Tue, May 26, 2026 page11

• Taiwan wins first International Booker Prize with Taiwan Travelogue 《臺灣漫遊錄》獲布克國際獎 台灣文學創歷史

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  Taiwan Travelogue, the novel by Taiwanese author Yang Shuang-zi and translated into English by Lin King, won the prestigious International Booker Prize in London on May 19.

  It marks the first time a Taiwanese literary work has received the International Booker Prize, setting a historic milestone both for Taiwanese literature and for the award itself.

  Prior to this achievement, Taiwan had only once appeared on the Booker radar, when Taiwanese author Wu Ming-yi was longlisted for the Booker Prize in 2018 with The Stolen Bicycle.

  

  Yang Shuang-zi, left, author of Taiwan Travelogue, and translator Lin King pose with the 2026 International Booker Prize trophies at the Tate Modern, in London, UK on May 19. 《臺灣漫遊錄》作者楊双子（左）與英譯者金翎，手持該書英國版，以及2026年「布克國際獎」獎座。5月19日攝於英國倫敦泰德現代美術館。

  Photo: EPA 照片：歐新社

  The International Booker Prize honors works of fiction translated into English and published in the UK or Ireland. Eligible entries include novels and short story collections. The ￡50,000 prize prize (approximately NT$2.1 million) is equally shared between the author and translator, highlighting the importance of literary translation.

  Including Taiwan Travelogue, six titles were shortlisted for the 2026 International Booker Prize. The shortlisted works represented five original languages: Chinese, Bulgarian, French, German and Portuguese.

  Judging panel chair and novelist Natasha Brown wrote in her citation: “Can love overcome a power imbalance?” Set in Taiwan during the 1930s under Japanese colonial rule, Taiwan Travelogue explores this question with subtlety and emotional depth.

  

  The front cover of UK version of Taiwan Travelogue in London on May 20. 英國版《臺灣漫遊錄》封面。5月20日攝於英國倫敦。

  Photo courtesy of And Other Stories 照片：And Other Stories出版社提供

  Brown described the novel as both a successful love story and an incisive postcolonial work. She said the judges greatly enjoyed the rich discussions sparked by the book’s multiple layers, calling it a “captivating, slyly sophisticated” novel.

  Accepting the award on stage before hundreds of literary and cultural figures from around the world, Yang said some people believe art and literature must be kept far from politics, “but I am of the belief that literature cannot be kept separate from the soil in which it has grown. In this sense, literature, on a fundamental level, cannot disentagle itself from politics.”

  Yang noted that throughout the past century of Taiwanese literary history, writers have continually asked: “What kind of future do the people of Taiwan want? What kind of nation do the people of Taiwan want?” She said Taiwan Travelogue, too, joins the long list of texts that investigate these inquiries.

  

  Copies of the Taiwan Travelogue, which received the International Booker Prize, are seen at a bookstore in Taipei on May 21. 書店中展示的《臺灣漫遊錄》英文版。5月21日攝於台北。

  Photo: AFP 照片：法新社

  “Taiwan’s people have endured multiple colonial regimes and face threats of invasion. When confronted by geopolitical forces so much greater than our own, what use do we have for literature? But I, at least, have always believed that literature wields power,” she said.

  Yang added that literature appears slow, but it acts with steady resolve; it is often quiet, but manages to spread ideas far and wide. There may be a time lag between the writing of a work and the translation of it, but translation allows writing to transcend the limits of time and space.

  Translator Lin King said English-language translated literature generally assumes that both translation and the translator should ideally remain “invisible.” Yet Taiwan Travelogue includes translator’s notes, a foreword, and an afterword, while the same written Chinese characters are rendered through three different pronunciation systems.

  

  Yang Shuang-zi, left, author of Taiwan Travelogue, and translator Lin King, standing to her right, make acceptance speech during the award ceremony of the 2026 International Booker Prize at the Tate Modern in London, UK on May 19. 2026年「布克國際獎」頒獎典禮，大獎得主《臺灣漫遊錄》作者楊双子、譯者金翎上台致詞。5月19日攝於英國倫敦泰德現代美術館。

  Photo: Screen grab from Spring Hill Publishing’s Facebook page 照片：擷圖自春山出版社臉書

  Compared with the original Chinese text, Lin said the English edition demands more effort from readers because it “refuses to simplify Taiwan’s multilingual, multicultural and multiethnic reality.”

  For that reason, she originally believed the English edition would appeal only to a small and highly specific readership. However, since its US publication in 2024, the book has received far greater attention than expected, and received the 2024 US National Book Awards for Translated Literature.

  Still, she emphasized that “no book should bear the burden of speaking on behalf of a whole country.” Lin said her goal, shared by fellow translators, is to bring “so many voices from Taiwan into English that no one can reduce Taiwan’s literature to a monolith.”

  “Because we are not a chorus, but a cacophony — self-contradicting and unruly, just like any healthy, robust democracy.”

  Recently, Tara Tobler, senior editor at the book’s UK publisher And Other Stories, said in an interview with CNA that she “fell in love with the book immediately” upon first reading it. She also joked that the novel’s vivid descriptions of food were so enticing that, if the book won the prize, the publisher might consider releasing an illustrated edition complete with recipes in the UK.

  (Translated by Lin Lee-kai, Taipei Times)

  英語文壇盛事、年度國際文學大獎英國「布克國際獎」（International Booker Prize）5月19日在倫敦公布得主，由台灣作家楊双子創作、譯者金翎翻譯為英文的長篇小說《臺灣漫遊錄》勇奪大獎。

  這是首度有台灣文學作品獲頒「布克國際獎」，創下台灣文學與「布克國際獎」歷史首例。

  在此之前，台灣僅有作家吳明益於2018年以作品《單車失竊記》入圍布克獎初選。

  「布克國際獎」獎勵虛構文學創作，參加評選的作品必須是翻譯為英文、並在英國或愛爾蘭出版的長篇小說或短篇選集。獎金5萬英鎊（約新台幣210萬元）由作者與譯者均分，以彰顯翻譯的重要性。

  含《臺灣漫遊錄》在內，2026年「布克國際獎」決選名單總計有6部作品；作品原文多達5種，包含中文、保加利亞文、法文、德文、葡萄牙文。

  評審團主席、小說家娜塔莎布朗在評語寫道，「愛情能克服權力不對等嗎？」，以1930年代日治時期台灣為背景的「臺灣漫遊錄」細膩幽微地探討了這個問題。

  娜塔莎布朗表示，《臺灣漫遊錄》既是成功的愛情故事，也是犀利的後殖民小說。評審們相當享受針對這部作品的多重層次展開的豐富討論。這是一部令人著迷、不張揚，但充滿巧思的小說。

  楊双子接下獎座後，對著台下來自不同國家地區的數百位藝文界人士發表得獎感言。她說，有些人認為藝術與文學必須遠離政治，「但我認為，文學無法自外於它所生長的土壤」；就此而言，「文學本質上從未脫離政治」。

  楊双子指出，綜觀台灣文學發展史，「百年來我們其實不斷地在探問：台灣人想要什麼樣的未來？臺灣人想要什麼樣的國家？」。時至今日，「臺灣漫遊錄」也是加入這個探問的其中一部小說作品。

  「台灣人歷經殖民政權，面臨侵略威脅，在力量懸殊的強權面前，文學有用嗎？——而我始終相信文學有力量。」

  楊双子說，文學看似緩慢，但總是堅定行動。文學通常安靜，卻沒有阻礙信念遠播。翻譯會造成時差，但可以跨越時間與空間的限制。

  譯者金翎指出，一般來說，英文的翻譯文學的前提是：翻譯，以及譯者，最好都是「隱形」的。但在這本書裡，有譯者注腳、序與後記，而相同的書面漢字有三種不同的發音系統。

  比起原作，金翎說，英文版需要讀者投入更多心力，因為它「拒絕簡化台灣多語言、多元文化、多族群的現實」。

  正是因為如此，金翎原以為《臺灣漫遊錄》英文版只會吸引一小群精準的讀者。然而，自2024年在美國出版以來，它卻獲得超乎預期的強大關注，並榮獲2024年美國國家圖書獎翻譯文學獎。

  不過，她強調，「沒有任何一本小說應該扛起幫整個國家發聲的重擔」。她對自己以及同儕譯者的期許，是將「來自台灣的各種聲音帶入英語世界，以致任何人都無法將台灣文學簡化為鐵板一塊」。

  金翎比喻，「我們不是齊聲合唱，而是眾聲喧譁，充滿矛盾且不羈的精神——正如任何一個強健的民主社會」。

  《臺灣漫遊錄》在英國的出版社And Other Stories資深編輯托柏勒（Tara Tobler）近日接受中央社訪問時提到，第一次接觸《臺灣漫遊錄》，她「馬上就愛上」這本書。她另幽默表示，《臺灣漫遊錄》對飲食的描述十分引人入勝，一旦這部作品奪得大獎，或許可考慮在英國推出「有插圖和食譜的版本」。（中央社）
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