There is a dramatic imbalance of cultural output in the global publishing industry. English-language publishers are disinclined to translate and publish foreign language books as a result of the popularity of English-language books and the high costs of translation. Three per cent is the oft-quoted number that indicates that foreign fiction in translation makes up only a minimal part of the UK book trade. This lack of bibliodiversity may have serious cultural consequences. There are thus several national and international initiatives to promote the publication and cultural capital of works in translation in order to reach a wider audience. Book prizes are generally understood to have a positive impact on the discoverability of a title and consequent sales; winning authors, as well as those on the longlist and shortlist of prestigious prizes, can expect a significant boost in sales of the books in question. But in a culture where translated foreign fiction titles represent only a small percentage of books published, does this phenomenon extend to prizes for translated foreign fiction? This paper explores the—audience-building and sales-generating—impact of the UK’s most prestigious award for literature in translation, the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize (IFFP), in particular in light of the prize’s recent merger with the Man Booker International Prize (MBIP), and speculates whether this may help with the ‘three per cent problem’.

In the twentieth century, cumulative millions of readers received books by mail from clubs like the Book-of-the-Month Club, the Book Society or Bertelsmann Club. This Element offers an introduction to book clubs as a distribution channel and cultural phenomenon and shows that book clubs and book commerce are linked inextricably. It argues that a global perspective is necessary to understand the cultural and economic impact of book clubs in the twentieth and into the twenty-first centuries. It also explores central reasons for book club membership, condensing them into four succinct categories: convenience, community, concession and most importantly curation.

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The famous 1962 precedent at the Restrictive Practices Court of the United Kingdom, 'Books are different,' is still the reasoning behind many cultural policies around the world, building on longstanding assumptions surrounding 'the book'. As this suggests, the 'difference' of the book as a unique form of cultural (rather than economic) production has acquired a powerful status. But are books still different? In (somewhat provocatively) asking this question from a network-oriented and interdisciplinary perspective (book studies/literary studies), this Element inquires into the notion of 'difference' in relation to books. Challenging common notions of 'bibliodiversity,' it reconsiders the lack of diversity in the publishing industry. It also engages with the diversifying potentials of the digital literary sphere, offering a case study of Bernardine Evaristo's industry activities and activism, the Element concludes with thoughts on bookishness, affect and networked practice. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.

In a review of Hans Fallada's novel Alone in Berlin-finally translated into English after 62 years-Sam Jordison stated, ''[I]t's an important book that no English writer could have written-and so another resounding argument for the importance of taking in translations. It makes me wonder what else we've been missing.'' Translated fiction plays a minimal role in the UK. Scholars are increasingly directing their attention towards this deficit. This paper will consider the culture of translation in the UK and Ireland, with a particular focus on translated German fiction. Keywords Translation Á Publishing Á Independent publishing Á Literary prizes Á Germany Á UK In his book Is That a Fish in Your Ear? The Amazing Adventure of Translation [4] David Bellos based some of his observations on the UNESCO's Index Translationum [62], which has collected worldwide translation data since 1932. 1 Bellos shows that while English is the most frequently used language, there is a clear imbalance regarding English as a source and English as a target language for translations. While one-tenth of the translations recorded in the Index are translations into English, two-thirds are translations from the English. As Bellos