TMR: Summer Reading

Instead of breaking down any books this episode, Kaija, Brian, and Chad talk about some of the books they read this past summer, including a few Nabokov titles, Big Bang by David Bowman (NOT the 2001 character), Helen of Nowhere by Makenna Goodman (longlisted for the Booker Prize!), and several more. Then, they lay out the next three seasons of TMR, explaining some of the connections between these various books . . . This week’s music is “Summertime Clothes” by Animal Collective.The next three seasons of TMR are announced in this episode, and the reading schedule for the first one will be available on September 10th. What, you think I would tell you which books we’re doing here in the show notes? The three forthcoming books in the Icelandic-centric Translator Triptych curated by Lytton Smith are:* Boudoir by Sigrún Pálsdóttir, translated by Lytton Smith* The Strongest Woman in the World by Steinunn G. Helgadóttir, translated by Larissa Kyzer* 12 Women + Under a Volcano by Svava Jakobsdóttir, translated by Esja Alyssa MatichAnd you can get all three for $35 (almost 40% off) in this special bundle, and you can subscribe to receive the next 5 or 10 Open Letter titles here. Information about “The 2026 Icelandic Translator Triptych” (October 6, 7pm) and “Translating Scandinavia” (October 17, 2pm), both taking place at the Scandinavia House in New York City is available here. Finally, if you’d like to support Open Letter’s publications, our podcasts, Three Percent, the Translation Database, etc., please consider contributing via this link. Thanks in advance! Follow Open Letter, Two Month Review, Chad W. Post, Kaija Straumanis, and Brian Wood for random thoughts and information about upcoming guests. If you haven’t already, subscribe to the Three Percent substack for information about Open Letter Books and literature in translation writ large. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit threepercentproblem.substack.com