PEN on #IWD2016: "Women writers in translation to read right now"

For International Women’s Day 2016, English PEN (Twitter: @englishpen) had #readwomen founder Joanna Walsh (@badaude) created a roundup of the best women authors from around the world which can be read in translation. From Latin America to Europe to Asia, she highlights a range of women and women’s perspectives, including the 2004 Nobel-prize winning Elfriede Jelinek.

The purpose of English PEN is to “to defend and promote freedom of expression, and to remove barriers to literature.” Women around the globe often face far higher barriers to their free expression than men, from the basic right to gain access to education in order to read and write, to violence up to and including assassination to keep their voices from being heard.

English PEN is a national chapter; part of the broader international movement, PEN international. The international site features more information about the history, achievements, and barriers that women writers face, and this year has a campaign for three women, two in Iran and one in Egypt, who have been imprisoned for their writing.

Which international women writers inspire you? Which ones deserve broader global audiences through translation? We’d love to hear your thoughts. Write us at projects@e2f.com.