The Time Traveller’s Almanac, edited by Ann & Jeff Vandermeer. Found this when I was checking out 19th-century-style book covers, and bought it to see how others write science fiction (that is, writers other than the ones I translate eg Théodore de Banville).

Portrait in Sepia by Isabel Allende. I’ve heard she’s a winning writer, and the translator, Margaret Sayers Peden, is one of my favourites. I bought it in a 2nd-hand bookshop that has since closed. That’s the way it is now.

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. I have no idea why, but this book was waiting for me at the local library as if I’d ordered it. It’s fascinating and hard to put down. And hard to say whether it’s for young or old readers.
