Japanese Literary Awards

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Colson Whitehead

コルソン・ホワイトヘッド

Koruson Howaitoheddo

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1969-11-06 （Manhattan, New York, United States）
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Residence History
Manhattan, New York → Princeton, New Jersey

Career

Occupations
Novelist, Journalist, University Lecturer
Active Years
1991-
Affiliations
City University of New York, Brooklyn College (faculty), Princeton University (visiting faculty)
Memberships
Member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters
Influenced By
Toni Morrison, Richard Wright

Education

Harvard University
Period: 1987–1991
Year of Graduation: 1991
Country: United States

Awards

National Book Award (Fiction)
2016
Work: The Underground Railroad
Category: 小説
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: Winner
Pulitzer Prize for Fiction
2017
Work: The Underground Railroad
Category: フィクション
Organization: Pulitzer Prize Board
Result: Winner
Arthur C. Clarke Award
2017
Work: The Underground Railroad
Organization: Arthur C. Clarke Award
Result: Winner
Alex Awards
2020
Work: The Nickel Boys
Organization: American Library Association (ALA)
Result: Winner
Pulitzer Prize for Fiction
2020
Work: The Nickel Boys
Category: フィクション
Organization: Pulitzer Prize Board
Result: Winner
Anisfield-Wolf Book Award (Nominee)
2002
Work: John Henry Days
Organization: Anisfield-Wolf Foundation
Result: Nominee
MacArthur Fellowship
Organization: MacArthur Foundation
Result: Recipient
Guggenheim Fellowship
Organization: John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result: Recipient

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

The Underground Railroad

2016 Historical fiction with speculative elements 304 pages

Follows a young enslaved woman's escape via an imagined literal underground railroad; a reimagining that blends historical reality with speculative elements to explore slavery and freedom in America.

SlaveryFreedomReinterpretation of historyRace
Adaptations
  • [Television miniseries] The Underground Railroad / Barry Jenkins (2021)
Translations
  • Japanese translation by Yui Tanizaki (Hayakawa Publishing, 2017)

The Nickel Boys

2019 Historical fiction / Social drama 224 pages

Based on the real-life Dozier School for Boys, it tells the story of two boys and examines the brutal effects of institutionalized racism and violence.

RacismInstitutional violenceMemory and atonement
Translations
  • Japanese translation by Hikaru Fujii (Hayakawa Publishing, 2020)

Harlem Shuffle

2021 Crime novel / Historical fiction 448 pages

Set in 1960s Harlem, it follows a furniture salesman drawn into crime and complicated family dynamics.

Urban lifeCrimeFamily and morality
Translations
  • Japanese translation by Hikaru Fujii (Hayakawa Publishing, 2023)

John Henry Days

2001 Contemporary novel 272 pages

A satirical novel that uses the legend of John Henry to examine America in the media age.

American legendMedia criticismIdentity

Bibliography

  • John Henry Days
  • Zone One
  • The Underground Railroad
  • The Nickel Boys
  • Harlem Shuffle

Adaptations

  • The Underground Railroad - TV miniseries (dir. Barry Jenkins, 2021)

Translations of Works

  • The Underground Railroad — Japanese translation by Yui Tanizaki (Hayakawa Publishing, 2017)
  • The Nickel Boys — Japanese translation by Hikaru Fujii (Hayakawa Publishing, 2020)
  • Harlem Shuffle — Japanese translation by Hikaru Fujii (Hayakawa Publishing, 2023)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Clear, rhythmic proseBlend of historical fact and imaginative/speculative elementsSatirical and critical perspective
Recurring Motifs
Race and identityAmerican history and memoryInstitutional violence

Legacy

Recognized as a leading contemporary American writer; his inventive treatments of slavery and race have earned international acclaim. Multiple major awards have amplified his influence.

Academic Societies

  • American Academy of Arts and Letters

In Popular Culture

  • The Underground Railroad TV adaptation (dir. Barry Jenkins) brought wider popular attention.

Trivia

  • Born in Manhattan, New York.
  • Worked as a reporter for the Village Voice after graduating from Harvard.
  • Won the National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize for The Underground Railroad.