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If This Be Magic

Name: If This Be Magic
Brand: Allen & Unwin Aotearoa New Zealand
SKU: 9781805301622
Price: 59.99 NZD
Availability: InStock

The Unlikely Art of Shakespeare in Translation

By Daniel Hahn

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Brief Description

Why might Hamlet be even longer in Italian? How does the story of Romeo and Juliet begin . . . in Thai? How do you build a joke in German, or recreate a rhyme in Japanese? And why are Lady Macbeth's pronouns such a problem? What... Read More

Format: Hardback

$59⁹⁹

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Releases 12^th May 2026 (Approx. Date) Pre-order "If This Be Magic" now to secure your copy from our first shipment

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If This Be Magic

$59⁹⁹

If This Be Magic

A fascinating study into the world of translation and Shakespeare from the award-winning translator Daniel Hahn

Description

Why might Hamlet be even longer in Italian?

How does the story of Romeo and Juliet begin . . . in Thai?

How do you build a joke in German, or recreate a rhyme in Japanese?

And why are Lady Macbeth's pronouns such a problem?

What does it mean to translate Shakespeare? When we change all the poetry, all the wordplay, all the syntax - all the words! - is it still Shakespeare? And is it still any good?

Daniel Hahn, seasoned translator and Shakespeare fanatic, will change the way you think about language itself. Ranging widely across Shakespeare's works, and across the world's languages, this book explores why we choose the words we do and what effect they have.

No knowledge of any particular language is required, though a bit of patience for the nerdiest of close reading is desirable. This micro-attention to detail will reveal anew the joy of Shakespeare, celebrate creativity, and revel in the power of words themselves.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781805301622

Publisher: Canongate Books

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 09 April 2026

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Canongate Books

Edition: Main

Audience: Tertiary education, Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 34.0mm

Width: 159.0mm

Height: 240.0mm

Weight: 639g

Pages: 416

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About the Author

Daniel Hahn is an award-winning translator, author and editor. His translations include novels from a dozen countries, as well as short fiction, wide-ranging non-fiction, children's books and plays. He is the author of Catching Fire: A Translation Diary, and editor of a new edition of The Oxford Companion to Children's Literature. He has been on the board of a number of organisations that work with literature, literacy and free speech. He is currently editing The Penguin Book of Brazilian Short Stories (with Padma Viswanathan) and translating a Mexican novel.

danielhahn.co.uk