About Rika Lesser
Born 1953. Rika Lesser is an American linguist, translator, poet and writer.
Rika Lesser (born 1953 in Brooklyn, New York) is an American poet, and is a translator of Swedish and German literary works.
Life Lesser earned her bachelor's degree at Yale University in 1974. She studied at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden from 1974 to 1975 and received her MFA from Columbia University in 1977. She has produced four collections of her own poetry, including Etruscan Things (1983), and her prose translations include A Living Soul by P. C. Jersild and Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse.
Awards In 1982, she was awarded the Landon Poetry Translation Prize from the Academy of American Poets, and received the Poetry Translation Prize of the Swedish Academy in 1996 and in 2003.
Works
Poetry
Translations
Hansel and Gretel (1984) (Illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky)
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Important facts
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Frequently asked questions
Who is Rika Lesser?
American translator
When was Rika Lesser born?
Rika Lesser was born on 21 July 1953 in Brooklyn.
What is Rika Lesser's occupation?
Rika Lesser is a linguist, translator, poet and writer.
What nationality is Rika Lesser?
Rika Lesser is American.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Rika Lesser. https://biography.guide/rika-lesser/
MLA: "Rika Lesser." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/rika-lesser/.
Chicago: "Rika Lesser." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/rika-lesser/.
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