The title of Kafka’s famous work The Castle in the
original German is Das Schloss. Had he written it in Czech, it would be Zámek,
which of course it is today in translation. After settling in then Czechoslovakia in 1992, I didn’t realize zámek also meant “lock” until I locked
myself out one day and the locksmith kept asking me on the phone what kind of
castle I have. Or that zámek is also the plural form of “stamp” but only if you
want five or more. Having navigated these pitfalls for more than twenty-five
years, you can be reasonably sure that the English translation you get from me
will completely reflect the original Czech. As much as I admire Franz Kafka,
you won’t get anything Kafkaesque from me.

I was born in San Diego, California, but spent my
formative years and education on the east coast of the US. After graduating
from high school, I joined the Navy, entered the submarine fleet, and served as
a nuclear mechanic underwater for 5 years. I left the Navy to study at the
University of Connecticut, where my majors were Russian and German. It was a
backpacking tour around Eastern Europe that led me to where I live and
translate today.