New Books in German promotes German-language literature for translation into English in the UK, USA, and beyond. We feature recommendations of the best new fiction and non-fiction titles from Austria, Germany, and Switzerland. We publish articles and information on books, authors, and those who translate or work with them.
On the website you can explore exciting and accomplished contemporary German-language literature and non-fiction. Busy editors can find and share information on the latest books deemed suitable for an international audience. German-language publishers can bring their books to a wider audience, with the endorsement that being selected by New Books in German brings.
Twice a year we convene expert juries in the UK and US to select books submitted to us by German-language publishers. Those that we go on to recommend here have been judged to have a high chance of success in an English-speaking market.
New Books in German took shape at a seminar held in London in 1996. Members of the book trade met to discuss why so few books were being translated from German into English, and what might be done about this. It was clear that readers of English were being denied access to some of the best books in a variety of fields. You can read an interview with Tanja Howarth, one of the founders of NBG here.
Recent jury choices, now in English
Recent jury choices, forthcoming in English
Who we are
Sarah Hemens
Sarah is the Project Director of New Books in German.
Sarah previously worked in grant writing and communications in human rights, working with donors in Europe, the US and Africa and managing a publications programme.
The last translations I read: I loved Brothers and Ghosts by Khuê Phạm.
Looking forward to reading: I have just made a start on Linn Hierse’s first novel Wovon wir träumen.
Sheridan Marshall
Sheridan is our Editorial Consultant.
Sheridan has worked on our editorial team for twelve years, and also does freelance editorial and translation work.
Books: I have recently read Robert Menasse’s Die Erweiterung (‘The Enlargement’), his stunning sequel to The Capital, (tr. Jamie Bulloch), and thoroughly enjoyed this next instalment in his satirical EU saga. The last book I read was Percival Everett’s Booker-shortlisted The Trees which somehow manages to be both a deeply upsetting history of the lynchings in the USA during the 20th century and a witty detective novel. Nothing to do with German-language literature, but I can’t recommend it highly enough!
Sarah Buckmaster
Sarah is our Social Media and Website Co-ordinator.
Sarah is a Writer and Communications Specialist.
Currently carrying out PhD research on the future of reading, Sarah carries out freelance work for global charities and non-profit organisations – helping to improve their engagement and outreach. You can find out more about her work at www.sarahbuckmaster.com. She is also the host of the How to be Good? Podcast.
The last translations I read: I loved The High-Rise Diver by Julia von Lucadou, translated by Sharmila Cohen.
Looking forward to reading: I am eager to read Juli Zeh’s Empty Hearts (tr. John Cullen). Zeh’s background as an attorney adds such a depth to her story-telling so I can’t wait to read this one.
Sarah Rimmington
Sarah is a freelance translator, reviewer and copy editor and is our proofreader and copy editor.
The last translations I read: Sandra Hoffmann’s Paula (a luminous translation by Katy Derbyshire, and a work I was lucky enough to get to work on at the British Centre for Literary Translation summer school in 2018); and 1913: The Year Before the Storm by Florian Illies (tr. Shaun Whiteside and Jamie Lee Searle), a wide-ranging and unconventional artistic portrait of a portentous 12-months.
Translations I am looking forward to reading: So many! At the top of my current pile are Dark Satellites by Clemens Meyer (tr. Katy Derbyshire) and The Great Homecoming (tr. Jamie Lee Searle).
Tayiba Sulaiman
Tayiba Sulaiman is a writer and translator from Manchester. She recently completed a literary translation mentorship with the National Centre for Writing. She spent a year working in Berlin in 2022 and read her writing at the 23rd Poesiefestival in Berlin.
She is a member of the Writing Squad.
Sarah Wolbach
Sarah graduated from Bard College Berlin in May 2024. She is currently based in Berlin, where she works as an intern in foreign rights and spends time crafting sample translations from German to English. She plans to continue her studies with an MA in Publishing from Manchester Metropolitan University beginning September 2024. She enjoys reading literary fiction in translation, especially works by women writers.
NBG Advisors
Our advisors help to evaluate the German-language submissions we receive.
Jamie Lee Searle
Jamie Lee Searle is a translator from German and Portuguese. She is a co-founder of the Emerging Translators Network and has read books for New Books in German since 2007. Her latest translations include Urs Faes’ Twelve Nights (Harvill Secker, 2020) and Anna Kim’s The Great Homecoming (Granta, 2020).
Looking forward to reading: An Inventory of Losses by Judith Schalansky, translated by Jackie Smith, is high on my TBR list, as is Daughters by Lucy Fricke, translated by Sinead Crowe and published by the exciting new imprint V&Q Books, launched by Katy Derbyshire.
A book I’d like to translate: Die Goldene Stadt by Sabrina Janesch, a spellbinding fictionalized account of the life of 19th century German explorer Augusto R. Berns and his adventures in Peru – a vibrant, wonderful story that’s held me in its grip since I first read it a few years ago.
Caroline Waight
Caroline Waight is an award-winning literary translator working from German and Danish. She has translated a wide range of fiction and non-fiction, with recent publications including The Chestnut Man (Penguin, 2019), Agatha (Sceptre, 2019) and Island (Pushkin Press, 2021). She lives and works near London.
The last translations I have read: Limonov by Emmanuel Carrère (tr. John Lambert). I read The Kingdom before that (same translator), and if I spoke French I’d probably read everything else Carrère has written too. I’m mildly obsessed.
Looking forward to reading: Jana Scheerer, Das Meer in meinem Zimmer. I’ve just translated another book about the North Sea coast, so this one immediately piqued my interest.
New Books in German juries
Our jury meets twice a year to consider each book submitted by German-language publishers. We are supported in this work by research done by a small team of book assessors. The jury has members from both the UK and US. Some jury members sit on the jury for each round, others join on a temporary basis to ensure both organisational knowledge as well as fresh perspectives and backgrounds.
Jurors
We thank all of our jurors past and present. Recent jurors include:
Cecile Barendsma, CB Literary Agency
Peter Blackstock, Grove Atlantic
Jamie Bulloch, translator
Juliane Camfield, Director, Deutsches Haus at NYU
Gersy Ifeanyi (Ahanotu) Ejimofo, Consultant | Curator | Publisher
Shelley Frisch, translator
Markus Hoffmann, Regal Hoffmann & Associates
Tanja Howarth, Tanja Howarth Literary Agency
Annemarie Goodridge, Translation Programmes Coordinator, Goethe-Institut London
Tess Lewis, Translator
Sheridan Marshall, Editorial Consultant, New Books in German
Alexandra Műller-Crepon, Head of Culture, Embassy of Switzerland
Barbara Perlmutter, consultant, formerly S. Fischer Verlag
Bettina Schrewe, US Scout
Riky Stock, Frankfurt Book Fair
Mira Trenchard, Mira Trenchard Literary Scouting
Melina Tsiamos, Deputy Director, Austrian Cultural Forum New York
Anne Vial, Literary Scout at Anne Vial Literary Scouting
Alexandra Wachek, Music, Theatre & Literature Project Manager, Austrian Cultural Forum London
Dean Whiteside, Goethe-Institut New York
Shaun Whiteside, translator
Steering Committee & Funding
The Steering Committee guides the direction of our work and scrutinises management and finances.
- Waltraud Dennhardt-Herzog, Director, Austrian Cultural Forum
- Susanne Frane, Head of Section, Culture and Education, German Embassy London
- Reina Gehrig, Head of Literature, Pro Helvetia and and Sina Chiavi, Literature Specialist (German), Pro Helvetia
- Tanja Howarth, Tanja Howarth Literary Agency
- Alexandra Műller-Crepon, Head of Culture, Embassy of Switzerland
- Katharina von Ruckteschell-Katte, Director, Head of the London Office and the Northwestern Europe Region, Goethe-Institut
- Robert Stocker, Head of literature and publishing, libraries, Federal Ministry for Art, Culture, Public Service and Sport, The Austrian Federal Government
- Niki Théron, International Programmes Manager and Lars Birken-Bertsch, Director Strategic Project Development, Cooperation & Programme, Frankfurt Book Fair
Funding
New Books in German is very grateful for the financial and / or in-kind support it receives from the following organisations:
- the Austrian Cultural Forum London
- the Austrian Federal Ministry for Art, Culture, Public Service and Sport
- the Austrian Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs
- the Frankfurt Book Fair
- the Goethe-Institut London
- the Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia
Once a book has been recommended on the site, we ask the German publisher of the book to pay a fee. These fees total around a fifth of our overall income and go towards running the submissions process, adjudicating and profiling the books.
Internships
We take interns on twice a year, one for the Spring selection round (recruited in October each year) and one for the Autumn selection round (recruited in April each year).
We are currently recruiting for an intern to work with us on the Spring 2025 round of New Books in German. The work will start in October and finish around six months later.
You can read more about the internship and application process here. You can read interviews with former interns here, to give you a flavour of the internship.
Equality, diversity and inclusion: statement of intent
New Books in German is committed to encouraging equality, diversity, and inclusion in our work, and to eliminating unlawful discrimination.
We aim to promote a culture that recognises that people from different backgrounds and experiences can bring valuable insights to the project and enhance the way we work.
Disclaimer & privacy policy
Please read our disclaimer and privacy policy here before using this website.
Website design, implementation and maintenance by völlig ohne. They come highly recommended by us and you can read an interview about the website (and logo) development process here.
