I came across the name Polly Barton as the translator of Hunchback, a novella written by Saou Ichikawa, a Japanese novelist. Hunchback won the prestigious Akutagawa Prize, and it will be available in English this spring from Penguin Random House. I enjoyed writing the review (which will become available in World Literature Today) for this important book, but the real reason I wanted to work with the book was because I was curious about this British translator. I wrote the review in English, reading the Japanese original while waiting for my review copy. The translation didn’t change my perceptions gained from the original.
So, Fifty Sounds. Polly Barton won the 2019 Fitzcarraldo Editions Essay Prize for this book, composed of fifty short chapters, and each chapter title is a Japanese onomatopoeia with a short definition as she perceived the “sound.” It’s a brilliant idea because Japanese is particularly rich in onomatopoeia, and you almost must experience the “word” to understand its nuance and correct usage. They are tricky and sensuous parts of the language. The essays tell us why she went to Japan and what happened during and since. Each onomatopoeia symbolizes the kernel of the life happening and her honest state of mind at the moment of each chapter. What I like best about the book is how she illuminated the Japanese language from the other, the new-to-the-language side to me, a native reader. It is far beyond typical translator’ s notes. (I want to interview her one day!)
Fifty Sounds is, of course, a play on Fifty Shades, a series of erotic novels by British author E. L. James. FYI: Her second book Porn: An Oral History was published by Fitzcarraldo Edition in 2023.
©2025 Miho Kinnas
Huge thanks to Miho Kinnas for submitting this book review to A Polite Lie.
Miho’s courses are always popular on the Tender Leaves Online Academy. Her Fiction and Translation: A Case Study focuses on Murakami in translation – both his translations into Japanese and translations of his work into English. It’s a really great exploration of Murakami from two different angles. Check out the course today for the discounted price of $79 (usual price $109). Prices are in Singapore dollars, so that’s just US$59!
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