Academic research on translation evaluation uses 14 distinct standards to classify translations into four levels, with only the top two considered acceptable. For practical purposes, readers and publishers should evaluate:

Look for books shortlisted for prestigious awards like the International Booker Prize or the PEN Translation Prize.

It is time to discard the myth that translation is a purely mechanical or administrative task. Translators are, in reality, co-authors of the target-language edition. They make hundreds of artistic choices on every single page. They must deeply understand history, sociology, psychology, and regional dialects to do their job effectively.