Ros Schwartz is an English

literary translator Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''transla ...

, who translates

Francophone The Francophonie or Francophone world is the whole body of people and organisations around the world who use the French language regularly for private or public purposes. The term was coined by Onésime Reclus in 1880 and became important a ...

literature into English. In 2009 she was awarded the Chevalier d’Honneur dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres for her services to French literature.

Career

Alongside literary translation, Schwartz has served on the boards and committees of various literary and translation organisations: Vice-Chair of the

Translators Association The Translators Association (TA) represents literary translators in the United Kingdom. It is part of the Society of Authors (SoA) and is affiliated with the International Federation of Translators (FIT). History The Translators Association (TA ...

; Chair of the European Council of Literary Translators Associations (CEATL) from 2000 to 2009; Chair of the Advisory Panel to the British Centre for Literary Translation (BCLT) from 2005 to 2009; and Chair of

English PEN Founded in 1921, English PEN is one of the world's first non-governmental organisations and among the first international bodies advocating for human rights. English PEN was the founding centre of PEN International, a worldwide writers' associa ...

's Writers in Translation Programme from 2010 to 2014. She has worked to develop literary translation as a profession by supporting young translators, initiating mentoring schemes, summer schools (e.g. Translate in the City, first at

Birkbeck College Birkbeck, University of London (formally Birkbeck College, University of London), is a public research university located in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. Established in 1823 as the London Mechanics' ...

, then at

City University London City, University of London was a public university from 1966 to 2024 in London, England. It merged with St George's, University of London to form City St George's, University of London in August 2024. The names "City, University of London" and ...

), workshops and masterclasses (e.g. at

Goldsmiths College Goldsmiths, University of London, formerly Goldsmiths College, University of London, is a Member institutions of the University of London, constituent research university of the University of London. It was originally founded in 1891 as The G ...

, the

University of Middlesex Middlesex University London (legally Middlesex University and abbreviated to MDX) is a public research university based in Hendon, northwest London, England. The university also has campuses in Dubai and Mauritius. The name of the university is ...

, Universities of Westminster, East Anglia, Bath, Warwick, Leicester, Glasgow and Manchester). Schwartz has also written about literary translation: see, for example, "A Dialogue: On a Translator's Interventions", by Ros Schwartz and

Nicholas de Lange Nicholas Robert Michael de Lange (born 7 August 1944) is a British Reform rabbi and historian. He is Professor of Hebrew and Jewish Studies at the University of Cambridge. Academic and literary career Nicholas de Lange is an emeritus fellow a ...

, in

Susan Bassnett Susan Edna Bassnett, (born 21 October 1945) is a translation theorist and scholar of comparative literature. She served as pro-vice-chancellor at the University of Warwick for ten years and taught in its Centre for Translation and Comparative C ...

and Peter Bush (eds), ''The Translator as Writer'' (Continuum, London and New York, 2006), and articles published in ''The Linguist'', the ''ATA Bulletin'', The ''ITI Bulletin'', ''Context'' (nos 20, 21, 21 - Dalkey Archive Press), and the British Council literary translation website. She is a regular contributor to ''In Other Words'', the journal of the Translators Association and the British Centre for Literary Translation. She was also a consultant on the revised ''Robert and Collins French-English/English-French Dictionary''; a judge for the Larousse "Grand Prix de la Traduction", Paris, 1995; and a judge for the Aurora Borealis Prize of the Fédération Internationale des Traducteurs 1999.

Honours and Prizes

*2009 - Chevalier d’Honneur dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres *2006 - Shortlisted for the Duncan Lawrie International Dagger Award 2006 for her translation (in collaboration with Amanda Hopkinson) of ''Dead Horsemeat'', by Dominque Manotti *2008 - Winner of the Duncan Lawrie International Dagger Award 2008 for her translation of ''Lorraine Connection'', by Dominque Manotti *2013 - Longlisted for the

Best Translated Book Award The Best Translated Book Award was an American literary award that recognized the previous year's best original translation into English, one book of poetry and one of fiction. It was inaugurated in 2008 and was conferred by Three Percent, the onl ...

(BTBA) for her translation of ''Kite'', by Dominique Eddé *2013 - Shortlisted for the

Marsh Award for Children's Literature in Translation The Marsh Award for Children's Literature in Translation was a Literary award, literary prize awarded in the United Kingdom from 1996 until 2017 to the translator of an outstanding work of Children's literature, fiction for young readers translated ...

for her translation of

The Little Prince ''The Little Prince'' (, ) is a novella written and illustrated by French writer and aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. It was first published in English and French in the United States by Reynal & Hitchcock in April 1943 and was published po ...

, by

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Antoine Marie Jean-Baptiste Roger, vicomte de Saint-Exupéry (29 June 1900 – 31 July 1944), known simply as Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (, , ), was a French writer, poet, journalist and aviator. Born in Lyon to an French nobility, aristocratic ...

*2016 - Winner of a PEN Translates and a PEN Promotes award for ''Sur ma mère'', by Tahar Ben Jelloun *2016 - Winner of a PEN Translates award for ''The Meteorologist'', by Olivier Rolin *Honorary Member of the European Council of Literary Translators Associations (

CEATL CEATL or the Conseil européen des associations de traducteurs littéraires (European Council of Literary Translators' Associations), is an international non-profit association, based in Belgium, founded in 1993 to facilitate the exchange of informa ...

) *2017 - Awarded the 2017 John Sykes Memorial Prize for Excellence, by the Institute of Translating and Interpreting (ITI)

Translations from French

Schwartz has translated numerous French and Francophone authors including

Catherine Clément Catherine Clément (; born 10 February 1939) is a French philosopher, novelist, feminist, and literary critic, born in Boulogne-Billancourt. She received a degree in philosophy from the École Normale Supérieure, and studied under its faculty Cla ...

Georges Simenon Georges Joseph Christian Simenon (; 12/13 February 1903 – 4 September 1989) was a Belgian writer who created the fictional detective Jules Maigret. One of the most prolific and successful authors of the 20th century, he published around 400 ...

Régine Deforges Régine Deforges (15 August 1935 – 3 April 2014) was a French author, editor, director, and playwright. Her book ''La Bicyclette bleue'' was the most popular book in France in 2000 and it was known by some to be offensive and to others for i ...

, , Dominique Manotti, Claudine Vegh, Emmanuel Raynaud, Aziz Chouaki,

Fatou Diome Fatou Diome (born 1968 in Niodior) is a French-Senegalese writer known for her best-selling novel ''The Belly of the Atlantic'', which was published in 2001. Her work explores immigrant life in France, and the relationship between France and Afri ...

Yasmina Khadra Mohammed Moulessehoul (; born 10 January 1955), better known by the pen name Yasmina Khadra (), is an Algerian author living in France, who writes in French language, French. One of the most famous Algerian novelists in the world, he has written ...

, Julien Neel,

Jacqueline Harpman Jacqueline Harpman (5 July 1929 – 24 May 2012) was a Belgian Francophone writer and psychoanalyst. Biography Jacqueline Harpman was born on 5 July 1929, in Etterbeek, Belgium, to Jeanne Honorez and Andries Harpman. The couple exported Belg ...

n, Olivier Roy,

. She recently produced new translations of classic favourites, such as

Le Petit Prince ''The Little Prince'' (, ) is a novella written and illustrated by French writer and aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. It was first published in English language, English and French language, French in the United States by Reynal & Hitchcock i ...

and has been part of the international team re-translating the novels of

into English.

Translations: fiction

* ''The Blue Bicycle'',

(W. H. Allen, 1985; Lyle Stuart, USA) * ''101 Avenue Henri Martin'', Régine Deforges (W. H. Allen, 1986; Lyle Stuart, USA) * ''The Devil is still laughing'', Régine Deforges (W. H. Allen, 1987; Lyle Stuart, USA) * ''Resting in Peace'', ''Marta Caraion'' (2 Plus 2, 1986) – short story * ''Black Docker'',

Ousmane Sembène Ousmane Sembène (; 1 January 1923 or 8 January 1923 – 9 June 2007), was a Senegalese film director, producer and writer. The ''Los Angeles Times'' considered him one of the greatest authors of Africa and he has often been called the "father o ...

(William Heinemann, 1987) – novel * ''The Net'',

Ilie Nastase Ilie is a Romanian name. It is both a masculine given name, cognate of Elijah, and a surname. The given name may refer to: * Ilie Antonescu, Romanian general * Ilie Baicu, Romanian football player * Ilie Balaci, Romanian football player * Ilie ...

(W. H. Allen, June 1987) – novel * ''Desperate Spring'', Fettouma Touati (The Women's Press, 1987) – novel * ''Return to Beirut'',

Andrée Chedid Andrée Chedid () (20 March 1920 – 6 February 2011), born Andrée Saab Khoury, was an Egyptian- French poet and novelist of Lebanese and Syrian descent. She is the recipient of numerous literary awards and was made a Grand Officer of the F ...

(Serpents Tail, 1989) – novel * ''The Passion of Women'',

Sébastien Japrisot Sébastien Japrisot (; 4 July 1931 – 4 March 2003) was a French author, screenwriter and film director. His pseudonym was an anagram of Jean-Baptiste Rossi, his real name. Renowned for subverting the rules of the crime genre, Japrisot broke do ...

(Crown, 1990) * Extracts from novels by

Agnès Desarthe Agnès Desarthe ( Naouri; born 3 May 1966) is a French novelist, children's writer and translator. Biography Desarthe was born on 3 May 1966 in Paris. She is the daughter of the pediatrician and writer Aldo Naouri. She is married to filmmaker , ...

and Marie Desplechin, in ''ExCITÉs'' (Flamingo, 1999) * ''First Novel'',

Mazarine Pingeot Mazarine Marie Mitterrand Pingeot (; born Mazarine Marie Pingeot on 18 December 1974) is a French writer, journalist and professor. Biography Pingeot is the daughter of former French president François Mitterrand and his mistress Anne Pingeo ...

(Harvill, 1999) * ''In the Name of God'',

(Toby Press, 1999) (under nom de plume Linda Black) * ''Wolf Dreams'', Yasmina Khadra (Toby Press, 2003) (under nom de plume Linda Black) * (with Lulu Norman) ''The Star of Algiers'', Aziz Chouaki, (Graywolf Press, USA, 2005; Serpents Tail, London, 2006) * ''Belly of the Atlantic'',

, with Lulu Norman (Serpents Tail, 2006) * ''Kite'', Dominique Eddé (Seagull Press, 2012) – longlisted for the 2013 Best Translation Fiction Book Award (USA) * ''Kamal Jann'', Dominique Eddé (Seagull Press, July 2014) * ''The People in the Photo'',

Hélène Gestern Hélène Gestern (born 1971) is a French writer. One of her favorite themes is photography, and the power it exercises over memory. Works *2011: ''Eux sur la photo'' (English title, ''The People in the Photo''), Arléa, Coup de cœur des lycée ...

(Gallic Books, Feb 2014) * ''Zenith Hotel'', Oscar Coop-Phane (March 2014) * ''The Reader on the 6.27'',

Jean-Paul Didierlaurent Jean-Paul Didierlaurent (2 March 1962 – 5 December 2021) was a French writer. Career He is best known for the novel ''The Reader on the 6.27'' (, 2014), translated into English by Ros Schwartz and published by Pan Books in 2015 (). Didier ...

, Mantle – Waterstones novel of the month, May 2106 * ''Sur ma mère'',

Tahar Ben Jelloun Tahar Ben Jelloun (; born 1 December 1944) is a Moroccan writer who rose to fame for his 1985 novel ''L'Enfant de sable'' ('' The Sand Child''). All of his work is written in French although his first language is Darija. He has been nominated f ...

(Telegram, 2016) – Winner of a PEN Translates and a PEN Promotes award * ''The Meteorologist'',

Olivier Rolin Olivier Rolin (; born 17th May 1947 in Boulogne-Billancourt) is a French writer. He won the Prix Femina in 1994, for his novel ''Port-Soudan''. His brother Jean Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * J ...

(Harvill Secker, 2016) – Winner of a PEN Translates award *''The Rest of their Lives'', Jean-Paul Didierlaurnet, PanMacmillan, 2017 *''The Book of Wonders'', Julien Sandrel, Quercus, 2019 *''I Who Have Never Known Men,'' Jacqueline Harpman, Vintage, 2019 *''The Girl who Reads on the Metro'', Christine Feret-Fleury, PanMacmillan, 2019 *'' A Long Way from Douala,'' Max Lobe (HopeRoad, 2020)

Translations: drama

*''A Little Grain of Sand'', by Christophe Allwright – performed New Orleans 2002 and White Bear Theatre, London, 2004 *''In Spitting Distance'', by Taher Najib, based on the French translation from the Hebrew by Jacqueline Carnaud – selected for the 2012 HotInk festival in New York *''A Play: The Mating Game''

Translations: children's books

*''The Little Prince'',

(The Collectors Library, 2010) – Shortlisted for the Marsh Award for Children's Literature in Translation 2013 *''Book of the Stars, Quadehar'', Erik L’homme (Chickenhouse Publishers, Scholastic USA, 2003) *''Book of the Stars, Lord Sha'', Erik L’homme (Chickenhouse Publishers, Scholastic USA, 2004) *''Book of the Stars, The Face of the Shadow'' (Chickenhouse Publishers, Scholastic USA, 2006) *''Martine'' (4 albums) (Casterman, Brussels, 2006) *''Jefferson,'' Jean-Claude Mourlevat, Andersen Press, 2020

Translations: crime fiction

*''Dead Horsemeat'', Dominque Manotti (in collaboration with

Amanda Hopkinson Amanda Hopkinson (born 1948) is a British scholar and literary translator. Biography She was born in London, England, to the British journalist and magazine editor Sir Tom Hopkinson and photographer Gerti Deutsch. She gained a BA from the Uni ...

) (Arcadia, London, 2006) – Shortlisted for the Duncan Lawrie International Dagger Award 2006 *''Paris Noir'' (Serpents Tail, 2007) *''Lorraine Connection'', Dominque Manotti (Arcadia, 2007) – Winner of the Duncan Lawrie International Dagger Award 2008 *''Affairs of State'', Dominique Manotti (Arcadia, 2009) *''Escape'', Dominique Manotti (Arcadia, June 2014) *15 Maigret titles by Georges Simenon for the new Penguin Classics Simenon series: **'' The Shadow Puppet'' (2014) **''Maigret Gets Angry'' (2015) **''Maigret'' (2015) **''The Madman of Bergerac'' (2015) **''Maigret`s First Case'' (2016) **''Maigret`s Holiday'' (2016) **''Maigret and the Old Lady'' (2016) **''Maigret is Afraid'' (2017) **''Maigret and the Minister'' (2017) **''Maigret in Court'' (2018) **''Maigret and the Ghost'' (2018) **''Maigret and the Good People of Montparnasse'' (2018) **''Maigret in Vichy'' (2019) **''Maigret and Monsieur Charles'' (2020) **''Maigret and the Wine Merchant'' (2020) * ''Betty'', Georges Simenon, 2021

Translations: graphic albums

*''Lou, albums 1, 2, 3'', Julien Neel (Highland Books, 2007, 2008) – teenage graphic albums *''Lou, albums 4 and 5'', Julien Neel (Highland Books, 2011) – teenage graphic albums **''Lou! (1) Dairy Dates'' **''Lou! (2) Summertime Blues'' **''Lou! (3) Down in the Dump'' **''Lou! (4) Romances'' **''Lou! (5) Laser Ninja''

Translations: poetry

*''Metropolitain'',

Arthur Rimbaud Jean Nicolas Arthur Rimbaud (, ; ; 20 October 1854 – 10 November 1891) was a French poet known for his transgressive and surreal themes and for his influence on modern literature and arts, prefiguring surrealism. Born in Charleville, he s ...

(with Anthony Rudolf) in ''All that Mighty Heart, London Poems'', ed.

Lisa Russ Spaar Lisa Russ Spaar is a contemporary American poet, professor, and essayist. She is currently a professor of English and Creative Writing at the University of Virginia and the director of the Area Program in Poetry Writing. She is the author of nu ...

(University of Virginia Press, 2008)

Translations: non-fiction

*'' Holy Virility'', Emmanuel Raynaud (Pluto Press, 1982) – Sociology/history *''I Didn’t Say Goodbye'', Claudine Vegh (Caliban Books 1984; E. P. Dutton, USA, 1985) – Interviews with Holocaust survivors *''Cuisine Extraordinaire'' (Conran Octopus and Mcgraw Hill, April 1988) *''The Reformation'', ed. Pierre Chaunu (Alan Sutton, 1989) (co-translator) – history *''The Book of Inventions and Discoveries'' (Queen Anne Press, 1990, 1991, 1992) *''Women in Evidence'',

(Secker and Warburg 1991; Crown USA) *''Dining with Proust'', Anne Borel, Alain Senderens (Ebury Press, 1992) *''The Gallimard Guidebook Series: Amsterdam, Vienna'' (Everyman's Library, 1993) *''Russian Art Collectors'', Christina Burrus (Tauris Parke Books, 1994) *''Allah O Akbar'', Abbas (Phaidon Press, 1994) (under nom de plume Linda Black) *''A History of Scientific Thought'',

Michel Serres Michel Serres (; ; 1 September 1930 – 1 June 2019) was a French philosopher, theorist and writer. His works explore themes of science, time and death, and later incorporated prose. Life and career The son of a bargeman, Serres entered France ...

(Blackwell, 1995) *''Pushing back the Horizons'' (Editions du Rouergue/Council of Europe, 1994) *''Skopelos, a brief study of vernacular architecture'', Marc Held (1994) *''Nature, Artifice and Japanese Culture'', Augustin Berque (Pilkington Press, 1996) *''The Mistress of Silence'',

(Harvill, 1996; Seven Stories USA) *''Orlanda'', Jacqueline Harpman (Harvill, 1999; Seven Stories USA) *''Theo’s Odyssey'',

(Flamingo, 1999) *''Visitor’s Guide to the Paris Musée d’art et d’histoire du Judaïsme'' (1999) *''La Prisonnière'' by

Malika Oufkir Malika Oufkir () (born April 2, 1953) is a Moroccan Berber writer and former victim of enforced disappearance. She is the daughter of General Mohamed Oufkir and a cousin of fellow Moroccan writer and actress Leila Shenna. Biography Malika Ouf ...

and

Michèle Fitoussi Michèle Fitoussi (born 24 November 1954) is a French writer. She is of History of the Jews in Tunisia, Tunisian-Jewish descent. Biography Fitoussi was born in Tunis, Tunisia. Besides writing fiction and non-fiction, Fitoussi was an editor of Fr ...

(Transworld, July 2000; Talk Miramax USA) – Oprah's Book Club selection *Catalogue for the exhibition ''Paris en Relief'',

Musée Carnavalet The Musée Carnavalet () in Paris is dedicated to the History of Paris, history of the city. The museum occupies two neighboring mansions: the Hôtel Carnavalet and the former Hôtel Le Peletier de Saint Fargeau. On the advice of Baron Haussmann, ...

(September 2000) *Catalogues for the ''Toulouse Lautrec'', ''Miró'', ''Braque'' and ''Artists of the 20th century'' exhibitions held at the Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation, Athens *''Chocolat mon amour'', M. Richart (Somogy, 2001) *''Inside the Mind of Killer'', Jean-François Abgrall (Profile Books, 2004) *''Alexander Villedieu’s Fountain Pen'', Michel Guede (Editions la mesure du possible, Brussels, 2006) *''Iran and the Bomb'', Thérèse Delpech (Hurst & Co., 2007) *''The Enigma of Islamist Violence'', (co-translator), Amélie Blom, Laetitia Bucaille and Luis Martinez eds. (Hurst & Co., 2007) *''The Politics of Chaos in the Middle East'', Olivier Roy (Hurst and Co. 2008) *''Beckett before Beckett'' (Souvenir Press, 2008) *''Holy Ignorance'', Olivier Roy (Hurst & Co., 2010) *''Russie, l’Envers du Pouvoir'', Marie Mendras (Hurst, 2012) *''The Crime of Jean Genet'', Dominique Eddé (Seagull Press, 2016) *''Translation as Transhumance'', Mireille Gansel – winner of a February 2016 French Voices Award *''Selfies'', Sylvie Weil (Les Fugitives 2019) *''Edward Said: His Thought as a Novel'', Dominique Eddé, Verso, 2019

External links

*Profile on WorldCat *Profile at English PEN Writers in Translation *Profile on

Words Without Borders ''Words Without Borders'' (''WWB'') is an international magazine open to international exchange through translation, publication, and promotion of the world's best writing and authors who are not easily accessible to English-speaking readers. The ...

*Ros Schwartz and her authors *Ros Schwartz on YouTube

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schwartz, Ros French–English translators Chevaliers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres Literary translators British speculative fiction translators 21st-century British translators Living people Year of birth missing (living people)