Budapest International Book Festival showcases new literary anthologies

At the 31st Budapest International Book Festival, two new anthologies were presented, highlighting diverse literary works.

The anthology ‘Hallunk titeket’ analyzes the lyrics of contemporary Hungarian songwriters, including artists such as Beton. Hofi, Co Lee, and Krúbi. The collection organizes lyrics into five cycles: roots, dark, self, touch, and medium. Bálint Borsi, who prepared the notes for the volume, noted that the project aims to bridge the gap between academic analysis methods and popular song lyrics. The contributors expressed openness to having their creative works subjected to such scrutiny.

Additionally, Kalligram introduced ‘Véremben a tenger’, an anthology of contemporary Irish poetry translated into Hungarian. The project involved eight Hungarian poet-translators, including Győző Ferencz and Katalin Szlukovényi, each selecting a specific Irish poet to translate, such as Paul Muldoon and Justin Quinn. Translators discussed the technical challenges of maintaining the rhythm, rhyme, and cultural nuances of the original English verses while adapting them to the Hungarian language.