Japanese Literary Awards

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Hideo Yokoyama

よこやま ひでお

Yokoyama Hideo

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1957-01-17 （Tokyo, Japan）
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese

Career

Occupations
Novelist, Mystery writer, Manga original author
Active Years
1998-
Nominations
Naoki Prize nominee (128th), Naoki Prize nominee (124th), Yamamoto Shugorō Prize nominee

Education

International University of Commerce (now Tokyo International University)
Faculty of Commerce
Period: 1975-1979
Year of Graduation: 1979
Country: Japan
Member of the taidō club during university

Awards

Suntory Mystery Award (Honorable Mention)
1991
Work: The Whereabouts of Lupin
Organization: Suntory Mystery Award committee
Result: honorable mention
Matsumoto Seichō Prize
1998
Work: Kage no Kisetsu (Season of Shadows)
Organization: Matsumoto Seichō Prize committee
Result: winner
Mystery Writers of Japan Award (Short Story)
2000
Work: Motive
Category: 短編
Organization: Mystery Writers of Japan
Result: winner
Naoki Prize (nominee)
2002
Work: Half Fallen (Han-ochi)
Organization: Japan Literary Promotion Society
Result: nominated
Booksellers Award (Hon'ya Taisho)
2004
Work: Climber's High
Organization: Booksellers Award Committee
Result: 2nd place
Booksellers Award (Hon'ya Taisho)
2013
Work: 64 (Rokuyon / Six Four)
Organization: Booksellers Award Committee
Result: 2nd place
CWA International Dagger (translation) longlist / first-stage candidate
2016
Work: 64 (Six Four)
Category: 翻訳部門
Organization: Crime Writers' Association (UK)
Result: longlisted
Booksellers Award (Hon'ya Taisho)
2020
Work: North Light
Organization: Booksellers Award Committee
Result: 4th place

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Half Fallen (Han-ochi)

2002 Mystery

A human drama centered on a detective and an ex-convict, exploring moral and legal conflicts; was a Naoki Prize nominee and adapted into a film.

courtroomatonementpolice proceduralhuman drama
Adaptations
  • [Film] Half Fallen / 佐々部清 (2004)
Translations

Climber's High

2003 Journalistic novel / Mystery

Based on the author's experiences as a reporter covering the Japan Airlines crash; depicts newsroom conflict and the weight of reporting.

journalismreportersresponsibilitytrauma
Adaptations
  • [Film] Climber's High / 原田眞人 (2008)
  • [TV drama] Climber's High (NHK TV) (2005)
Translations

64 (Rokuyon / Six Four)

2012 Mystery / Police procedural

A long-form police procedural about institutional dynamics, memory, and the impact of an old case. Became a bestseller and received top rankings.

policeorganizationpast incidentsmemory
Adaptations
  • [Film] 64 (Six Four) / 瀬々敬久 (2016)
  • [TV drama] 64 (Six Four) TV (2015)
Translations
  • Six Four

Bibliography

  • Kage no Kisetsu (Season of Shadows) (1998)
  • Motive (2000)
  • Half Fallen (2002)
  • Climber's High (2003)
  • 64 (Six Four) (2012)
  • North Light (2019)

Adaptations

  • Half Fallen (film)
  • Climber's High (film & TV)
  • Rinjō (In-Field) (TV & film)
  • 64 (Six Four) (film & TV)

Translations of Works

  • 64 — Six Four (English translation)
  • Half Fallen (Chinese translation)
  • Climber's High (Chinese/Taiwanese translation)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Realistic, fact-grounded narrativeDetail-oriented, research-backed descriptionsRestrained prose with careful psychological depiction
Recurring Motifs
reporters and journalisminternal police conflictspast incidents affecting the presentconflicts between law and ethics

Health

  • Ill health (details not publicly specified)
    2005-2012
    A period of reduced writing activity; later returned with major works

Legacy

Known for police novels and journalism-based works; many adaptations to film and TV. Considered an influential figure in contemporary Japanese mystery fiction.

In Popular Culture

  • Many works adapted into TV dramas and films
  • Depictions of newsrooms and police are sometimes cited in media

Trivia

  • Worked for Jomo Shimbun as a reporter for 12 years
  • Appeared as an extra (court reporter) in the film adaptation of Half Fallen