It’s always been the case that when I travel, I like to read novels that are region-specific. That’s been true for a long time; but in the last few years, as I became more aware of the lack of translated literature and the need to read more diversely,.. Leah Rachel Von Essen Jul 30, 2020

I made my plan even more particular. Now, when I travel somewhere, I want to read books not only set in the place, but written by someone who lived or was from there, preferably translated from the original language.

So when I went to Mexico City from Chicago, I read Caramelo by Sandra Cisneros; when I went to England, I read Jane Austen. And when I went to Spain, I dug deep into lists of Spanish authors, of books to read before, during, and after my trip that were written by Spanish authors and were set in Spain. I included books written in Catalan and Galician, as they are important national identities of regions that have also pushed for independence.

I should note that I attempted to make my list inclusive of authors of color, but struggled to find translated non-white authors writing in Spain. If you have recommendations, please share them with me on Twitter—I would love to hear them! It’s also worth noting that there are many fantastic authors and novels out there that I would have loved to dig into on my trip and on this list, but that are still untranslated, highlighting once again the importance of an international outlook for our reading lists.

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