Leila Vennewitz

Leila Vennewitz (1912 – 8 August 2007) was a Canadian-English translator of German literature.[1][2] She was born Leila Croot in Hampshire, England and grew up in Portsmouth. Her brother was the surgeon Sir John Croot.

She studied at the Sorbonne in Paris, continuing her studies in Germany and China, where she spent twelve years. She is best known today for her translations of the works of Heinrich Böll, the Nobel Prize-winning German novelist. She also translated the works of Martin Walser, Uwe Johnson, Hermann Hesse, Nicolas Born, Alexander Kluge, Friedrich Durrenmatt, Jurek Becker, Uwe Timm, Walter Kempowski and Alfred Andersch.

Her notable translations include:

• Heinrich Böll, End of a Mission (Ende einer Dienstfahrt) - Schlegel-Tieck Prize from the Society of Authors, London (1968)
• Heinrich Böll, And Never Said a Word (Und sagte kein einziges Wort) - Goethe House P.E.N. Prize from the American Center of P.E.N. (1979)
• Heinrich Böll, A Soldier's Legacy (Das Vermächtnis) (1981)
• Martin Walser, Breakers (Brandung) - German Literary Prize from the American Translators Association (1989)
• Hermann Hesse, Narcissus and Goldmund (Narziss und Goldmund) - shortlisted for the Schlegel-Tieck Prize (1994)
• Jurek Becker, Jacob the Liar (Jakob der Lügner)- Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator’s Prize (1997)

Vennewitz was married twice. She spent the last 50 years of her life in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Her posthumous papers are stored at Indiana University.