The English translation of Banana King Ngoo Tsin-sui (蕉王吳振瑞), a historical novel by Taiwanese author Lee Wang-tai (李旺台), has won the bronze prize in the historical fiction category at the Foreword Reviews magazine Indies Book of the Year Awards 2024.
Lee’s book, published in English by Shadelandhouse Modern Press, recounts the true story of Ngoo Tsin-sui, who “massively expanded Taiwan’s banana trade during dark days of martial law,” Kirkus Reviews said.
“Lee’s depiction of Tsin-sui as an innovator who put cash in the hands of small farmers is inspiring, and his story offers life lessons as well as obvious warnings about authoritarian government,” the US book review magazine said.
Photo courtesy of Mirror Fiction via CNA
After receiving the award, Lee said: “I feel lucky to present life stories from this island and show the character of its people.”
“I want to write Taiwan well, write Taiwanese people well, so that foreigners can truly understand the spirit of this land,” he added.
Translator Timothy Smith, a former translator at the Taipei Times, said he was motivated by the book’s portrayal of Taiwan’s political journey through the then-authoritarian Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) period.
Smith said the book reminded him of Taiwanese friends whose families experienced cultural and linguistic suppression.
To preserve the novel’s linguistic diversity when translating into natural-sounding English, Smith said he retained terms in the Taiwanese (Hokkien), Hakka and Japanese languages.
According to Foreword Reviews, the annual awards celebrate outstanding books published by small, independent and university presses.
“Foreword’s dedicated editors carefully selected approximately 12 finalists per genre, which were then presented to individual librarians and booksellers entrusted with the challenging task of determining the Gold, Silver, Bronze and Honorable Mention winners,” the magazine said.
Alongside Banana King Ngoo Tsin-sui in the historical fiction category, Donna Coffey Little’s Wofford’s Blood won gold, while David Ciminello’s The Queen of Steeplechase Park won silver.
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