Founded in 2014, Fitzcarraldo Editions’s distinctive blue/white paperback originals with French flaps are gaining steady recognition in the literary world, winning the inaugural Republic of Consciousness Prize in 2017 with John Keene’s “Counternarratives”, and the 2018 Man Booker International Prize with Olga Tokarczuk’s “Flights”. In 2019 the Warwick Prize for Women in Translation was awarded to Annie Ernaux’s “The Years”.
I mentioned at the end of last year that I have a profusion of Fitzcarraldos lurking on my TBR and could easily handle a month of reading nothing else; Lizzy took a look at hers and decided that she had sufficient to keep her well read for a fortnight. Cue the birth of a Fitzcarraldo Editions Fortnight – Lizzy’s idea, and an excellent one!
Diaries have been coordinated, and Lizzy and I will be reading and blogging our way through our Fitzcarraldo Editions stacks from 16-29 February 2020. All are welcome to join us. Will you?
Kaggsy's Bookish Ramblings 
Jan 13, 2020 @ 07:37:04
I don’t have quite so many, but then I wouldn’t have the time to read more than 3-4, so yes, I will join you!
Jan 13, 2020 @ 11:01:16
Hurrah! look forward to seeing what you read! 😀
Jan 13, 2020 @ 07:54:34
A great challenge! I don’t think I’ll be joining in as I’m trying to limit the challenges I fail to get done this year 😁 But I’m really looking forward to seeing what everyone reads.
Jan 13, 2020 @ 11:01:02
LOL! Never mind – there should be plenty of interesting posts for you to read as there’s such a great variety of Fitzcarraldo books! 😀
Jan 13, 2020 @ 08:01:02
Oh brilliant! Yes, I am certainly in.
Jan 13, 2020 @ 10:45:35
Yay! The perfect excuse to read all those Fitzcarraldos on your TBR! 😀
Jan 13, 2020 @ 08:07:15
Hmm. I don’t think I have any of their books but I have come across the name. I’ll look at their catalog and if my reduced book buying permits, I might join.
Jan 13, 2020 @ 10:45:14
There are some really interesting titles on their list, including of course two of Olga Tokarczuk’s books. Hope you can join us! 😀
Jan 13, 2020 @ 15:10:29
I’m quite tempted to read Pond by Claire-Louise Bennett.
Jan 13, 2020 @ 16:10:45
Oh, that sounds like a good one! Their back catalogue has some wonderful sounding books!
Jan 13, 2020 @ 17:13:40
Yes, it does. I might really get it.
Jan 13, 2020 @ 18:17:48
Excellent! 😀
Jan 13, 2020 @ 08:09:47
How about I use it as an excuse to try to read one or two of the maybe 4 Fitzcarraldo’s I have on hand. Of course, from this side of the pond some of their releases were published here years before Fitz picked them up or, in reverse, other publishers pick up their titles here after theirs are released. 🙂
Jan 13, 2020 @ 10:44:36
Definitely! I have a several of their books TBR and so this is the perfect time to do it! As long as the title is one of theirs, I don’t think it matters which edition you read! 😀
Jan 13, 2020 @ 10:05:08
Ooh! I have Flights and Vivien on my shelves so I might try and join in! Charlie Fox’s This Young Monster was one of my books of the year last year. Great challenge!
Jan 13, 2020 @ 10:43:59
Excellent! Those are both wonderful books, which I’ve covered here. They’re such an interesting and diverse publisher that it definitely seems like an inspiring challenge! 😀
Jan 13, 2020 @ 11:48:55
What a lovely idea for a reading event. I have two Olga Tokarczuk books, Flights and Drive your Plow… so this will be a perfect opportunity to get at least one of those read.
Jan 13, 2020 @ 11:54:47
I think it’s a wonderful idea too, and I’m so glad Lizzy came up with it! Both of those books are fab so I’m glad you can join in! 😀
Jan 13, 2020 @ 13:17:41
I’ve never seen any of these but will check my library for some of the titles mentioned.
Jan 13, 2020 @ 16:11:27
Hope you can find something – they publish some wonderfully thought-provoking and enjoyable books!
Jan 13, 2020 @ 14:28:28
This is so exciting, Karen! I have a pile of Fitzcarraldos waiting to be read, so count me in! 🙂
Jan 13, 2020 @ 16:11:02
Hurrah! The perfect time to read them! 😀
Jan 13, 2020 @ 19:45:14
They are a little harder to come by over here–Drive Your Plow isn’t Fitzcarraldo for us, for instance–but I scored a couple of essays last fall that I haven’t read. And I’ve been thinking about rereading Dillon’s Essayism, which I loved.
Count me in!
Jan 13, 2020 @ 20:41:18
Excellent! Their essays are great – glad you can join us! 😀
Jan 13, 2020 @ 23:23:43
Lovely idea. I’ll watch from afar though since I don’t have anything that fits the bill and I really can’t go buying any more books right now
Jan 14, 2020 @ 06:34:19
No probs! Maybe you’ll pick up some ideas for future reading… 😉😉
Jan 14, 2020 @ 11:19:03
I do have a few Fitzcarraldos sitting unread on my shelves, so I am keen to contribute, Karen. Maybe I can begin with the latest Enard (Tell Them of Battles, Kings and Elephants), which is a slim volume. I had loved his Compass, which was massive at 500+ pages.
Jan 14, 2020 @ 14:00:31
Excellent! So glad you can join in! 😀
Jan 14, 2020 @ 20:52:08
Count me in I do Jane a couple unread
Jan 14, 2020 @ 20:52:54
Have not Jane damm autocorrect non phone
Jan 15, 2020 @ 09:35:00
LOL! I *hate* autocorrect!
Jan 15, 2020 @ 09:35:09
Excellent! Glad you can join us! 😀
Jan 14, 2020 @ 21:46:02
A lovely idea! I won’t take part as I don’t have any, but I will watch the reading across the blogs with interest!
Jan 15, 2020 @ 09:34:16
There should certainly be some interesting books turning up! 😀
Jan 15, 2020 @ 15:24:49
I just went to investigate. If you participate in Top 10 Tuesday, these editions have you covered for March 3–one word titles! I’ll see what I can get my hands on.
Jan 15, 2020 @ 16:17:57
Fab! All welcome to join in! 😀
Jan 15, 2020 @ 15:30:37
Sorry to be a pest. I found one I’ve read–albeit in another edition.
Jan 15, 2020 @ 16:17:44
Excellent! Look forward to your posts!
Jan 18, 2020 @ 15:12:33
Jan 19, 2020 @ 19:20:33
Such a marvelous idea; some of my favorite books have come from Fitzcarraldo Press. (And, one of my most scorned: Annie Ernaux’ The Yesrs, of which I am in a great minority. I felt it had no place in the Man Booker International Prize, particularly because it is a memoir, not fiction, but who am I?☺️) I am eagerly awaiting the latest from Clemens Meyer entitled Dark Satellites. But, it is hard for me to get these lovely editions over here in the States. How often I long to live in the UK for the lovely bookshops you have available. I will be peeking in to your Fitzcarraldo Fortnight with joy.
Jan 19, 2020 @ 20:00:44
I’ve yet to read Ernaux, though I’m interested in your response! I often feel that Fitzcarraldo books straddle the divide between fiction and non fiction, which can be interesting… I have the Meyer lurking and hope to get to it soon for our fortnight! A shame these are hard to find overseas – does the Big River online store not stock them??
Jan 19, 2020 @ 20:44:42
This is a great idea! I have a load of unread Fitzcarraldo books, so I’ll be joining in.
Jan 20, 2020 @ 13:40:14
Wonderful! Glad you’ll be with us! :DD
Feb 04, 2020 @ 16:52:16
After a solid spot of confusion – which, given Reese’s and Joe’s comments above, now makes some sense – I think this sounds like a terrific event. (Looking them up in the library catalogue seems to bring up all the books that have been published by them in some editions even if that’s not the edition shelved on a local branch’s shelves – hopefully this is the case, but, even if not, there are some awfully interesting topics/subjects/authors to explore on my hold list now.) So I am late discovering this, and supposedly focussed mostly on my home shelves this year, but I have a few heading my way for investigation, so we’ll see what happens? LOL In any case, great event!
Feb 08, 2020 @ 18:01:19
Feb 13, 2020 @ 20:11:02
I only own one. And I read it in January…😔 at least this will give me ideas of others to read. 😃
Feb 13, 2020 @ 20:17:19
Oh rats…. Never mind – as you say, I suspect your wishlist might expand! 😀
Feb 13, 2020 @ 20:21:56
Your read along may induce me to write something tho…
Feb 13, 2020 @ 20:48:07
Excellent! 😀
Feb 14, 2020 @ 06:39:02
Feb 16, 2020 @ 08:15:50
Feb 16, 2020 @ 20:26:08
Good initiative! I’ve read Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk after it appeared in my local Waterstones as I was curious about her after she’d been awarded the Nobel Prize. I enjoyed it and looked up their catalogue and from the blurbs a number of their books tickle my interest. I picked up a copy of Pond and having seen your challenge decided to make a start on it this afternoon. So far, seems just the sort of quirky book I like.
Feb 17, 2020 @ 10:56:52
Thanks! I loved both Flights and Drive your Plow, and their catalogue has some wonderful books. As you say, often so quirky which I really like nowadays! 😀
Feb 18, 2020 @ 12:53:57
They’re very attractively produced too. An unusual size – narrower than normal. So nice objects as well as a good read.
Feb 18, 2020 @ 13:45:25
They are – I like it when the looks of a book match up to the contents! 😀
Feb 24, 2020 @ 08:00:39
Dec 31, 2020 @ 17:56:27