Gaëlle Bélem’s novel There’s a Monster Behind the Door is a picaresque, brutal, and mordantly funny tale of a girl’s attempt to escape her sadistic parents’ reign of terror in Réunion in the 1980s. It is the first of two novels by the author to be published by the Sligo-based Bullaun Press, the first Irish publisher to take literature in translation as its focus. In this episode, the author and her translators Karen Fleetwood and Laëtitia Saint-Loubert discuss the novel itself, the story of its translation, and how it came to be published in Ireland. The novel was originally published by French publisher Gallimard in 2020, and its English translation has now been longlisted for the International Booker Prize.

Books and their Makers is a new podcast series on RadioMoLI exploring the stories behind the books we read. Featuring conversations with authors, editors, publishers, agents, and translators, and highlighting the many crucial behind-the-scenes activities and workers involved in bringing writing to publication. 

The series is presented by Dr Tim Groenland, School of English, Drama and Film, UCD, and supported by the project The Publishing Infrastructures of Contemporary Anglophone Literature, funded by Taighde Éireann / Research Ireland. The first episode, featuring writer Paul Lynch and publisher Juliet Mabey airs on Friday, 31 January.

MoLI’s digital programme is supported by Ebow.