LostInTranslation

Die Flüsse von London: Roman | Ben Aaronovitch

pan

I wanted to check out the german audioplay adaptation of the Peter Grant novels for a while now, and I should have followed my instincts and postponed indefinetly... it really loses his charm, the narrator really doesn''t seem to GET peter and there's so many cultural jokes that noticably just don't translate. Besides some really weird pronunciation choices... so: if possible, go for the original! #lostintranslation

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Leniverse

Infinite Jest | David Foster Wallace

So... I have questions, and they‘re not about the plot. Surely Toblerone was available all week? I mean, I know it‘s Swiss, but..?
And characters keep watching film cartridges on teleputers. Is this something DFW made up, or some American tech fad that never made it to the rest of the world? Is cartridge just American for video tape?
#InfiniteSummer #Lostintranslation

LibrarianRyan Not read this book but I think it's made up. Maybe a combination of a tv, a computer, and a gaming system. 7y

wanderinglynn Maybe that shop runs out of Toblerones before the next shipment comes? 6y

wanderinglynn And cartridge is something I‘d associate with old, pre-CD, gaming systems. And apparently teleprinter was a 1980 invention by Michael Aldrich for a multi-functional home computer/TV/VCR. But they weren‘t a common thing (I don‘t know anyone who had one), so I think Wallace just took some liberties there. 6y

Leniverse @wanderinglynn Cool! So it‘s a real thing at least. I feel at a cultural disadvantage with this book, because DFW is clearly exaggerating some things ad absurdum, but I‘m not sure where/what the core is. 6y

Leniverse @LibrarianRyan @wanderinglynn Turns out the teleputer is made up. DFW was basically sitting there in 1995 trying to imagine what video entertainment devices would be like 10-15 years down the line. 6y

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