Today I am celebrating the good news that the French and German translations of The Naked Swiss: A Nation Behind 10 Myths are out in the world. My copies arrived this week and I am delighted with the look and feel of the new books.
The publication of the translations coincides with the publication of the second edition of the original version, which has an extra chapter on the Swiss relationship with the European Union. For more about the second edition, check out this interview. The books are available online from the publishers Bergli Books and Helvetiq (German, French), from the usual online booksellers and in all good book shops in Switzerland.
The German title is Die Wahre Schweiz, which means the true or the real Switzerland, and the French is La Suisse mise à nu, which means Switzerland laid bare. The subtitles of both are the same: ‘A people and their 10 myths’. It has been a fascinating process working the with the translators to produce a text that was faithful to the original, as well as being crystal clear to readers from other cultures.
Also today, Swiss author Hans Durrer published a glowing review of The Naked Swiss, in which he praised the book as “highly informative”, “profoundly balanced” and “good storytelling”.
And the final bit of good news is the launch of this book trailer, created by Bergli Books. Enjoy!
That’s a really interesting part of publishing I haven’t read a lot about. Were you part of the process for new titles and cover images? If so, I’d be curious as to the explanations of why some words or images were selected based on region.
I was part of the process in the sense that I was kept informed about developments and there were some suggestions back and forth about the title. But I was happy to go with the preference of the native speakers, who know better whether something has a good ring to it. The artwork is really the publisher’s area. Again, they have a better feel for marketing and style in their own language region. So that wasn’t something I went into in any depth. Thanks for asking!
Congratulations on the new editions! And congratulations to Bergli for creating such an excellent trailer. Absolutely to the point and gripping.
Thank you, Kim! Glad you like the trailer 🙂
Your new updated edition is not available in the U.S., as far as I can tell. Amazon (US) still only offers your 1st edition. Do you know when (if) the 2nd Edition will become available here?
Hi Eileen, I will pass that query on to the publisher and get back to you here as soon as I have some info. All the best, Clare
Hi Eileen, sorry for the delay in answering. The publisher expects the new edition to be available on Amazon US from next week.