Pureful Novel Award
1 appearances
-
Edition 1 (2010) grand prize
Shigeru Kurakazu
くらかず しげる
Kurakazu Shigeru
Pen Names:
kurageru（Twitter/X handle）
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1969-01-01
- Nationality
- Japan
- Languages
- Japanese
- Residence History
- Japan → Guangdong Province, China → Fujian Province, China → Tokyo, Japan
Career
- Occupations
- Novelist, Associate Professor, Researcher, Critic, Essayist
- Active Years
- 1991-
- Affiliations
- Q-NAM (former member), Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of Japan (SF Writers Club), Tokai University, Faculty of Cultural and Social Studies (Associate Professor)
- Memberships
- Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of Japan (SF Writers Club), Q-NAM (former member)
- Influenced By
- Natsume Soseki, Hideo Kobayashi, Edogawa Rampo
- Nominations
- 43rd Gunzo New Writers' Prize — Finalist (2000) for 'Beauty and Death — Soseki's Modernity in Kusamakura', 44th Gunzo New Writers' Prize — Finalist (2001) for 'Hideo Kobayashi's Showa', Mishima Yukio Prize — Shortlisted/Candidate (2019) for 'The Nameless Kingdom'
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Waseda University | — | — | — | — | Japan |
| Kinki University, Graduate School of Literary Studies | — | Master's Program, Graduate School of Literary Studies | 修士 | — | Japan |
| The University of Tokyo, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences | Graduate School of Arts and Sciences | Language and Information Sciences | 学術博士 | — | Japan |
Waseda University
Country:
Japan
Published criticism in 'Waseda Bungaku' while a student.
Kinki University, Graduate School of Literary Studies
Master's Program, Graduate School of Literary Studies
Degree:
修士
Country:
Japan
Completed master's program at Kinki University.
The University of Tokyo, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
/ Language and Information Sciences
Degree:
学術博士
Year of Graduation:
2009
Country:
Japan
Awarded academic doctorate (PhD) in 2009 for the dissertation 'Genealogy of the Aesthetic Subject: Artistic Movements and Communities from the Late Taisho to the Early Showa'.
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Pureful Novel Prize | Summer of the Black Swallowtail (Kuro-ageha no Natsu) | 大賞 | Poplar Publishing (Pureful) | winner |
Pureful Novel Prize
2010
Work:
Summer of the Black Swallowtail (Kuro-ageha no Natsu)
Category:
大賞
Organization:
Poplar Publishing (Pureful)
Result:
winner
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
Summer of the Black Swallowtail
2011 MysteryDebut novel. A story that intertwines childhood memories with a mysterious incident in a town, combining mystery elements with coming-of-age themes.
memorycoming-of-agemysteryfamily
The Motherland of the Beginning
2012 Science FictionA novel with science-fiction elements that explores themes of origins and identity.
originsidentitysociety
The Magicians' Autumn
2013 Mystery/FantasyA volume containing short and mid-length stories that blend fantastical elements with human drama.
fantasyhuman relationshipsmemory
The Nameless Kingdom
2018 Literary FictionA literary work portraying state, power, and people living on the margins. Shortlisted for the Mishima Yukio Prize in 2019.
powermarginalityhistorical consciousness
Atonement
2020 Short story collection / FictionA collection of short stories including the title piece. Stories often address ethics, guilt, and atonement.
guiltatonementhuman relationships
In the Place Forgotten
2021 Literary FictionA collection of mid- to long-length works focusing on memory and loss.
memorylosstime
The Impulse to Be Myself: Artistic Movements and Communities from the Great Kanto Earthquake to the Eve of the Pacific War
2011 Criticism / AcademicA research monograph based on his doctoral dissertation, offering academic analysis of artistic movements and communities from the late Taisho to early Showa periods.
modern Japanese literatureartistic movementscommunity
Bibliography
- Summer of the Black Swallowtail
- The Motherland of the Beginning
- The Magicians' Autumn
- The Nameless Kingdom
- Atonement
- In the Place Forgotten
- The Impulse to Be Myself: Artistic Movements and Communities from the Great Kanto Earthquake to the Eve of the Pacific War
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- Detailed psychological description combined with academic groundingStructures that incorporate elements of mystery and science fiction
- Recurring Motifs
- memoryurban spacesdeathfamily
Legacy
Active as both a novelist and a scholar, he is recognized for bridging modern Japanese literary research and genre fiction. Winner of the Pureful Novel Prize, he is also noted for his contributions to education and research as an associate professor at Tokai University.
Academic Societies
- Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of Japan (SF Writers Club)
Archives
- National Diet Library authority file (NDL ID: 01233115)
- VIAF (ID: 257738188)
- ISNI (ID: 0000000379224244)
- WorldCat / OCLC entry
- CiNii author / publications entries
In Popular Culture
- 'Summer of the Black Swallowtail' ranked #8 in the Domestic Mystery category of 'Recommended Paperbacks Kingdom 2012'.
Trivia
- Won the 1st Pureful Novel Prize Grand Prize in 2010 for 'Summer of the Black Swallowtail'.
- Serves as an associate professor in the Faculty of Cultural and Social Studies at Tokai University.
- Twitter/X handle: 'kurageru'.
- Earned an academic doctorate (PhD) from the University of Tokyo in 2009.