Bungei Award
1 appearances
-
Edition 24 (1987) award
Kyuzo Sasayama
ささやま きゅうぞう
Sasayama Kyūzō
Aliases:
芝 久巳 / Shiba Hisami
Pen Names:
Kyuzo Sasayama（Used as a pen name / literary name）
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1950-09-12 （Nishitosa Village, Hata District, Kōchi Prefecture, Japan (now Shimanto City)）
- Died
- null
- Nationality
- Japan
- Languages
- Japanese
- Residence History
- Nishitosa, Shimanto (Kōchi), Japan (birthplace) → Yokohama (worked at Yokohama Kanazawa Post Office)
Career
- Occupations
- Novelist, Labor activist, Postal worker
- Active Years
- 1969-
- Affiliations
- Japan Post (Postal Service Co., Ltd.), Postal Workers Union (Japan)
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kochi Prefectural Nakamura High School (Nishitosa Branch) | — | — | — | 卒業 1969 | Japan |
Kochi Prefectural Nakamura High School (Nishitosa Branch)
Period:
卒業 1969
Year of Graduation:
1969
Country:
Japan
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | Bungei Prize | Shimanto River: Atsuyoshi's Summer | — | — | 受賞 |
| 1989 | Tsubota Jōji Literary Prize | Shimanto River: Atsuyoshi's Summer | — | — | 受賞 |
Bungei Prize
1987
Work:
Shimanto River: Atsuyoshi's Summer
Result:
受賞
Tsubota Jōji Literary Prize
1989
Work:
Shimanto River: Atsuyoshi's Summer
Result:
受賞
Awards & Nominations
Tsubota Joji Literary Award
1 appearances
-
Edition 4 (1988) award
Works
Major Works
Shimanto River: Atsuyoshi's Summer
1988 NovelA novel set on the Shimanto River depicting a boy, his family and his hometown, focusing on growth and farewells.
HometownNature (Shimanto River)FamilyComing of age
Adaptations
- [Film] Shimanto River (1991)
Shimanto River, Part 2 (In the Distant Days of Farewell)
1989 NovelA sequel in the series that portrays separations and changes in the protagonists' lives.
SeparationNostalgiaLife transitions
Ship of Famine
1990 NovelA long novel that examines the lives of people facing deprivation and marginalization.
PovertySocial issuesHuman relationships
The Postman
1992 NovelA work centered on a postman, portraying labor, daily life and human interactions.
LaborEveryday lifeHuman drama
Childhood Memoir: In the Shining Atmosphere
1992 MemoirA memoir-like work recounting childhood memories and family relationships.
ChildhoodMemoryFamily
Light of the Shimanto River
2013 NovelA recent work that revisits stories around the Shimanto River from a mature perspective.
NostalgiaNaturePassage of time
Bibliography
- Shimanto River: Atsuyoshi's Summer
- Shimanto River, Part 2 (In the Distant Days of Farewell)
- Shimanto River, Part 3 (When Blue Buds Sprout)
- Shimanto River, Part 4 (Unable to Say Goodbye)
- Shimanto River, Part 5 (Even if I Abandon My Hometown)
- Shimanto River, Part 6 (A River Flows in the Heart)
- Ship of Famine
- The Postman
- Tears of the Postman
- Childhood Memoir: In the Shining Atmosphere
- Yutaka Wanted to Be a Bird
- Echo's Song
- Faraway Summer Days: Stories of the Shimanto River
- Mother's Shimanto River, Part 1 (At the Edge We Hear a Song)
- Mother's Shimanto River, Part 2 (Each Their Own Path)
- Mother's Shimanto River, Part 3 (The Corner of the Showa Era)
- Thanks to You
- Raising My Child
- Light of the Shimanto River
Adaptations
- Film 'Shimanto River' (1991)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- Emphasis on local color and descriptive passagesLyrical style focusing on human characterization
- Recurring Motifs
- River (Shimanto)NostalgiaFamily and labor
Legacy
Recognized for depicting the nature and people of the Shimanto River region with care, he has been widely read through textbook inclusion and a film adaptation, and is regarded as an important regional writer.
Museums
- Kochi Prefectural Literature Museum Kochi Prefecture, Japan
Academic Societies
- Japan Writers' Association
Archives
- National Diet Library Digital Collections
- Meiji University Library OPAC
In Popular Culture
- Included in junior high school Japanese textbooks (Mitsumura Tosho), 2002–2020
- Film adaptation in 1991
Quotes
-
The tendency to judge people by the schools they attended only fosters laziness in children's futures.
Source: "Tatemae to Honne", Kosei Hogo, February 1993 (1993)
Trivia
- Birth name is Shiba Hisami; 'Kyuzo Sasayama' is used as a pen name.
- Joined the Yokohama Kanazawa Post Office in 1969 and worked as a postal employee while pursuing writing.
- Debuted in 1987 with 'Shimanto River: Atsuyoshi's Summer', which won the Bungei Prize.
- Won the Tsubota Jōji Literary Prize in 1989.
- His works were included in junior high school Japanese textbooks (Mitsumura Tosho) from 2002 to 2020.
- 'Shimanto River' was adapted into a film in 1991.