Well, it’s not even that bad. Some very goofy mistakes, like you say, but there are worse ways to ruin a book – and these are still good. But really, I can’t think of how many times I’ve read “Si può ben dire” in TGWKtHN >.< not such the finest translation, I think..

Posted by Maria in Pz, Italy ,

I read the first book in english and the second in italian.

I did find some difficulties in making sense of some phrases on the italian version, but still enjoyed it very much!

I am just about to read the third one in italian and can’t wait to know what will happened!!

Such good books, probably it is silly to be so fussy..

Posted by Manuela in london ,

the only problem is maybe that there aren’t so many good, fluent or what you want call them translators from swedish to english or italian, at first. and you have to remember that written language has lost many of its rules, plenty of newspapers or writers are putting commas between subject and verb in a sentence; this was the first rule, or one among them, in prima elementare!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

second question is that swedish has for sure a different sintactical construction than what you usually are reading, maybe some anglosaxon literature, or italian in this case. me, for example, i can read american literature, even in no translation, but real uk english i feel too tiring and boring. same with spanish (maybe south american ones) or ebraic or italian classical books, meaning them to be older than 50years. you have a different choice of words on the different languages, and when you translate it, you can sometimes feel what the original was. american has shorter sentences than italian or french, with all those “incisi” and subordinated.

but i agree, the italian translation of these 3 books is sometimes really poor and inaccurate, i met some wrong (to me) choice of verbs, imperfetto when it had to be passato remoto for example, and the always repeating lisbeth salander, even 4 times in a page!!! maybe in swedish they don’t have or use the pronouns????

i read 2 of the books for sure in the electronic version on my ebook, so hadn’t the chance to use my red pencil, as i always do while reading, but the need for it was really there!!!

if i can soothe you, by chance i met today one marsilio person, and told him about those inaccuracies.

they sold some one million and a half copies, so maybe they’re not worrying too much about our grammar feelings;)))

true that i read already some mankell books, so maybe i’m already in this cool, icy, practical, without feelings, scandinavian writing mood and that (with the clearly evident value of the plot) helped me maybe a lot to get through the fussiness.

Posted by joana in venezia ,

Joana, I might agree with you on that the Italian version/translation is not that rich and accurate (and of course grammar has rules) but that might be the success of the book and its strenght. a Spartan and direct way of telling a story without too many details and with a strict and quick attention to the facts and their fast development.. I guess it is part of the atmosphere.. it is not Dickens but that makes is cool.. fact is I finished them all and feel lonely now..

Posted by costantino in salerno ,