Japanese Literary Awards

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Makoto Oishi

おおいし まこと

Oishi Makoto

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1925-12-08 （Shirako Village, Kitaadachi District, Saitama Prefecture (now Wako City), Japan）
Died
1990-09-04 age 64
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Wako City, Saitama → Akishima, Tokyo

Career

Occupations
children's fiction writer, children's author
Active Years
1950-1990
Influenced By
Jōji Tsubota, Miyoko Matsutani
Influenced
Takuhiro Ohmi, Nobuhiro Watsuki, Teruo Teramura

Education

Waseda University
School of Letters, Arts and Sciences I / English Literature
Period: 1945-1950
Year of Graduation: 1950
Country: Japan
Transferred from a science faculty to English literature

Awards

Japan Children's Literature Association Newcomer Award
1953
Work: Fūshinki
Organization: Japan Children's Literature Association
Result: 受賞
Shogakukan Literature Prize
1977
Work: The Disappeared Kuro
Organization: Shogakukan
Result: 受賞
Noma Children's Literature Prize (Special Award)
1990
Work: The Child Who Couldn't Sleep
Organization: Noma Children's Literature Prize Committee
Result: 特別賞受賞
Japan Children's Literature Association Award (Special Prize)
1990
Work: The Child Who Couldn't Sleep
Organization: Japan Children's Literature Association
Result: 特別賞受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Fūshinki

1953 children's story

A short story published in the 20th anniversary issue of the Waseda Children's Story Club; one of his representative works and an award winner.

childhood perspectiveimagination

The Chocolate War

children's literature

A popular work long read in elementary schools; depicts classroom and friendships.

school lifefriendshipjustice

Classroom No. 205

children's literature / adapted to live-action film

A school-set story that was adapted into a live-action film.

schoolgrowing up
Adaptations
  • [live-action film] Classroom No. 205 (film)

The Five Missing Elementary Students

1969 children's science fiction

A children's story with SF elements, illustrated by Shoji Yamada (Yamafuji Shōji).

adventuremystery

The Disappeared Kuro

1977 children's literature

Published in 1977 and recipient of the Shogakukan Literature Prize.

animalsloss

The Child Who Couldn't Sleep

1990 children's literature

A late-career work awarded the Noma Children's Literature Prize and the Japan Children's Literature Association Award (special prizes).

children's feelingsfamily

Bibliography

  • Fūshinki
  • The Chocolate War
  • Classroom No. 205
  • The Five Missing Elementary Students
  • The Disappeared Kuro
  • The Child Who Couldn't Sleep

Adaptations

  • Classroom No. 205 (adapted to live-action film)

Translations of Works

  • Translation of Jack London's The Call of the Wild

Style & Themes

Literary Style
simple, child-friendly narrative voiceemphasis on scene depiction
Recurring Motifs
school lifeanimalsrobots interacting with children

Legacy

A prolific 20th-century Japanese children's author whose works have been included in school textbooks and honoured through awards and local exhibitions. He is commemorated in Wako City with displays and a community bus wrap.

Museums

  • Shirako Community Center Exhibition Room Wako City, Saitama Prefecture, Japan

Archives

  • Wako City Shirako Community Center (original manuscripts and belongings)
  • National Diet Library (holdings)

In Popular Culture

  • Wako City community bus 'Fūshinki' wrap (honouring the work)
  • Motif influence on Nobuhiro Watsuki's work (elements in 'Rurouni Kenshin')

Trivia

  • He initially entered a science faculty to avoid military conscription, later transferring to English literature at Waseda University.
  • In Wako City a community bus has been wrapped in a 'Fūshinki' design to commemorate his work.