10 novels in translation you should know

6. "Hocus Bogus," by Romain Gary writing as Émile Ajar, (translated by David Bellos)

Okay, the pedigree on this one is a little complicated, but here goes. In the 1970s French novelist Romain Gary tired of his celebrity and began writing books as Émile Ajar. When the second Ajar book won the Prix Goncourt, Gary was outed and in response wrote "Pseudo" – a fake confessional in which "Paul Pawlovitch" confesses to being Émile Ajar. "Hocus Bogus" is the first English translation of "Pseudo."

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