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Natsuko Imamura

いまむら なつこ

Imamura Natsuko

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1980-02-20 （Asaminami Ward, Hiroshima City, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan）
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Asaminami Ward, Hiroshima City, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan → Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture, Japan

Career

Occupations
Novelist
Active Years
2010-
Influenced By
Yoko Ogawa
Nominations
155th Akutagawa Prize nominee (Ahiru), 157th Akutagawa Prize nominee (Hoshi no Ko / Star Child), 39th Oda Sakunosuke Prize nominee (Tonkotsu Q&A)

Education

University in Osaka City
Degree: 学士
Country: Japan
Graduated from a university in Osaka City. Faculty/department details not publicly disclosed.

Awards

Dazai Osamu Prize
2010
Work: Atarashii Musume (later retitled "Kochira Amiko")
Organization: Chikuma Shobo
Result: Winner
Mishima Yukio Prize
2011
Work: Kochira Amiko
Result: Winner
Kawai Hayao Monogatari Prize (Story Prize)
2017
Work: Ahiru
Category: 物語賞
Result: Winner
Noma Literary Newcomer Award
2017
Work: Hoshi no Ko (Star Child)
Result: Winner
Akutagawa Prize
2019
Work: The Woman in the Purple Skirt
Result: Winner
Sakuya Konohana Prize
2019
Organization: Osaka City
Result: Winner
Hiroshima Citizens' Award
2020
Organization: Hiroshima City
Result: Winner

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Kochira Amiko

2011 Fiction (novella / short story collection)

A collection containing the retitled debut novella "Kochira Amiko" and new mid-length pieces. It delicately depicts children's perspectives and the unsettling elements hidden in everyday life.

memories of hometownchildhood perspectivethe uncanny in everyday life
Adaptations
  • [Film] Kochira Amiko (2022)

Ahiru

2016 Short story collection

A short story collection including the title story "Ahiru". The stories examine family, memory, and the instability of relationships.

familymemorytransformation

Hoshi no Ko (Star Child)

2017 Novel

A novel that delves into human interiority through parent-child relationships, loneliness, and uncanny events. It was shortlisted for the Akutagawa Prize and won the Noma Literary Newcomer Award.

lonelinessfamilythe uncanny
Adaptations
  • [Film] Hoshi no Ko / 大森立嗣 (Tatsushi Omori) (2020)

Father and Me on Sakurao Street Shopping District

2019 Short story collection

A short story collection set in a shopping district that sensitively portrays family and communal memories.

communityfamilymemory

The Woman in the Purple Skirt

2019 Novel/Long short story

Through the perspectives of an observer and the observed, the work depicts loneliness and distance between people. Winner of the 161st Akutagawa Prize.

lonelinessobservationsocial distance

Asa Who Became a Tree

2020 Fiction

A collection of short and mid-length pieces centered on change, loss, and memory.

losstransformationmemory

Tonkotsu Q&A

2022 Short story collection

A collection of stories including pieces published in Gunzo; it gathers several of Imamura's recent short works.

human relationshipsdetails of everyday life

Bibliography

  • Kochira Amiko (2011)
  • Ahiru (2016)
  • Hoshi no Ko / Star Child (2017)
  • Father and Me on Sakurao Street Shopping District (2019)
  • The Woman in the Purple Skirt (2019)
  • Asa Who Became a Tree (2020)
  • Tonkotsu Q&A (2022)

Adaptations

  • Hoshi no Ko (film adaptation: directed by Tatsushi Omori, 2020)
  • Kochira Amiko (live-action film adaptation, 2022)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
quiet, concise prosedelicate depiction of children's perspectives and subtle dissonances in everyday life
Recurring Motifs
hometown and memoryloneliness and distance from othersthe uncanny within everyday life

Legacy

Natsuko Imamura debuted with the Dazai Osamu Prize in 2010 and subsequently won major literary awards including the Mishima Yukio Prize, Noma Literary Newcomer Award, and the Akutagawa Prize. She is a prominent contemporary Japanese writer whose distinctive style portrays children and the uncanny in everyday life; several works have been adapted to film.

In Popular Culture

  • Hoshi no Ko (film adaptation, starring Mana Ashida, directed by Tatsushi Omori, 2020)
  • Kochira Amiko (live-action film adaptation, 2022)

Quotes

  • Yoko Ogawa is like a god. I would love to be able to keep writing like that.
    Source: Interview (Chugoku Shimbun) (2016)

Trivia

  • At age 29 she decided to write a novel during the walk home after being told to take the next day off at work; this led to her debut.
  • She has won major awards including the Dazai Osamu Prize, Mishima Yukio Prize, Noma Literary Newcomer Award, and the Akutagawa Prize, and is among those who achieved the 'three-crown' (Akutagawa, Mishima, Noma newcomer).
  • Before debuting she worked a variety of jobs including cleaning work.
  • Married in 2013, lives in Osaka City, and has one child.