Sophie Hughes (born 1986) is a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

literary translator who works chiefly from Spanish to English. She is known for her translations of contemporary writers such as Laia Jufresa, Rodrigo Hasbún,

Alia Trabucco Zerán Alia Trabucco Zerán (born 26 August 1983) is a Chilean writer. She has an MFA in creative writing in Spanish from New York University and a PhD in Spanish and Latin American studies from University College London. Her debut novel ''La Resta'' ('' ...

and Fernanda Melchor. Her works have been shortlisted for the

International Dublin Literary Award The International Dublin Literary Award ( ga, Duais Liteartha Idirnáisiúnta Bhaile Átha Chliath), established as the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award in 1996, is presented each year for a novel written or translated into English. ...

International Booker Prize The International Booker Prize (formerly known as the Man Booker International Prize) is an international literary award hosted in the United Kingdom. The introduction of the International Prize to complement the Man Booker Prize was announced ...

Man Booker International Prize The International Booker Prize (formerly known as the Man Booker International Prize) is an international literary award hosted in the United Kingdom. The introduction of the International Prize to complement the Man Booker Prize was announced ...

, along with other awards.

Personal life

Hughes was born in

Chertsey Chertsey is a town in the Borough of Runnymede, Surrey, England, south-west of central London. It grew up round Chertsey Abbey, founded in 666 CE, and gained a market charter from Henry I. A bridge across the River Thames first appeared in t ...

, England in June 1986 and currently lives in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...

Education

Hughes received a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

Comparative Literature Comparative literature is an academic field dealing with the study of literature and cultural expression across linguistic, national, geographic, and disciplinary boundaries. Comparative literature "performs a role similar to that of the study ...

from

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

in 2011.

Career

Following graduation from

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

, Hughes moved to

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital city, capital and primate city, largest city of Mexico, and the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North Amer ...

and began working as ''

Asymptote In analytic geometry, an asymptote () of a curve is a line such that the distance between the curve and the line approaches zero as one or both of the ''x'' or ''y'' coordinates tends to infinity. In projective geometry and related context ...

'''s editor-at-large. During this time, she also served as a guest editor for ''

Words Without Borders ''Words Without Borders'' (''WWB'') is an international magazine open to international exchange through translation, publication, and promotion of the world's best writing and authors who are not easily accessible to English-speaking readers. The ...

.'' She also translated journalistic work about Mexico for

English PEN Founded in 1921, English PEN is one of the world's first non-governmental organisations and among the first international bodies advocating for human rights. English PEN was the founding centre of PEN International, a worldwide writers' associat ...

and ''

the Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', as well as a section of the essay collection ''The Sorrows of Mexico.'' Hughes has also worked as a translation correspondent for '' Dazed & Confused''. Hughes' first published book was a translation of Iván Repila’s ''The Boy Who Stole Attila’s Horse'', published in 2015''.'' She is interested in co-translation and has worked with Amanda Hopkinson,

Margaret Jull Costa Margaret Elisabeth Jull Costa OBE, OIH (born 2 May 1949) is a British translator of Portuguese- and Spanish-language fiction and poetry, including the works of Nobel Prize winner José Saramago, Eça de Queiroz, Fernando Pessoa, Paulo Coelho, B ...

, and

Juana Adcock Jennifer Adcock (born 1982), also known as Juana Adcock, is a Mexican-born, Scotland-based poet and translator. Her first collection of poems ''Manca'' appeared in 2014, and was chosen by the Mexican critic Sergio González Rodríguez as one of the ...

Selected translated works

Books

* ''

Paradais ''Paradais'' (originally titled ''Páradais'' in Spanish) is a novel by Mexican author Fernanda Melchor. It was published in its original Spanish in 2021 by Literatura Random House. An English translation by Sophie Hughes was published in 2022 b ...

'' by Fernanda Melchor (2022) * ''When Women Kill: Four Crimes Retold'' by Alia Trabucco Zeran (2022) * ''Empty Houses'' by Brenda Navarro (2020) * '' Hurricane Season'' by Fernanda Melchor (2020) *''The Sorrows of Mexico'' by

Lydia Cacho Lydia María Cacho Ribeiro (born 12 April 1963) is a Mexican journalist, feminist, and human rights activist. Described by Amnesty International as "perhaps Mexico's most famous investigative journalist and women's rights advocate", Cacho's repor ...

et al. (contributor)(2020) * ''Mac and His Problem'' by

Enrique Vila-Matas Enrique Vila-Matas (born 31 March 1948 in Barcelona) is a Spanish author. He has authored several award-winning books that mix genres and has been branded as one of the most original and prominent writers in the Spanish language. He is a foundi ...

(with

) (2019) *''An Orphan World'' by

Giuseppe Caputo Giuseppe Caputo (born 1982) is a Colombian writer. He was born in Barranquilla on the Caribbean coast, and studied both in Colombia and in the United States. He has an MFA in creative writing from New York University and the University of Iowa. ...

(with

) (2019) * ''The Hole'' by

José Revueltas José Revueltas Sánchez (November 20, 1914 in Santiago Papasquiaro, Durango – April 14, 1976 in Mexico City) was a Mexican writer, essayist, and political activist. He was part of an important artistic family that included his siblings Silve ...

(with Amanda Hopkinson)(2018) *''The Remainder'' by

(2018) * ''Affections'' by Rodrigo Hasbún (2017) *''Still the Same Man'' by

Jon Bilbao Juan Manuel Bilbao Azkarreta, also known as Jon Bilbao or Jon Bilbao Azkarreta (31 October 1914 – 23 May 1994) was a university instructor, a bibliographer, and an activist for Basque nationalism. He compiled the bibliographic section of the ''En ...

(2016) * ''The Boy Who Stole Attila's Horse'' by Iván Repila (2015) *''Umami'' by Laia Jufresa (2015)

Essays

* "I Am Not Your Cholo" by Marco Avilés, in ''Words Without Borders'' (2017) * "Señor Socket and the Señora from the Café" by Julio Villanueva Chang, in ''Words Without Borders'' (2017)

Short stories

* "The Cornerist" by Laia Jufresa, in ''Words Without Borders'' (2015) * "Long Distance" by Rodrigo Hasbún, in ''Words Without Borders'' (2015) * "Mexico Interrupted" with Thomas Bunstead, in ''Words Without Borders'' (2015) * "An Orphan World" by

, in ''Words Without Borders'' (2017) * "A Bitter Pill" by

, in ''Words Without Borders'' (2019)

Awards and honours

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hughes, Sophie Spanish–English translators Living people 1986 births Alumni of University College London