Cambridge resident translates Swiss literary masterpiece into English
The Green Silk Shawl, by late Swiss author/poet/journalist Marcella Maier, is a charming family saga about four generations of women who lived in the Swiss mountains between the late 18th and late 20th centuries.
The English translator of the novel – it was originally only available in German – Iris Hunter came to Cambridge from Zurich in the 1970s.
Iris was determined to see it published in English so that her English-speaking friends could enjoy it too.
She found the Cambridge publishing company, Perfect Publishers, which agreed to produce the translation.
Iris said: “I have a friend who’s Swiss who recommended it to me. I read it and thought it was wonderful.
"I emailed the publisher in St Moritz and asked if it existed in English. He said it didn’t, so I took it very slowly and translated when I had time – and two years later it was finished.”
Iris loves the Swiss family saga: “The difference between the way these women lived and when you think that how tough they were," she said.
"No moaning about not having enough food, or nearly freezing – they’d just get on with life.”
thegreensilkshawl.co.uk
