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World Editions (WE) is an independent publishing house that focuses on bringing Dutch and international literature to an English readership. WE originates from the independent and respected Netherlands-based publishing house De Geus that was founded in 1983 by Eric Visser, founder and publisher of WE.

History

Eric Visser has over 30 years of experience running the respected Dutch publishing house De Geus with his wife, Annemie Jans. De Geus has published over 2500 books to date. With a focus on world literature, its authors originate from eighty different countries and write from forty different languages. Fourteen of them are Nobel Prize laureates. Four authors have won the Nobel Prize for literature in the last ten years: J.M.G. Le Clézio (2008), Herta Müller (2009), Mo Yan (2012) and Alice Munro (2013). Other well-known authors they have published are: Ha Jin, Annie Proulx, Tahar Ben Jelloun, Jim Crace, and Carol Shields.[1]

Eric Visser recognized that it was difficult for authors to break through internationally. He said: ‘Most editors around the world read English but not, for example, Dutch, French or Swedish so I decided to start publishing in English.’ [2] Only 3% of all publications in the UK are translations, so World Editions is set to make a significant contribution to the UK book market.

World Editions was officially launched in January 2015. The first titles were Craving by Esther Gerritsen translated by Michele Hutchison, Gliding Flight by Anne-Gine Goemans translated by Nancy Forest-Flier, and Saturday’s Shadows by Ayesha Harruna Attah. WE intends to publish 20 titles each year. In 2015, World Editions has published books translated from the Dutch, Swedish, Icelandic, Russian, Norwegian, and Chinese. Turkish, Italian, French, and Spanish will be added to the list in 2016.

WE distinguishes itself by unlocking literature from all cultures, all over Europe and beyond. By translating novels into English, WE opens up literature that has been written in Dutch, French, Italian and Turkish, languages with a relatively small range, from lesser known cultures. Literary works of importance and high quality, that could previously only be read in a language that catered for a restricted audience, can now be read worldwide. Thus, readers all over Europe—and beyond—can read this highly interesting literature from important European authors, enhancing and spreading the knowledge and understanding of these lesser known European countries and cultures.

Non-translated titles

Though the focus is on translations, World Editions also publishes novels that were originally written in English. The Ghanaian author Ayesha Harruna Attah wrote Saturday’s Shadows, a book about a country that tries to find its footing after a seventeen-year military dictatorship and about a family which is teetering on the edge of destruction.[3] Gary Barker & Michael Kaufman co-wrote the novel The Afghan Vampires Book Club, which is a political novel which criticizes the way the United States treats their war veterans. In 2016, WE will publish four Carol Shields novels: The Stone Diaries, Happenstance, Mary Swann, and The Republic of Love. These will be the first republications from the publisher.[4]

Design of books

The novels published by World Editions are designed in a distinctive and attractive format, ideal for book-lovers seeking inspiring new additions to their collections. Its distinctive design―attractive covers, round corners―immediately identifies the books as WE-titles.

World Editions-authors

  1. ^ "World Editions Translates Dutch Lit for English Readers". Publishing Perspectives. 6 January 2015.
  2. ^ "Visser of De Geus launches English language publisher". The Bookseller. 13 October 2014.
  3. ^ Harruna Attah, Ayesha (2015). Saturday's Shadows. World Editions. pp. backcover. ISBN 978-94-6238-043-1.
  4. ^ "World Editions to reissue Carol Shields' backlist". The Bookseller. 22 January 2016.
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