Beyond the North Wind

ongoing

The project Beyond the North Wind aims to find, translate, and popularize a selection of the best books available in 6 lesser-spoken languages from 6 Northern European countries: 15 titles to be translated into Italian and published within 21 months. The selection was made with the intention of contributing to diversity in many forms, including diversity in gender and age of the authors, literary genres, target audiences, and languages. Of the 15 titles, 9 are adult literature (6 novels, 1 novella and 2 short story collections), and 6 are children’s literature: 2 picture books, 1 short story collection for ages 5-10, 2 middle grade novels and 1 YA novel. 5 of the authors are considered classics, while the others are contemporary writers. Most are recognized as among the most important voices in their countries (several have received international awards, including 3 Nobel Prizes). Some are emerging talents, and different generations are represented. The authors include 8 women out of 15 (and both illustrators are women). In addition to their literary value, the books and authors were selected to cover a wide range of contemporary themes: gender, feminism and LGBTQ+ issues, youth and aging, education, parenting, religion, migration, discrimination, racism, ethnic minorities, colonialism, encounters with the “other” physical and mental health, loneliness, European history, social inequalities, and environmentalism and sustainability. All books will be distributed widely, both in print (average print run: >4000 copies) and digital formats. The promotional strategy is ambitious and innovative, targeting the specific audiences for each book through both traditional and digital media. The beneficiary of the project is Iperborea, a leading Italian independent publisher renowned for the quality of its publications and translations from Nordic languages and business practices. Since 2021, the company has offset its carbon emissions, making all its activities carbon neutral.