Lettres Rogatory

The combination of two editors of differing ages and sensibilities results in an interesting mix of stories which cover basically the last half century, though the quality is uneven. But the question that dogs all such wide-ranging anthologies and obtains here as well is: whether it’s a good thing to have one translator for many languages. The problems are all too evident here with some translations being less fluent than others. Equally, a large number of editorial gaffes (like "My left feet was on the last spindle of the bamboo ladder and my right feet") mars the readability of an otherwise interesting volume. Perhaps this does not matter, as a volume such as this will be valued not only for its literary merit, but also for its political significance. Along with diplomats, buses and possible air links, this volume too may find place in track three diplomacy.