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A review by sarah_v
Fifty Sounds by Polly Barton
informative
reflective
4.75
The philosophy parts went largely over my head, but I absolutely loved this book for not making me feel so alone in the journey as a language learner. How Barton described her thought process when being asked if she is fluent in Japanese, how difficult it is to know if you have reached fluency made me breathe such a huge sigh of relief (or more accurately nuzzle my face in the book and agree loudly "YES!").
I really appreciated the nuanced discussions of being a privileged person in a foreign country, and battling the feeling of being other. This book also helped understand the work of translation better and demystified it for me.
I really appreciated the nuanced discussions of being a privileged person in a foreign country, and battling the feeling of being other. This book also helped understand the work of translation better and demystified it for me.