For this event, I invited Ann Goldstein, the acclaimed translator of Elena Ferrante, Primo Levi, Pier Paolo Pasolini, and many others, to provide 25 lucky attendees with a fascinating experience: in the wood-paneled Hansmann Room at the New York Public Library’s main building, Ann shared her translation process in real time, focusing specifically on the “Tower of Babel” passage from a series of rare Italian Bibles, dating from the 15th century to the present day, in the Library’s storied archives. Two curators from the NYPL also attended the event to present the Bibles, and a series of handouts with copies of the actual texts were distributed to attendees so they could closely follow Goldstein’s process.

Goldstein was featured in Esopus 24, which included an interview with the translator as well as several drafts, reproduced in facsimile, of her translation of a passage from Primo Levi's The Periodic Table. She was also interviewed in an Esopus podcast related to the issue.

This event was part of an ongoing partnership between Esopus and the New York Public Library.