Just days before Book Day, the Valencian publishing world celebrates an unprecedented milestone: Enric Valor's Valencian Folktales can now be read in English. Under the title Valencian Folktales, the work of the grammarian and writer from Castalla reaches English-speaking readers in three volumes that compile the popular tales Valor collected and adapted throughout his life.
The translators are the writer's granddaughter and a university lecturer, both a couple. The project required more than two years of work and represented an intimate reunion for the granddaughter with the figure of her grandfather.
“"It has been a reunion with my grandfather, in my mature age, and also a way to pay tribute to him, to honor his memory."
One of the main challenges of the process has been to preserve the humor and grace present in the original texts. The university lecturer highlighted the difficulty of finding English equivalents for the linguistic nuances typical of Valencian. The translators have adapted idioms and expressions without altering the authentic spirit of the stories, while respecting the lexical particularities of the Valencian geography.
“"Many of the folktales have a lot of charm, and it's very interesting to find a way to express that in English."
Valencian Folktales is also a first-rate educational tool. With the tone and rhythm of English grammar, the Valencian storytelling tradition demonstrates its pedagogical vocation and opens up to new audiences worldwide. For the author's granddaughter, listening to those folktales as a child and rereading them now in English has been "a gift".
