翻訳書籍 (Books)

翻訳・英文校正にたずさわった書籍
Books translated/edited by the MDK Translations Team

Violet Light, Nearsightedness, and Your Child’s Eye Health

Gokigen! Translating this book on violet light and nearsightedness was truly eye-opening (pun intended!), as Dr. Tsubota’s way of presenting complicated medical content is extremely beneficial for laypeople like us. And his trademark concept of “gokigen”–being happy and healthy–is one we both support.

Published by Discover

Graphic Designs and Images for Small Bakeries and Sweet Shops

sweet

A sweet tome for sweet shops! Translating about rustic loaves of bread, adorable cookies, and puffy pastries was pure joy. I needed a hot cup of coffee nearby just to get me through the yummy visuals! Yet the real beauty of this book is the photography of the sweet shops themselves – often in lovely natural settings, boasting esthetically soothing interiors and tempting packaging. As always, these design books feature just enough English to give the reader an idea of what is going on but not much more. Basically a feast for the eyes! Published by PIE International, August 2022

Romantic Princess Style

Romantic Princess Style bubbles with frilly illustrations of princesses, flowers, delicate cakes, baby animals (cats, dogs, pigs, squirrels and more), maidens in traditional costumes from around the world, and a few princes tossed in for good measure! While most of the text is in Japanese, illustration titles and a blurb from the author are provided in English. Many translations we do for design and culture-related books involve a limited budget. This book (published by PIE International) is a good example – the nod to English whets the appetites of overseas readers and entices them to dig further independently. As “generalist” translators, we love to dip our figurative toes into the endless ocean of topics defining life in our era throughout time. Translating Romantic Princess Style introduced me to the world of illustrator Macoto Takahashi, who claims that “All girls, everywhere, are princesses!! His fans, aptly described as Macotopians, surely agree.

Flower Bouquets Adorn the City of Lights!

Paris Flowers

Another beautiful book from PIE International with a tiny bit of translation and editing by the MDK team. Florist Atsushi Taniguchi creates magical bouquets, photographs them in historical areas of Paris and the countryside before sending them off to the lucky recipient. A gorgeous book, something to luxuriate in on a rainy day. Next stop is a jaunt into Tokyo to visit the jardin du I’llony in Minami Aoyama.

Blue Light Hazard by Dr. Kazuo Tsubota

Stephanie and I had the honor of translating this super informative book about how blue light is seeping into our lives, upsetting our circadian rhythm, and affecting our overall health. I always leave this kind of stuff up to Stephanie, as she has more experience with medical papers and a husband in the medical field ready and willing to explain difficult concepts as needed. But Dr. Tsubota, head of the Ophthalmology Department at Keio University’s Medical School, wrote this book specifically for those of us with too much screen time (computers, smartphones, video games, etc.), and those who work the night shift under glaring lights. As I edited Stephanie’s already smooth translation, I gleaned two points that I have now put into practice: (1) spend time outside every day in the morning and afternoon to soak in those natural blue light rays and (2) stop checking your mail or browsing through Facebook in bed a night (guilty as charged…). The result? A well-oiled circadian clock which leads to better sleep, which then leads to better health. Dr. T even suggests it might lead to a bit of weight loss. I can honestly say that I have been sleeping really soundly lately. Unfortunately, I have yet to lose even a few grams…

Check out Blue Light Hazard on Amazon (in print or on Kindle).

Sweets: A Worldwide Journey of Adorable Desserts

Sweetsbook

Translation/Editing: Stephanie L. Cook and Marian Kinoshita

Stephanie and I often provide English translations for PIE International, a publisher that focuses on books about graphic design, advertising, anime art and basically everything that is visually pleasing or intriguing.
Our latest endeavor was to identify the English names for all of the desserts in this incredibly mouth-watering book. We quickly realized a sad fact— some of these desserts don’t exist in the English-speaking world. With all the fun we had translating the names, our next goal is to travel the world and taste each one of these beautiful sweet treats!

Boy Meets…Graph Best of Bishonen

Translation/Editing: Stephanie L. Cook and Marian Kinoshita

Translating this glossy, flamboyant catalog showcasing more than 70 manga artists and designers opened my eyes to a whole new world of “irresistible youths and men!” This was definitely more entertaining than describing how to program a microchip. Stephanie and I had to figure out how to ensure consistency among the profiles and comments (the Japanese text varied in style from casual greetings to professional self-promotion) while emphasizing the unique background and talents of each creative contributor. I am not a manga enthusiast, but the artwork in this collection definitely provided plenty of eye candy, making the translation work quite enjoyable!