Sam Garrett wins the 2009 Vondel Translation Prize - update

PRESS RELEASE - The Vondel Translation Prize 2009 goes to Sam Garrett for his translation into English of Ararat (Ararat, Harvill Secker, London, 2008) by Frank Westerman. The jury was made up of the British literary critic Paul Binding and two translators from Dutch into English, Susan Massotty and Ina Rilke, winners of the Vondel Translation Prize in 2007 and 1999 respectively.

Francis R. Jones receives an honourable mention for his translation of What It Is, a selection of poetry by Esther Jansma (Bloodaxe Books, Tarset, 2008).

The prize will be presented on 11 January 2010 at Kings Place in London, along with a number of other translation prizes. Sam Garrett is also a past winner, having won the 2003 Vondel Prize.

The Vondel Translation Prize is awarded every two years for the best book-length translation into British or American English of an important Dutch or Flemish literary or cultural-historical work. The prize, worth €5,000, was established by the Society of Authors in Britain and is financed by the Foundation for the Production and Translation of Dutch Literature and the Flemish Literature Fund. Previous winners were Susan Massotty for her translation of Spijkerschrift (My Father’s Notebook) by Kader Abdolah, Diane Webb for her translation of Van karmozijn, purper en blauw (Colors Demonic and Divine) by Herman Pleij, Sam Garrett for his translation of De renner (The Rider) by Tim Krabbé, Hester Velmans for her translation of Een hart van steen (Heart of Stone) by Renate Dorrestein, Ina Rilke for her translation of De virtuoos (The Virtuoso) by Margriet de Moor and Omweg naar Santiago (Roads to Santiago) by Cees Nooteboom, and Stacey Knecht for her translation of Het grote verlangen (The Great Longing) by Marcel Möring.

Sam Garrett (b. 1956) is an American who currently divides his time between Amsterdam and the French Pyrenees. As well as work by Frank Westerman he has translated books by Karel Glastra van Loon, Arnon Grunberg, Tim Krabbé, Lieve Joris, Geert Mak and Nanne Tepper among others.

For more information

• Barbara den Ouden, NLPVF, tel. 020 - 620 62 61, e-mail b.den.ouden@nlpvf.nl or Peter Bergsma, Translators’ House Amsterdam, tel. 020 - 470 97 40 of 06 22 56 56 89,
• Judges’ Report

Published: September 4, 2009 news | press