Japanese Literary Awards

← Back to Home

Hiromi Kawakami

かわかみ ひろみ

Kawakami Hiromi

Aliases: 山田 弘美 / 小川項
Pen Names: Ogawa Kō（Pen name used during university and early magazine publications）

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1958-04-01 （Tokyo, Japan）
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Suginami, Tokyo, Japan → United States (early childhood)

Career

Occupations
Novelist, Haiku poet
Active Years
1994-
Memberships
Akutagawa Prize selection committee member, Tanizaki Jun'ichirō Prize selection committee member, Mishima Yukio Prize selection committee member (2007–2018)
Influenced By
Hyakken Uchida
Nominations
Man Asian Literary Prize (Shortlisted) 2013, International Booker Prize (Nominated, 2025)

Education

Ochanomizu University
Faculty of Science / Department of Biology
Degree: 学士（理学）
Period: 1976-1980
Year of Graduation: 1980
Country: Japan
Member of an SF study group during university

Awards

Pascal Short Story Newcomer Award
1994
Work: Kamisama
Organization: ASAHI Net
Result: 受賞
Akutagawa Prize
1996
Work: Stepping on a Snake
Result: 受賞
Murasaki Shikibu Literary Prize
1999
Work: Kamisama
Result: 受賞
Bunkamura-Domago Literary Prize
1999
Work: Kamisama
Organization: Bunkamura
Result: 受賞
Ito Sei Literary Prize
2000
Work: Oboreru
Result: 受賞
Women's Literary Award
2000
Work: Oboreru
Result: 受賞
Tanizaki Jun'ichirō Prize
2001
Work: The Briefcase
Result: 受賞
Art Encouragement Prize (MEXT)
2007
Work: Manazuru
Organization: Agency for Cultural Affairs
Result: 受賞
Yomiuri Literary Prize
2015
Work: Suisei
Organization: Yomiuri Shimbun
Result: 受賞
Izumi Kyōka Literary Prize
2016
Work: Ookina Tori ni Sarawarenai Yō
Result: 受賞
Medal with Purple Ribbon
2019
Organization: Government of Japan
Result: 受章
Noma Literary Prize
2023
Work: Koi wa Hakanai, Arui wa Pool no Soko no Steak
Organization: Noma Foundation
Result: 受賞
Japan Art Academy Prize & Imperial Award
2025
Work: Ookina Tori ni Sarawarenai Yō
Organization: Japan Art Academy
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Stepping on a Snake

1996 Short story / Fiction

A short work blending the fantastical and the everyday, characterized by subtle emotional shifts and a distinctive atmosphere; winner of the 115th Akutagawa Prize.

intersection of everyday and fantasylonelinesssubtle emotions
Translations
  • Stepping on a Snake

Oboreru

1999 Novel

A novel that depicts inner psychology through love and bodily sensations; winner of the Ito Sei Literary Prize and the Women's Literary Award in 2000.

lovedesirephysicality
Translations
  • Oboreru

The Briefcase

2001 Novel

A novel about a tender romance between a middle-aged woman and an elderly man. It became a bestseller and was adapted into a TV drama; winner of the 37th Tanizaki Jun'ichirō Prize.

lovematuritymemorysolitude
Adaptations
  • [Television drama] The Briefcase / 久世光彦 (2003)
Translations
  • The Briefcase

Manazuru

2006 Novel

A novel notable for its distinctive box-like design; it won the Art Encouragement Prize (MEXT) in 2007.

book designmemorynostalgia
Translations
  • Manazuru

Suisei

2014 Short story collection

A collection of stories themed around water and quietness; winner of the 66th Yomiuri Literary Prize.

waterquietnessobservation of everyday life
Translations
  • Suisei (Water Voice)

Ookina Tori ni Sarawarenai Yō

2016 Short story collection

A collection of stories with allegorical and fantastical elements; winner of the Izumi Kyōka Literary Prize and its English translation was nominated for the International Booker Prize.

allegoryfantasydefamiliarization within the everyday
Translations
  • So That I Am Not Taken by a Large Bird

Kamisama

1994 Short story

Debut work first published via an early online network; won the Pascal Short Story Newcomer Award.

debut workfamilyfantasy
Translations
  • Kamisama (God)

Bibliography

  • Monogatari ga, Hajimaru
  • Stepping on a Snake
  • Itoshii
  • Kamisama
  • Oboreru
  • Omedetō
  • Yashi Yashi
  • The Briefcase
  • Parade
  • Ryūgū
  • What Shines, That Thing
  • Nishino Yukihiko's Love and Adventure
  • Antiques: Nakano Store
  • Night Park
  • Zarazara
  • About Hazuki-san
  • Manazuru
  • Kaze Hana
  • A Town Far From Anywhere

Adaptations

  • The Briefcase (TV drama adaptation)
  • Nishino Yukihiko's Love and Adventure (film adaptation)

Translations by Author

  • The Tales of Ise (modern Japanese translation)

Translations of Works

  • The Briefcase
  • So That I Am Not Taken by a Large Bird

Style & Themes

Literary Style
blending of the fantastical and the everydaydelicate, quiet narrative voicean emphasis on atmospheric 'kuukikan'
Recurring Motifs
waterbirds/animalsmemory and nostalgiaromance in middle age

Health

  • Illness in childhood (details unknown)
    小学校3年生の時に1学期間休む
    Became an avid reader after reading children's literature at home

Legacy

Celebrated for her distinctive prose that mixes the fantastical with the everyday and for the atmospheric 'kuukikan' of her writing. She has won numerous major literary awards and attracted international attention through adaptations and translations.

In Popular Culture

  • The Briefcase (TV drama adaptation by WOWOW)
  • Nishino Yukihiko's Love and Adventure (film adaptation)

Quotes

  • I want to write the moment when a different world can be seen.
    Source: Sankei Shimbun (interview on receiving Medal with Purple Ribbon) (2019)

Trivia

  • Her father is Akihiro Yamada, a biology professor at the University of Tokyo.
  • Published short stories in SF magazines while at university (including under the pen name Ogawa Kō).
  • Active as a haiku poet and participates in haiku magazines.
  • Divorced in 2009; has two sons.
  • Has served as a selection committee member for major literary prizes such as the Akutagawa Prize.