Festival 42

The great Russian author Anna Starobínets, one of the most prominent, creative and incisive names in international fantasy genres, is daring, outspoken and brave in her literary creations. Using the different codes of the genre, especially horror and science fiction, she has held a mirror up to reality and highlighted what should concern us the most, as individuals and as a society. The extensive criticism of her country of birth in her work forced her into exile (happily, she has ended up in Barcelona). Never repetitive, she made a name for herself (especially with The Icarus Gland, published in Catalan by Mai Més, where horror and science fiction stories coexist with a view to the near future) and has now changed course in her career. In her latest book, Fox Fords (Catalan translation published by Mai Més), she goes a step further in her fusion of genres, combining elements of historical fiction with Eastern mythology, science fiction and horror. This text, set just after the Second World War in Manchuria, features fox women, mindreaders, genetic experiments and people who can talk to the dead. She will talk about all these elements with the prestigious Catalan translator of Fox Fords, Miquel Cabal, a prominent figure in Russian–Catalan translation who also translated The Icarus Gland for Mai Més. This will be a great opportunity to explore Starobínets’ work through the lens of language, style and geopolitical variables.

* Activity with simultaneous translation to catalan.