--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I've never translated more than one book…" description: "\"I've never translated more than one book by any author. But I'm fascinated by translators who have, like Richard Zenith, who's translated so much of Fe..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/idra-novey-35113_book_i-ve-never-translated-more-than-one-book_1057462.jpg" --- # I've never translated more than one book by any author… ![“I've never translated more than one book by any author. But I'm fascinated by translators who have, like Richard Zenith, who's translated so much of Fernando Pessoa's work. I get restless for a new kind of influence. The books I've translated are books I want to learn from as a writer, to be…” quote by Idra Novey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/idra-novey-35113_book_i-ve-never-translated-more-than-one-book_1057462.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/idra-novey-35113_book_i-ve-never-translated-more-than-one-book_1057462.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/idra-novey-35113_book_i-ve-never-translated-more-than-one-book_1057462.jpg) > “I've never translated more than one book by any author. But I'm fascinated by translators who have, like Richard Zenith, who's translated so much of Fernando Pessoa's work. I get restless for a new kind of influence. The books I've translated are books I want to learn from as a writer, to be intoxicated by. And translation is an act of writing in itself. It's an act of recreation - of a writer's cadence and tone and everything that distinguishes the voice in the book.” [Idra Novey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idra-novey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Translators deeply engage with a writer’s voice, turning translation into a creative act that informs their own writing. **In simple terms:** Translation is a creative rewrite that teaches writers. Key Takeaway Study translations to hone your own style. Themes creativity learning voice craftsmanship Mood reflective inspirational educational Type quote insight When to use this quote - learning new styles - writing practice - creative immersion Key Concepts translation as writing influence literary apprenticeship Questions to Reflect On - How does translation shape your voice? - What risks arise from over‑identifying with another author? A Different Perspective Translation may limit original voice; balance is needed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Influence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/influence/) [Restless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/restless/) [Translation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/translation/) [Translations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/translations/) [Translators](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/translators/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Translated books rarely get reviewed in the press. 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But there's another set of stories that are always there, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-colla/the-stories-that-confirm-that-bigger-story-are-brought-in-and-easily/) [Elliott Colla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-colla/) > [Regardless of whether the authors I've translated have been "dead and canonized," or "living and established," or even simply "emerging," I must put myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/regardless-of-whether-the-authors-i-ve-translated-have-been-dead-and/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) > [In the last 1,000 years, the Arabs have translated as many books as Spain translates in just one year.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-elder/in-the-last-1-000-years-the-arabs-have-translated-as-many-books-as/) [Larry Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-elder/) > [The nature of anguish is translated into different forms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kline/the-nature-of-anguish-is-translated-into-different-forms/) [Franz Kline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kline/) > [I'm a writer. In Latin America, they say I'm a Latin-American writer because I also write in Spanish and my books are translated, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/i-m-a-writer-in-latin-america-they-say-i-m-a-latin-american-writer/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [Home to me is the world because my books have been translated into more than 30 languages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nawal-el-saadawi/home-to-me-is-the-world-because-my-books-have-been-translated-into/) [Nawal El Saadawi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nawal-el-saadawi/) > [“Qui jacet in terra non habet unde cadat. In me consumpsit vires fortuna nocendo, Nil superest ut iam possit obesse magis." (loosely translated: "He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-kyd/qui-jacet-in-terra-non-habet-unde-cadat-in-me-consumpsit-vires/) [Thomas Kyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-kyd/) > [“It is safe to say that poetry cannot be translated.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-ma-guerrero/it-is-safe-to-say-that-poetry-cannot-be-translated/) Leon Ma. Guerrero > [My game from college has translated into the pros.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-brogdon/my-game-from-college-has-translated-into-the-pros/) [Malcolm Brogdon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-brogdon/) > [“A Spanish poet, Antonio Machado, once said: ‘Dijiste media verdad. Dirán que mientes dos veces si dices la otra mitad.’” “Translated means…” “You told…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olga-n-ez-miret/a-spanish-poet-antonio-machado-once-said-dijiste-media-verdad-dir-n/) [Olga Núñez Miret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olga-n-ez-miret/) > [If economic progress is not translated into better quality of life and respect for citizens' rights, we will witness more Tahrir Squares in Africa.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mo-ibrahim/if-economic-progress-is-not-translated-into-better-quality-of-life/) [Mo Ibrahim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mo-ibrahim/) > [“If i live on longer, shall i again, i wonder, yearn for these days ? The world that i once saw as bitter, now,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pictures-of-the-heart-fujiwara-no-kiyosuke/if-i-live-on-longer-shall-i-again-i-wonder-yearn-for-these-days-the/) pictures of the heart Fujiwara no Kiyosuke ## More by Idra Novey > [Humor is serious work. But it keeps everybody at the table.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idra-novey/humor-is-serious-work-but-it-keeps-everybody-at-the-table/) [Idra Novey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idra-novey/) > [What is the task of the translator? I think the task depends on the book and on the translator.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idra-novey/what-is-the-task-of-the-translator-i-think-the-task-depends-on-the/) [Idra Novey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idra-novey/) > [“The world made no exception for lovers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idra-novey/the-world-made-no-exception-for-lovers/) [Idra Novey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idra-novey/) > [It would be great if I woke up tomorrow and could speak Persian. Wouldn't you love to wake and have a language in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idra-novey/it-would-be-great-if-i-woke-up-tomorrow-and-could-speak-persian/) [Idra Novey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idra-novey/) > [I have a deep love for the art of translation, and I couldn't find a novel that captured the fascinating, reckless adventure of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idra-novey/i-have-a-deep-love-for-the-art-of-translation-and-i-couldn-t-find-a/) [Idra Novey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idra-novey/) > [I think we think that American books are funny or they're serious literature. But humor is subversive. 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My impulse has always been to translate someone else…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idra-novey/i-ve-never-had-the-impulse-for-someone-else-to-translate-me-into-my/) [Idra Novey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idra-novey/) > [A single conversation can change things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idra-novey/a-single-conversation-can-change-things/) [Idra Novey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idra-novey/) > [It's the best motivation to have a particular beloved reader in mind! Because you feel this urgency that you really want somebody you care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idra-novey/it-s-the-best-motivation-to-have-a-particular-beloved-reader-in-mind/) [Idra Novey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idra-novey/) [Explore all 11 Idra Novey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idra-novey/) ## More Book quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. 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I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. 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