Book reviewExploring Translation Theories London-New York: Routledge, 2009. xiv + 186 pp. ISBN 978-0-415-55363-6 USD 40.95; £ 22.99 .
Table of contents
Students and general readers wishing to familiarize themselves with Translation Studies and its many competing theories through compact and reliable surveys have been well served recently. In 2008 Jeremy Munday published the second edition of his Introducing Translation Studies. For those who read French, there is Mathieu Guidère’s Introduction à la traductologie (second edition), which came out in 2010. In the same year Anthony Pym launched his Exploring Translation Theories, which is the theme of the following observations. Pym sets out to offer a comprehensive survey of modern Western translation theories, beginning with the classic equivalence-based models of the post-war years and moving on towards recent practices and theories such as localisation and cultural translation. Allow me to start with my conclusion by saying that Pym’s book is a must-have for any Translation Studies collection, private or public. It is well-written, perceptive and most helpful as a survey of the field. It is chock-full of ideas to agree with and to disagree with but above all to think about.