Daniel Bird
Sales and Publishing Executive, Granta Publications
I worked at Waterstones prior to Granta, as both a bookseller and events coordinator. Alongside this I completed an MA in Contemporary Literature part-time. My role at Granta covers administration for the sales department, liaising with the Independent Alliance and contributing to campaigns in a variety of ways. I'm also a key contact for booksellers, and I derive a certain glee from being 'the keeper of the proofs'. I am a muso, a fervent leftie and a proud member of the Granta Publications Oat Milk Insurgence of 2019.
My favourite book in translation: The Vegetarian by Han Kang (translated by Deborah Smith). It's violent, hypnotic and exquisitely crafted – an exploration of desire and the brutal treatment of women that spirals into a profound meditation on species and the metamorphosis of 'the human' into new forms.
The books I always recommend: Elena Ferrante's Neapolitan novels, Richard Powers's The Overstory, Samanta Schweblin's Fever Dream, Tom McCarthy's Satin Island, Jesmyn Ward's Salvage the Bones and N. K. Jemisin's The Fifth Season, to name a few.