Sally Rooney refuses Israeli translation bid

Irish author Sally Rooney has enjoyed international success since she published her debut novel Conversations with Friends in 2017. Her second novel, Normal People was promptly filmed as a TV mini-series that received four Emmy nominations. In September 2021, she published her third novel, Beautiful World, Where Are You. 

Her Israeli readers however will have to be patient, because according to current media reports, Rooney has made it clear that she cannot justify "under the present circumstances [...] accepting a new contract with an Israeli company that does not publicly distance itself from apartheid and support the rights of the Palestinian people as established by the United Nations."

Israel strongly condemned the decision, with an Israeli official calling Rooney's decision "extremely unfortunate," the Times of Israel reported.

Supporting the Israel boycott movement

The author has stood by her decision and expressed solidarity with the Palestinian-led economic and cultural boycott of Israeli companies and institutions, also known as the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) Movement, which the German Parliament classified as antisemitic in 2019. 

"In this particular case, I am answering the call of Palestinian civil society, including all the major Palestinian unions and writers' unions," Rooney said.

Her first two novels, Conversations with Friends (2017) and Normal People (2018), had been published in Hebrew by Israeli publisher, Modan. In fact, the publisher also wanted to buy the translation rights to her latest work, adding that Rooney's previous works had sold "very well" in Israel. 

BDS-compliant Hebrew translation 

The author however is not opposed to translating her latest work into Hebrew. In a statement she said that would be "very pleased and proud" to do so if the "rights are to be sold in a manner consistent with the institutional boycott guidelines of the BDS movement."

She added that she hopes to eventually find a Hebrew translator for Beautiful World, Where Are You, but she will not do so through an Israeli publisher.

Mixed reactions

Amongst those who welcomed the move, the Jewish Voice For Just Peace (Ireland) tweeted, "As a growing community of Jews in Ireland against Israeli Occupation, we stand in complete solidarity with Sally Rooney's decision."

But Rooney is also currently facing strong backlash and accusations of antisemitism. Gitit Levy-Paz, a fellow of the pro-Israel nonprofit Jewish People Policy Institute, wrote in a column criticizing Rooney, "The very essence of literature, its power to bring a sense of coherence and order to the world, is negated by Rooney’s choice to exclude a group of readers because of their national identity. "

Various Twitter users have also highlighted that Rooney has had her books translated into Chinese or Russian, with some wondering, "Why boycott Israel, but not China? Or maybe it's not about human rights at all?"

Rooney is among the most popular and well-known young writers in the world. Her earlier works will continue to be available in Israel in Hebrew as well as English. Israeli readers will also be able to order Beautiful World, Where Are You in English on foreign websites.

Her new novel addresses sociopolitical issues such as inequality, social classes, and capitalism. The title comes from a poem by German poet and playwright Friedrich Schiller, and was set to music by Franz Schubert in 1819.

This article was translated from German.