Category Archives: Translation

Admiration — Libraries and Antiquarians

Posted on May 1, 2016 by carto

Admiration: I like a big sprawling library with open stacks, and Green Library is one of my favorites. Thousands and thousands of books on shelves to pull out and browse. There is a light on in the stacks; maybe someone is browsing. … Continue reading →

Posted in Classics, Poetry, Translation | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Wow — Spring Is Early This Year

Posted on March 8, 2015 by carto

The iPhone camera was overwhelmed by this bed of tulips at Elizabeth F. Gamble Garden in Palo Alto. Wow is the word of the day. A perfect day to get out of the library, explore the outdoors, read a poem … Continue reading →

Posted in Poetry, Spanish, Translation | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Colombian Storyteller, García Márquez, is dead at 87

Posted on April 17, 2014 by carto

Gabriel García Márquez is dead at 87; he is survived by his stories, and his many readers. In his autobiography García Márquez told this story of a surprise visit by his mother: My mother asked me to go with her … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Memoir, Spanish, Translation | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Creation — Children of the Days

Posted on April 2, 2014 by carto

A calendar of Human History: Long ago in America Where dense fog hides the mountains Day Keepers weave the story of creation Mouth-to-ear repeating, remembering the days A Quiché appeared at the edge of the forest The indian carried a … Continue reading →

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Illustrated Tales of Nations—German Cigarette Cards

Posted on June 10, 2012 by carto

The Chinese Nightingale is an illustrated folk tale set in ancient China. The charming story is included in Tales of the Nations (Märchen der Völker), illustrations and stories produced as part of a German cigarette advertising promotion just before WWII. … Continue reading →

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Carlos Fuentes—Author of The Doll Queen is dead at 83

Posted on May 16, 2012 by carto

The major newspapers yesterday (15 May, 2012) marked of the death of distinguished Mexican writer Carlos Fuentes. The tributes to the sometimes polemical author and his accomplishments are glowing: all is forgiven in death. One of the simplest and most appropriate … Continue reading →

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Inspector Chen’s Shanghai: For the Good of the Party

Posted on March 21, 2012 by carto

Two middle-aged Chinese men meet on the Waibaidu Bridge in Shanghai—they look down at the polluted waters of the Suzhou River and reminisce of days past when the river was unpolluted and they fished for carp from the garden park … Continue reading →

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Celebrating Gabriel García Márquez And Ice

Posted on March 6, 2012 by carto

Gabriel García Márquez was born on this day (March 6) in 1927 in Aracataca, Colombia; he is 85 years old. In Spanish, only Cervantes is more widely read than García Márquez. García Márquez is a storyteller and one of his … Continue reading →

Posted in Classics, eBook, Fiction, Spanish, Translation | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Valentine’s Day Poet—Pablo Neruda

Posted on February 14, 2012 by carto

The 1971 Nobel Laureate Pablo Neruda was a prolific writer of love poems. His first poetry was published in Chile in a small volume titled in Spanish: Veinte poemas de amor y una canción desesperada (Twenty Love Poems and a … Continue reading →

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Haruki Murakami—1Q84, Two Moons Over Tokyo

Posted on January 3, 2012 by carto

1Q84 is a love story set in Tokyo in 1984. The “Q” in the title is a pun on the Japanese letter for “9”, which sounds like the English “Q”. “1984”, of course, is a reference to the George Orwell … Continue reading →

Posted in Fantasy/Adventure, Fiction, Speculative Fiction, Translation | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments