This is mildly infuriating
Nov. 23rd, 2023 11:42 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
vr_trakowskiRambling discourse ahead...
Back in 1997 when I was spending a yeardead for tax purposes in Bath for grad school* I spent a lot of time, naturally, looking for books to read. I mean, I'd taken my most precious volumes with me, but there's only so much you can fit in two trunks and I'd read them all repeatedly.
Unfortunately, the SF/F sections of the local library and the Waterstones were lacking to my eye, trained to U.S. suburban abundance. The one used bookstore in town had one half-height shelf dedicated to the genre, and it was mostly Michael Moorcock. I can't stand Elric.** I got most of my used books from charity shops, of which there were several.
Somehow I managed to pick up a copy of Annie Dalton's Out of the Ordinary, though I don't remember now where I got it. I found it charming not only for its own, rather original story, which is sort of a lost stranger crossed with a portal fantasy, but also because the style reminded me of Margaret Mahy***, whose works I love.
So I bought a copy of my own. I've read it quite a few times in the intervening decades; it's still a favorite. But I have the odd habit of forgetting the title, maybe because it doesn't seem to me to really fit the story (personal opinion), and I have no hope of remembering most authors' names anyway.
Recently I wanted to re-read it, but my copy is currently inaccessible. It took me a couple of attempts to find someone online who knew what the title was (shoutout to r/whatsthatbook, it took about five minutes), and then, since I have disposable income now, I figured I might as well just buy myself another copy. I could give it away when I could get to my original one.
Now, I need to note that this is a British book. It was written by a British author and published in the U.K. (It's also out of print and not digitized, which does not surprise me.) I found a copy on Biblio.com, it arrived, I began reading with delight.
Some of the words are different.
I can't explain why my brain memorizes bits like this, but it does - though one of extra little reasons I love this book is because it introduced me to the word chuntering, specifically as regards guinea pig vocalizations. But I haven't even finished my read and I've noticed that there are a number of words that have been replaced. "Jumble" has been changed to "rummage" (as in sale). Odd additions of the word "period" (as in classes). There's a few others I can't bring to mind at the moment, but the one that finally tipped me off was "fries" instead of "chips".
I looked at the front, and yep. First U.S. printing.
Now, this is just insulting. Why the bloody blue blazes does a book, any book, need to have the Britishisms taken out of it? Do the publishers really think a teenager - this is a Y.A. book - can't possibly understand the occasional British term? That they'll toss it aside if "math" has an s on the end? Not only that, it dilutes the flavor and culture of the book. It's by a British author, about (mostly) British people, set in Britain (Yorkshire, I think). Substituting in American words hurts the story. If you don't think kids can handle a book from another culture, just stick with your own.**** Don't dilute it.
And for pity's sake, what on earth do they do to books that use words from other languages? I shudder to think.
Now, since I've been bitten by this before, I have no clue whether Annie Dalton knows about the changes, approved of them, or made them herself. For all I know it could have been her idea (though I take leave to doubt it).
I'll finish the copy I have, and I'll enjoy it! It's still as charming and interesting as it was when I first read it, even if my perspective is a quarter-century older.
But I don't think I'll feel it right to give the U.S. copy away (and I'm not giving up my original!). Maybe to an adult.
Maybe.
*It turned out to be eight months, for unrelated reasons.
**All he does is WHINE.
***Oddly enough, I read a couple of other books by Dalton, and they didn't have the same Mahy-like touches.
****Bad idea, I do not endorse it.
Back in 1997 when I was spending a year
Unfortunately, the SF/F sections of the local library and the Waterstones were lacking to my eye, trained to U.S. suburban abundance. The one used bookstore in town had one half-height shelf dedicated to the genre, and it was mostly Michael Moorcock. I can't stand Elric.** I got most of my used books from charity shops, of which there were several.
Somehow I managed to pick up a copy of Annie Dalton's Out of the Ordinary, though I don't remember now where I got it. I found it charming not only for its own, rather original story, which is sort of a lost stranger crossed with a portal fantasy, but also because the style reminded me of Margaret Mahy***, whose works I love.
So I bought a copy of my own. I've read it quite a few times in the intervening decades; it's still a favorite. But I have the odd habit of forgetting the title, maybe because it doesn't seem to me to really fit the story (personal opinion), and I have no hope of remembering most authors' names anyway.
Recently I wanted to re-read it, but my copy is currently inaccessible. It took me a couple of attempts to find someone online who knew what the title was (shoutout to r/whatsthatbook, it took about five minutes), and then, since I have disposable income now, I figured I might as well just buy myself another copy. I could give it away when I could get to my original one.
Now, I need to note that this is a British book. It was written by a British author and published in the U.K. (It's also out of print and not digitized, which does not surprise me.) I found a copy on Biblio.com, it arrived, I began reading with delight.
Some of the words are different.
I can't explain why my brain memorizes bits like this, but it does - though one of extra little reasons I love this book is because it introduced me to the word chuntering, specifically as regards guinea pig vocalizations. But I haven't even finished my read and I've noticed that there are a number of words that have been replaced. "Jumble" has been changed to "rummage" (as in sale). Odd additions of the word "period" (as in classes). There's a few others I can't bring to mind at the moment, but the one that finally tipped me off was "fries" instead of "chips".
I looked at the front, and yep. First U.S. printing.
Now, this is just insulting. Why the bloody blue blazes does a book, any book, need to have the Britishisms taken out of it? Do the publishers really think a teenager - this is a Y.A. book - can't possibly understand the occasional British term? That they'll toss it aside if "math" has an s on the end? Not only that, it dilutes the flavor and culture of the book. It's by a British author, about (mostly) British people, set in Britain (Yorkshire, I think). Substituting in American words hurts the story. If you don't think kids can handle a book from another culture, just stick with your own.**** Don't dilute it.
And for pity's sake, what on earth do they do to books that use words from other languages? I shudder to think.
Now, since I've been bitten by this before, I have no clue whether Annie Dalton knows about the changes, approved of them, or made them herself. For all I know it could have been her idea (though I take leave to doubt it).
I'll finish the copy I have, and I'll enjoy it! It's still as charming and interesting as it was when I first read it, even if my perspective is a quarter-century older.
But I don't think I'll feel it right to give the U.S. copy away (and I'm not giving up my original!). Maybe to an adult.
Maybe.
*It turned out to be eight months, for unrelated reasons.
**All he does is WHINE.
***Oddly enough, I read a couple of other books by Dalton, and they didn't have the same Mahy-like touches.
****Bad idea, I do not endorse it.