Do you know of a book on Jewish themes that has been published in English translation in 2023-2025? It could be eligible for new Freudenheim Translation Prize launched by the Jewish Literary Foundation.
The prize is sponsored by Tom and Leslie Freudenheim in honor of their son Adam Freudenheim, the Publisher & Managing Director of Pushkin Press.
It recognizes “outstanding books that explore Jewish themes, history, identity or culture – or are of significant interest to Jewish and wider audiences.”
The prize offers a £3,000 award to the winning translator.
Books published in English between June 2023 and June 2025, originally written in any language other than English, are eligible. Translators, publishers, or authors may submit.
The longlist will be announced in November, and the shortlist next January and the Prize will be presented at Jewish Book Week in London, in March 2026.
Tom and Leslie Freudenheim, sponsors of the prize, said in a statement: “So much of the world’s great literature has been made available to a wide-reading public through translation. Our son Adam has spent his publishing career enabling the wide availability of a range of literary works in English translation. Establishing this award in honor of Adam’s milestone [50th] birthday celebrates the unity of both his deep Jewish and his professional commitments.”
To submit a book for consideration, please make sure you have read the full terms and conditions, and then download and complete the submission form.
For queries related to the prize, please contact [email protected]
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NOTE: the “fine print” states that “Only complete works of fiction or non-fiction are eligible; technical, scientific, and reference works are excluded.” Self-published translations are also not allowed.
We would argue that, even though it is a scholarly (scientific) work, Krzysztof Bielawski’s important book, The Destruction of Jewish Cemeteries in Poland, which came out in English last year, would fit the broader description of being a book “of significant interest to both the Jewish and wider community.” After all, it is an outstanding book on Jewish culture and ideas and tells a narrative of post-Holocaust trauma and its legacy…..