Pratima, whose family owns a bookshop in Pokhara, said of her experience, "Ajit dai would often visit our bookstore and that's when I found out that he was looking to translate the book into English. I worked on it for four months. Translation is much easier than writing something from scratch. I did have a little trouble in some places as I haven't read a lot of Nepali books but my parents helped me out."During the launch ceremony, Sharma, 21, also read out an excerpt from the book which tells the story of young students Atit and Saaya.
Published by FinePrint, 'Summer Love' was a bestseller after it first came in the market in 2012.
Appearing happy with the work, Bhattarai said, "Most of the English translations of Nepali books are literal and don't quite retain the feel of the original. But this translation preserves the beauty of the original language as Pratima has tried to capture the meaning of the sentences rather than deliver them word for word."
Actress Karki also congratulated the translator by saying, "I felt as if the book was originally written in English. I think the translator has done a wonderful job."
Publisher Ajit Baral said that the company will be increasingly working on translations to make Nepali literature accessible to English readers. It was also announced that Nepali translations of 'Goat Days' by Benyamin and 'Battles of a New Republic' by Prashant Jha will be coming out next month.
The English translation of 'Summer Love' is priced at Rs 300.
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