Notable Japanese Writers
the Year
HARUKI MURUKAMI
- He was born in Kyoto, Japan, in 1949.
- He studied at Waseda University in 1973.
- His first novel, "Hear the Wind Sing," won the Gunzou
Literature Prize for budding writers in 1979.
- Murakami authored numerous acclaimed novels including
"Norwegian Wood," "Kafka on the Shore," "1Q84," and
"Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage."
- He also wrote three short story collections: "The Elephant
Vanishes," "After the Quake," and "Blind Willow, Sleeping
Woman," as well as an illustrated novella, "The Strange
Library."
- Murakami was awarded the prestigious Jerusalem Prize.
- His work has been translated into over fifty languages,
solidifying his international literary acclaim.
KEIGO HIGASHINO
- He was born on February 4, 1958 in Osaka, Japan
- His works focuses on mystery, thriller, and crime
- Widely recognized as one of Japan's most popular and
bestselling fiction authors
- He won the prestigious Edogawa Rampo Prize in 1985 for
the novel "Hōkago" (After School) at the age of 27.
- Won the Mystery Writers of Japan Inc award in 1999 for the
novel "Himitsu" (The Secret), which was translated into
English as "Naoko."
- Awarded the 134th Naoki Prize in 2006 for "Yōgisha X no
Kenshin."
- "The Devotion of Suspect X" became the second highest-
selling book in Japan
- Higashino's novels have been adapted into more movies
and TV series
KAZUO ISHIGURO
- He was born on November 8, 1954 in Nagasaki, Japan.
- His works is described as subtlety and understatement,
and emotionally restraint
- "An Artist of the Floating World" won the Whitbread Book of
- "The Remains of the Day" won the Booker Prize for Fiction
- Awarded the OBE (Officer of the Order of the British
Empire) in 1995
- Awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2017.
MIEKO KAWAKAMI
- She was born on August 29, 1976 in Osaka, Japan.
- A feminist icon in Japan
- Her works are mainly fictitious
- She is a Japanese singer and writer
- She received the 138th Akutagawa Prize for her novel
"Chichi to Ran" (Breasts and Eggs) in 2007
- Her novel "My Ego, My Teeth, and the World," received the
Tsubouchi Shoyo Prize for Young Emerging Writers.
- Selected as one of Granta's Best of Young Japanese
Novelists in 2016.
NATSUME SOSEKI
- He was born on February 9, 1867, in the Edo district of
Japan.
- Natsume Soseki's portrait is featured on the Japanese
1,000 yen note.
- first Japanese writer to publish a novel in a modern style.
- His most famous novel, "Kokoro," was originally published
as a serialized story in a newspaper.
- Soseki was a cat lover and owned several cats during his
lifetime.
- He passed away on December 9, 1916, at the age of 49,
due to a stomach ulcer.
Famous works:
I Am a Cat
Over the Wintry
On New Year's Day
The Gate
OSAMU DAZAI
- His pen name is Shuji Tsushima
- He was born on June 19, 1909, in Aomori prefecture,
northern Honshu, Japan
- Explored themes of suicide, decadence, and loss in his
writings.
- Dazai's popularity grew after World War II, with works like - His writing themes and genres include social criticism,
"The Setting Sun" and "Villon's Wife" appealing to the existentialism, family and relationship, surrealism, and
postwar generation. national identity
- In June 1948, at the age of 38, Dazai and his partner Notable Works:
Tomie Yamazaki succeeded in a double suicide attempt. Nip the Buds, Shoot the Kids
A Personal Matter
The Silent Cry
Teach Us to Outgrow Our Madness
A Quiet Life
Somersault
The Changeling

YUKIO MISHIMA
- His birth name is Kimitake Hiraoka
- He was born on January 14, 1925, in Tokyo, Japan
- His father, Shizue Hiraoka, served as Secretary of
Fisheries for the Ministry of Agriculture, and his mother,
Azusa Hiraoka
- He was a renowned novelist, essayist, poet, and critic who
explored themes of desire, rejection, beauty, and violence
in his writings.
- Mishima's early works, such as "The Forest in Flower"
(1941), "The Cigarette" (1946), and "Thieves" (1948), were
written during World War II and deviated from the tragic
reality of war and defeat.
- In 1949, Mishima gained popularity with "Confessions of a
Mask”
Notable Works:
The Forbidden Colors (1951)
The Sound of Waves (1954)
Patriotism (1961)
Example:
MATSUO BASHO
- He was born in 1644 in Iga Province (now Mie Prefecture),
Japan. His childhood name was Kinsaku, but he later
changed it to Munefusa as an adult.
- Matsuo Basho (1644-1694) made about 1000 haiku poems
in his lifetime with the jouney around Japan. His writing
“The Narrow Road to the Deep North” is the most famous
haiku collection in Japan.
- He is renowned for his contributions to haiku and his
introspective approach to poetry, which explored the
beauty of nature and the human spirit.
abi ni yande/ Yume wa kareno wo/ Kakemeguru
The door of thatched hut
Also changed the owner.
At the Doll’s Festival.

Kusa no to mo/ Sumikawaru yo zo/ Hina no ie

Sicking on journey,
NATSUO KIRINO My dream run about
- She was born on October 7, 1951 in Kanazawa, Ishikawa The desolate field.
Prefecture References:
- one of a rare breed of mystery writers whose work goes
well beyond the conventional crime novel. o Author | Haruki Murakami. (n.d.). Haruki
- Grand Prix for Crime Fiction in Japan for Out in 1998 Murakami. https://www.harukimurakami.com/author/
o Keigo Higashino (Author of The Devotion of Suspect X).
- Out was the first of her novels to appear in English and was
(n.d.). https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/117366.Keigo_Hi
nominated for an Edgar Award. gashino
Awards: o Ishiguro, K. (2015). Kazuo Ishiguro -
Writers of Japan Award, 1998 literature. https://literature.britishcouncil.org/writer/kazuo-ishiguro
Edgard Allan Poe Award nomination for best novel o Baldwin, E. (2023). Natsume Sōseki: The Genius of Japanese
Mystery Writers of America, 2004 literature. Poem Analysis. https://poemanalysis.com/natsume-
soseki/biography/
o Mieko Kawakami (Author of Breasts and Eggs).
(n.d.). https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5559451.Mieko_
Kawakami
o Experience, J. (2022). Osamu Dazai. Japan
Experience. https://www.japan-experience.com/plan-your-trip/to-
know/books-japan/osamu-dazai
o Editor 3. (2021, September 17). Yukio Mishima - History and
biography. History and
Biography. https://history-biography.com/yukio-mishima/
o Natsuo Kirino | Penguin Random House. (n.d.).
KENZABURO OE
PenguinRandomhouse.com. https://www.penguinrandomhouse.c
- He was born in 1935 in Ehime Perfecture, Japan om/authors/59249/natsuo-kirino/
- He received various awards such as Akutagawa Prize o Maloney, I. (2017, July 10). Great Japanese Writers: Kenzaburo
(1957) and the Nobel Prize in Literature (1994) Oe - GaijinPot. GaijinPot Blog. https://blog.gaijinpot.com/great-
japanese-writers-kenzaburo-oe/
o Japacul. (2021). Matsuo Basho’s biography. Masterpieces of
Japanese Culture. https://www.masterpiece-of-japanese-
culture.com/literatures-and-poems/matsuo-bashos-biography