Destiny of a Nobel Laureate in a Small Book Market: Alice Munro in Slovene Translation

Abstract

This paper investigates the representation of Alice Munro’s writing in Slovenia, focusing on the issues of its late introduction to Slovene readers, and the low level of interest by Slovene publishers in her works even now that she is a Nobel laureate. To address these issues, two important features of her writing – that she is exclusively a short-story writer and that her stories deal mostly with women’s themes – will be analysed against the background of the tradition of the short story genre and women’s literature in Slovenia. Additionally, the specifics of the Slovene book market and publishing industry will be examined as another potential reason for the underrepresentation of Munro’s works in Slovenia.