Japanese Literary Awards

← Back to Home

Akiko Itoyama

いとやま あきこ

Itoyama Akiko

Pen Names: Akiko (hiragana)（Used at time of winning the Bungakukai Newcomer Prize (before debut)）, Akiko Itoyama（Name used at debut and thereafter (common professional name)）

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1966-11-22 （Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan）
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan → Takasaki, Gunma Prefecture, Japan (since 2006)

Career

Occupations
Novelist, Essayist, Radio personality, Bassist, Part-time lecturer, Adjunct director
Active Years
2003-
Affiliations
Takasaki University of Economics — Adjunct Director (part-time), Hosei University — Visiting Professor (2011)
Influenced By
Michel Butor, Henry Miller, Louis-Ferdinand Céline, Kenji Miyazawa, Masuji Ibuse
Nominations
129th Akutagawa Prize nominee (It's Only Talk), 133rd Naoki Prize nominee (Runaway Fool), 27th Noma Literary New Face Award nominee (Runaway Fool)

Education

Waseda University
School of Political Science and Economics / Department of Economics
Degree: 学士（経済学）
Country: Japan
Graduated from Waseda University's School of Political Science and Economics (Department of Economics) after attending Tokyo Metropolitan Shinjuku High School.

Awards

Bungakukai Newcomer Prize
2003
Work: It's Only Talk
Organization: Bungakukai (magazine)
Result: 受賞
Kawabata Yasunari Literary Prize
2004
Work: The Man in a Dead End
Organization: Kawabata Yasunari Literary Prize Committee
Result: 受賞
Art Encouragement Prize (New Artist) — MEXT
2005
Work: The Sea Hermit
Organization: Agency for Cultural Affairs / MEXT (award for new artists)
Result: 受賞
Akutagawa Prize
2005
Work: Waiting Offshore
Organization: Akutagawa Prize judging committee
Result: 受賞
Tanizaki Jun'ichirō Prize
2016
Work: Thinhearted
Organization: Tanizaki Jun'ichirō Prize Committee
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

It's Only Talk

2004 Novel

Debut work composed of short linked stories centered on dialogue, depicting characters' inner lives and relationships.

dialogueisolationhuman relationships
Adaptations
  • [Film] Soft Life (Yawarakai Seikatsu) / 廣木隆一

The Man in a Dead End

2004 Novel

A novel exploring human isolation and absurdity; recipient of the Kawabata Yasunari Literary Prize.

isolationabsurditycontemporary society

The Sea Hermit

2004 Novel

A work concerned with the sea and one's relation to the outside world; winner of the MEXT New Artist Award.

seasolitudebelonging

Waiting Offshore

2006 Novel

A linked short-story collection; won the Akutagawa Prize.

waitinginner lifenature and humans

Runaway Fool

2005 Novel

Published in 2005; deals with escape and redefinition of self; was a Naoki Prize nominee.

escapeselfnew beginnings

Thinhearted

2015 Novel

Published in 2015 and winner of the Tanizaki Prize; a novel that examines the coldness of human relationships and lack of sentiment.

human relationshipsaloofnessmodernity

Bibliography

  • It's Only Talk
  • The Sea Hermit
  • The Man in a Dead End
  • Runaway Fool
  • Small Talk
  • NEET
  • Waiting Offshore
  • Escape / Absent
  • Dirty Work
  • Raji & Peace
  • Bakemono
  • The Wife's Aloofness
  • Descendants
  • Sequel to an Unpleasant Book
  • The Forgotten Waltz
  • Takeoff
  • Thinhearted
  • Komatsu and Usa-chan
  • I Slept Without Dreams
  • Your Company's Flirt
  • A Decent Life
  • God and Black Crab Prefecture

Adaptations

  • Soft Life (film: directed by Ryûichi Hiroki)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Conversational, dialogue-driven proseRealist expression mixing humor and ironyDepictions of everyday life from a female perspective
Recurring Motifs
isolationdistance from the sea / the outside worldflight and unexpected eventscool or strained human relationships

Health

  • Bipolar disorder
    1998年（入院・治療）
    She began writing while hospitalized in 1998; the illness led to a period of leave from work but became the catalyst for her literary career.

Legacy

Since the 2000s she has won multiple newcomer and major literary prizes and is regarded as one of the notable contemporary Japanese writers. Her conversational style and portrayals from a female perspective have been widely praised.

In Popular Culture

  • The film 'Soft Life' adapted from It's Only Talk

Quotes

  • Itoyama may come to displace Haruki Murakami.
    Source: Kazuya Fukuda (conversation, SPA! October 2008 issue) (2008)

Trivia

  • Birth name: Akiko Nishihira.
  • The family name 'Itoyama' was taken from her great-grandfather, attorney Sadanori Itoyama.
  • Debuted in 2003 after winning the 96th Bungakukai Newcomer Prize.
  • Her work It's Only Talk was adapted into the film Soft Life directed by Ryûichi Hiroki.
  • Maintains a public writing corner called 'Itoyama-bou' in a Maebashi bookstore where she writes in public.
  • Has participated as a bassist in a trio called 'Itoboka' and engaged in musical activities.
  • Won a lawsuit related to a film script dispute (case involving screenwriter Haruhiko Arai; judgment was ultimately confirmed).