The finalists have been announced for the Sophie Castille Awards for Comics in Translation. The award will be given for the best English translation of a graphic novel originally released in a non-English language, and will be presented on Saturday, September 30th, at the Lakes International Comic Arts Festival (LICAF), held from September 29th through October 1st in Bowness-on-Windermere in England.
The finalists for the Sophie Castille Awards for Comics in Translation are:
All Princesses Die Before Dawn, translated by M.B. Valente, original work by Quentin Zuttion, published by Europe Comics
Always Never, translated by Montana Kane, original work by Jordi Lafebre, published by Dark Horse
The Philosopher, The Dog and the Wedding, translated by Michele Hutchison, original work by Barbara Stok, published by SelfMadeHero
The three finalists were chosen by the Sophie Castille Awards panel of judges, which includes Columbia University Comics and Cartoons Curator Karen Green, LICAF board member Peter Kessler, and comics journalist and The Beat‘s own Dean Simons.
In a statement announcing the finalists, the judges elaborated on their choices:
“The three finalists display the translator’s skill at its highest,” the judges commented. “There is no sense of awkwardness or artificiality, no barrier between the reader and the story. They welcome the reader into their very different, beguiling and emotionally powerful worlds. From a child experiencing the first inklings of their own sexuality, to a love story told in reverse, to a classical Greek woman contemplating philosophy, these stories – all with very different visual aesthetics – are emotionally and intellectually engrossing.”
The Sophie Castille Awards are named for Europe Comics co-founder Sophie Castille, whose work with the consortium of European comics publishers has brought translations of numerous graphic novels from non-English-speaking countries to English language readers. Castille passed away suddenly last year; this year’s Sophie Castille Awards were founded this year in her honor.
Congratulations to the three awards finalists.
