spoken by 50,000 Germans of Danish ethnicity in the northern parts of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, where it holds the status of minority language...
and Polish
Polish language
Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
to English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
. She is known for her numerous translations, including Austerlitz
Austerlitz (novel)
Austerlitz is the final novel of W. G. Sebald, published in 2001. The book received the National Book Critics Circle Award.-Plot summary:...
one of the most significant German language
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
works of fiction for the period since the Second World War, and of the French Asterix
Asterix
Asterix or The Adventures of Asterix is a series of French comic books written by René Goscinny and illustrated by Albert Uderzo . The series first appeared in French in the magazine Pilote on October 29, 1959...
comics along with co-translator Derek Hockridge
Derek Hockridge
Derek Hockridge was born in 1934 in Wales and brought up in Birmingham. His degree at the University of Wales, Cardiff, was followed by teacher training at St Edmund Hall, Oxford...
.
Biography
Bell was born in SuffolkSuffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. According to her own accounts, she picked up lateral thinking
Lateral thinking
Lateral thinking is solving problems through an indirect and creative approach, using reasoning that is not immediately obvious and involving ideas that may not be obtainable by using only traditional step-by-step logic...
abilities essential in a translator from her father Adrian Bell
Adrian Bell
Adrian Bell was an English journalist and farmer, who was the first compiler of The Times crossword.-Life:The son of a newspaper editor, he was born in London and educated at Uppingham School in Rutland...
, Suffolk author and the first Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
cryptic crossword
Cryptic crossword
Cryptic crosswords are crossword puzzles in which each clue is a word puzzle in and of itself. Cryptic crosswords are particularly popular in the United Kingdom, where they originated, Ireland, the Netherlands, and in several Commonwealth nations, including Australia, Canada, India, Kenya, Malta,...
setter. She was educated at Somerville College, Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
.
She presently lives and works from Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. Her son, Oliver Kamm
Oliver Kamm
Oliver Kamm is a British writer and journalist. He wrote Anti-Totalitarianism: The Left-wing Case for a Neoconservative Foreign Policy , an advocacy of interventionism in foreign policy....
, is a columnist for The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
. Her brother, Martin Bell
Martin Bell
Martin Bell, OBE, is a British UNICEF Ambassador, a former broadcast war reporter and former independent politician...
, is a former MP
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
and a former BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
correspondent, who is now an ambassador for UNICEF.
Works
Anthea Bell has translated numerous Franco-Belgian comicsComics
Comics denotes a hybrid medium having verbal side of its vocabulary tightly tied to its visual side in order to convey narrative or information only, the latter in case of non-fiction comics, seeking synergy by using both visual and verbal side in...
of the bande dessinée genre into English, most notably Asterix
Asterix
Asterix or The Adventures of Asterix is a series of French comic books written by René Goscinny and illustrated by Albert Uderzo . The series first appeared in French in the magazine Pilote on October 29, 1959...
– for which her innovative new puns have been critically acclaimed for keeping the original French spirit intact. Other notable comic books she has translated include Le Petit Nicolas
Le petit Nicolas
Le Petit Nicolas is a series of French children's books. It was created by René Goscinny and illustrated by Jean-Jacques Sempé and it was published for the first time on March 29, 1959...
, Lieutenant Blueberry, and Iznogoud
Iznogoud
Iznogoud |French]] accent) is a French comics series featuring an eponymous character, created by the comics writer René Goscinny and comics artist Jean Tabary...
.
She specializes in translating children's literature, and has re-translated Hans Christian Andersen
Hans Christian Andersen
Hans Christian Andersen was a Danish author, fairy tale writer, and poet noted for his children's stories. These include "The Steadfast Tin Soldier," "The Snow Queen," "The Little Mermaid," "Thumbelina," "The Little Match Girl," and "The Ugly Duckling."...
's fairytales from Danish for the publishing house of G. P. Putnam's Sons
G. P. Putnam's Sons
G. P. Putnam's Sons was a major United States book publisher based in New York City, New York. Since 1996, it has been an imprint of the Penguin Group.-History:...
. She also translated the Inkworld trilogy by Cornelia Funke
Cornelia Funke
Cornelia Funke is a multiple award-winning German author of children's fiction. She was born on 10 December 1958, in Dorsten, North Rhine-Westphalia. Funke is best known for her Inkworld trilogy, with the English translation of the third book, Inkdeath, released on 6 October 2008. Many of her...
. Other work includes The Princess and the Captain (2006), translated from La Princetta et le capitaine by Anne-Laure Bondoux. A book aimed to the youth, but serious enough to be read by adults, The Satanic Mill
The Satanic Mill
-Plot:Set in the late 17th century, the story follows the life of Krabat, a 14-year old Wendish beggar boy living in the eastern part of Saxony. For three consecutive nights, he is called through a dream to a watermill near the village Schwarzkollm. Upon heeding the call and arriving at the mill,...
by Otfried Preußler
Otfried Preußler
Otfried Preußler is a German children's books author. His best-known works are The Robber Hotzenplotz and The Satanic Mill ....
was translated by her from the German original Krabat.
Bell has also translated many adult novels, as well as some books on art history
Art history
Art history has historically been understood as the academic study of objects of art in their historical development and stylistic contexts, i.e. genre, design, format, and style...
, and musicology
Musicology
Musicology is the scholarly study of music. The word is used in narrow, broad and intermediate senses. In the narrow sense, musicology is confined to the music history of Western culture...
into English. Her translations of W.G. Sebald's Austerlitz
Austerlitz (novel)
Austerlitz is the final novel of W. G. Sebald, published in 2001. The book received the National Book Critics Circle Award.-Plot summary:...
(plus other works by Sebald), a large selection of Stefan Zweig
Stefan Zweig
Stefan Zweig was an Austrian novelist, playwright, journalist and biographer. At the height of his literary career, in the 1920s and 1930s, he was one of the most famous writers in the world.- Biography :...
's novellas and stories, Wladyslaw Szpilman
Wladyslaw Szpilman
Władysław "Wladek" Szpilman was a Polish-Jewish pianist, composer, and memoirist. Szpilman is widely known as the protagonist of the Roman Polanski film The Pianist, which is based on his memoir of the same name recounting how he survived the Holocaust...
's memoir The Pianist
The Pianist (memoir)
The Pianist is a memoir of the Polish musician of Jewish origins Władysław Szpilman, written and elaborated by a Polish author Jerzy Waldorff, who met Szpilman in 1938 in Krynica and became a friend of him...
, and E. T. A. Hoffmann's The Life and Opinions of the Tomcat Murr have been well received.
Notable awards
- 1996 – Marsh Award for Children's Literature in TranslationMarsh Award for Children's Literature in TranslationThe Marsh Award for Children's Literature in Translation is a literary prize awarded in the United Kingdom since 1996 to the translator of an outstanding work of fiction for young readers translated into English....
– for Christine NöstlingerChristine NöstlingerChristine Nöstlinger is an Austrian writer.By her own admission, Nöstlinger was a wild and angry child. After finishing high school, she wanted to become an artist, and studied graphic arts at the Academy of Applied Arts in Vienna...
's A Dog's Life translated from German - 2002 – Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator's PrizeHelen and Kurt Wolff Translator's PrizeHelen and Kurt Wolff Translator's Prize is an annual literary prize honoring an outstanding literary translation from German into English published in the USA the previous year. The translator of the winning translation receives $10,000.00 and a stay at the Literarisches Colloquium Berlin...
, Goethe Institute – for W.G. Sebald's AusterlitzAusterlitz (novel)Austerlitz is the final novel of W. G. Sebald, published in 2001. The book received the National Book Critics Circle Award.-Plot summary:... - 2002 – Independent Foreign Fiction PrizeIndependent Foreign Fiction PrizeThe Independent Foreign Fiction Prize was inaugurated by British newspaper The Independent to honour contemporary fiction in translation in the United Kingdom. The award was first launched in 1990 and ran for five years before falling into abeyance. It was revived in 2001 with the financial support...
– for W.G. Sebald's AusterlitzAusterlitz (novel)Austerlitz is the final novel of W. G. Sebald, published in 2001. The book received the National Book Critics Circle Award.-Plot summary:... - 2003 – Marsh Award for Children's Literature in TranslationMarsh Award for Children's Literature in TranslationThe Marsh Award for Children's Literature in Translation is a literary prize awarded in the United Kingdom since 1996 to the translator of an outstanding work of fiction for young readers translated into English....
– for Hans Magnus EnzensbergerHans Magnus EnzensbergerHans Magnus Enzensberger , is a German author, poet, translator, and editor. He has also written under the pseudonym Andreas Thalmayr. He lives in Munich.- Life :...
's Where Were You Robert? translated from German - 2007 – Marsh Award for Children's Literature in TranslationMarsh Award for Children's Literature in TranslationThe Marsh Award for Children's Literature in Translation is a literary prize awarded in the United Kingdom since 1996 to the translator of an outstanding work of fiction for young readers translated into English....
– for Kai Meyer's The Flowing Queen translated from German - 2009 - Oxford-Weidenfeld Translation PrizeOxford-Weidenfeld Translation PrizeOxford-Weidenfeld Translation Prize is an annual literary prize for any book-length translation into English from any other living European language...
- for Saša Stanišic's How the Soldier Repairs the Gramophone
Bell was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2010 New Year Honours for services to literature and literary translations.
Mildred L. Batchelder Award
The Mildred L. Batchelder AwardMildred L. Batchelder Award
The Mildred L. Batchelder Award, also known as the Batchelder Award, is an award granted annually by the Association for Library Service to Children a division of the American Library Association . The award is named in honor of Mildred L. Batchelder, former director of the ALSC...
is unusual in that it is given to a publisher yet it explicitly references a given work, its translator and author. Its intent is to encourage the translation of children's works into English in order "to eliminate barriers to understanding between people of different cultures, races, nations, and languages."
Anthea Bell, translating from German, French and Danish, has been referenced for more works than any other (including publishers) in the history of the award:
Batchelder Awards and Honors as translator
| Year | Publisher | Title | Author | Translator | Original Language | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Henry Z. Walck David McKay Publications David McKay Publications was an American book publisher which also published some of the first comic books, including the long-running titles Ace Comics, King Comics, and Magic Comics; as well as collections of such popular comic strips as Blondie, Dick Tracy, and Mandrake the Magician... |
The Cat and Mouse Who Shared a House | Ruth Hürlimann | Anthea Bell | German | Winner |
| 1979 | Franklin Watts, Inc | Konrad | Christine Nöstlinger Christine Nöstlinger Christine Nöstlinger is an Austrian writer.By her own admission, Nöstlinger was a wild and angry child. After finishing high school, she wanted to become an artist, and studied graphic arts at the Academy of Applied Arts in Vienna... |
Anthea Bell | German | Winner |
| 1990 | E.P. Dutton | Buster's World Busters verden Busters verden is a Danish children's television series and movie from 1984. Based on a play by Bjarne Reuter, Buster's verden deals with the experiences of young Buster Oregon Mortensen... |
Bjarne Reuter Bjarne Reuter Bjarne Reuter is a Danish writer and screenwriter, best known for his books for children and teenagers.Many of his works are set in the fifties and sixties, the time period of his childhood and adolescence. Many also deal with the Copenhagen area, where he was born... |
Anthea Bell | Danish | Winner |
| 1995 | E.P. Dutton | The Boys from St.Petri The Boys from St. Petri The Boys from St. Petri is a 1991 Danish drama film directed by Søren Kragh-Jacobsen. It was screened out of competition at the 1992 Cannes Film Festival.The film is inspired by the activities of the Churchill Club, but the actual plot is fiction.-Cast:... |
Bjarne Reuter Bjarne Reuter Bjarne Reuter is a Danish writer and screenwriter, best known for his books for children and teenagers.Many of his works are set in the fifties and sixties, the time period of his childhood and adolescence. Many also deal with the Copenhagen area, where he was born... |
Anthea Bell | Danish | Winner |
| 2006 | Phaidon Press Limited Phaidon Press Phaidon Press is a British publisher of books on the visual arts, including art, architecture, photography, and design worldwide.As of 2009, Phaidon's headquarters are in London, UK, though they were in Oxford for many years, with offices in New York City, Paris, Berlin, Milan, and Tokyo... |
Nicholas Le petit Nicolas Le Petit Nicolas is a series of French children's books. It was created by René Goscinny and illustrated by Jean-Jacques Sempé and it was published for the first time on March 29, 1959... |
René Goscinny René Goscinny René Goscinny was a French comics editor and writer, who is best known for the comic book Astérix, which he created with illustrator Albert Uderzo, and for his work on the comic series Lucky Luke with Morris and Iznogoud with Jean Tabary.-Early life:Goscinny was born in Paris in 1926, to a family... |
Anthea Bell | French | Honor |
| 2008 | Phaidon Press Phaidon Press Phaidon Press is a British publisher of books on the visual arts, including art, architecture, photography, and design worldwide.As of 2009, Phaidon's headquarters are in London, UK, though they were in Oxford for many years, with offices in New York City, Paris, Berlin, Milan, and Tokyo... |
Nicholas and the Gang | René Goscinny René Goscinny René Goscinny was a French comics editor and writer, who is best known for the comic book Astérix, which he created with illustrator Albert Uderzo, and for his work on the comic series Lucky Luke with Morris and Iznogoud with Jean Tabary.-Early life:Goscinny was born in Paris in 1926, to a family... |
Anthea Bell | French | Honor |
| 2009 | Amulet Books ABRAMS Books Abrams, formerly Harry N. Abrams, Inc. , is an American publisher of high-quality art and illustrated books, and the enterprise is presently a subsidiary of the French publisher La Martinière Groupe... |
Tiger Moon Tiger Moon Tiger Moon is a 2006 German fantasy novel written by Antonia Michaelis. It has been translated to English by Anthea Bell in 2008. It is publish by Amulet Books.-Summary:... |
Antonia Michaelis | Anthea Bell | German | Honor |