Japanese Literary Awards

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Japan Juvenile Writers Association Award

にほんじどうぶんげいかきょうかいしょう

Children's literature award given to the most outstanding work selected from works by association members.

Children's Literature
Established
1976
Organizer
General Incorporated Association Japan Juvenile Writers Association
Category
Children's Literature, Fairy Tales, and Picture Books
Target
Professional
Frequency
1 per year
Announcement Period
around May
Status
Active

Description

The Japan Juvenile Writers Association Award is given by the General Incorporated Association Japan Juvenile Writers Association to the most outstanding work published within one year among works by association members. Additionally, there is the Children's Literature Newcomer's Award targeting newcomers, including non-members.

Related Awards

  • Children's Literature Newcomer's Award

Official Resources

https://jidoubungei.jp/about/award/

Past Winners

No winner
天川栄人 あまかわ えいと award
歌代朔 うたしろ さく award
横田明子 よこた あきこ award

『聞かせて、おじいちゃん』は、原爆の語り部・森政忠雄さんの証言を孫の視点でたどるノンフィクション絵本。

Kikasete, Ojiichan is a nonfiction picture book that traces the testimony of atomic-bomb storyteller Masatadao Mori from the perspective of his grandchild.

159 pages
ノンフィクション原爆絵本平和
Haruma Kobe こうべ はるま award

"「恋ポテ」シリーズ" is a 受賞 work from the Japan Juvenile Writers Association Award 2021-1. It stands out for its distinctive premise and atmosphere.

A 受賞 work from Japan Juvenile Writers Association Award 2021-1.

Japan Juvenile Writers Association Awardaward-winning work
Seiko Nakayama なかやま せいこ award

2021年に日本児童文芸家協会賞を受賞した作品。自然と向き合う子どもたちの姿を描く。

雷のあとに

自然再生
すとうあさえ すとう あさえ special award

"「はじめての行事えほん」シリーズ" is a 特別賞 work from the Japan Juvenile Writers Association Award 2021-1. It stands out for its distinctive premise and atmosphere.

A 特別賞 work from Japan Juvenile Writers Association Award 2021-1.

Japan Juvenile Writers Association Awardaward-winning work
Komichi Morino もりの こみち award

A story about a girl with hearing loss who takes a new step forward through sign language and encounters.

Crossing differences in hearing, she approaches another person’s world.

160 pages
children’s literaturedisability awarenessgrowthfriendship
森川成美 もりかわ なるみ award

In wartime Hawaii, Maresuke, a second-generation Japanese American boy, lives while helping at his grandfather's store. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, his peaceful days collapse, forcing him to face ancestry, citizenship, prejudice, and war.

Beneath a wide rainbow, a boy begins to ask who he is and how he will live.

243 pages
children's literaturewarJapanese immigrationHawaiiprejudiceidentity
おおぎやなぎちか おおぎやなぎちか award

Okami no Ofuda is a children's literature trilogy by Chika Oogiyanagi. Set against mountain-village life, awe toward nature, and wolf beliefs, it follows children as they encounter mysteries handed down in the land.

A three-volume children's series set against mountain nature and wolf belief.

children's literaturewolf beliefmountain villagenaturefolklore
No winner
杉本深由起 すぎもと みゆき award

ひかりあつめて is a 小説 work by 杉本深由起 associated with the 2016 受賞 record. The entry summarizes the work from award records and bibliographic checks, focusing on its subject, publication status, and reading context.

ひかりあつめて by 杉本深由起 is a work whose subject and publication status can be traced through award and bibliographic records.

award-winning workbibliographic verificationcontemporary literature
Miku Itou いとう みく award

空へ by いとうみく is introduced here as a work centered on 児童文学, スポーツ. The story and background are summarized from publisher, library, and award information checked during research.

A work in which 児童文学 shapes the reader's path into the story.

224 pages
identityfamilymemoryfear
No winner
Hiroshi Ishizaki いしざき ようじ award

The Witch School at the End of the World is a Japanese literary work that explores memory, relationships, self-discovery. It presents its subject through a focused narrative or poetic frame shaped by the work's award context.

The Witch School at the End of the World presents its award-winning themes in an accessible literary form.

322 pages
memoryrelationshipsself-discovery
No winner
大塚篤子 おおつか あつこ award

An, a fifth grader, begins attending a junior tennis club and enjoys her days. When her beloved grandfather develops dementia and gradually changes, she struggles with confusion and comes to see the bonds of family anew.

Facing a grandfather who is forgetting, a girl thinks about what binds her to those she loves.

224 pages
dementiagrandfather and grandchildfamilytennischildren’s literature
Shozo Yamamoto やまもと しょうぞう special award

動物ふしぎ発見 is a work by 山本省三. Children's literature that stays close to a young reader's view and presents moments of growth and discovery.

動物ふしぎ発見 draws readers into its world through concentrated language and the force of its subject.

40 pages
memorytimehuman relationshipsthe force of expression
Kutsuki Shou くちき しょう award

彼岸花はきつねのかんざし is a work by 朽木祥. 戦時下の広島で暮らす少女と小さなきつねの交流を描く児童文学。穏やかな日常が原爆によって奪われる痛みを、幻想的な出会いを通して伝える。

彼岸花はきつねのかんざし presents 朽木祥's literary concerns through a compact and memorable form.

175 pages
広島戦争児童文学
No winner
Keiko Nagita なきだ けいこ award

レネット 金色の林檎 is a 児童文学 by 名木田恵子. The work develops its subject through a focused narrative voice and leaves room for readers to consider the emotions and social questions behind the story.

A focused 児童文学 that follows the pressure points hidden in everyday life and memory.

175 pages
family and memoryself-discoverysocial pressure
Katsushige Shibata しばた かつしげ award

The third volume in the Dome County series. Theo and his companions set out with seeds of a plant said to freeze human hearts, and the adventure weaves together truth, lies, parting, and painful growth.

A journey carrying dangerous seeds teaches the young travelers the weight of truth and lies.

575 pages
adventure fantasytruth and liesgrowthjourney
Rieko Koshimizu こしみず りえこ award

Ashita, Deatta Shonen: Hanaakari no Machi de is a children's novel by Rieko Koshimizu. It frames memories of war and local history through an encounter between young people and their growth.

A boy met in a town lit by blossoms leads the reader toward memories that must not be forgotten.

231 pages
children's literaturewar memoryencountercoming of age
井上こみち いのうえ こみち award

This nonfiction book for young readers follows Buddhist priest Koji Uchida, who saw people in Cambodia forced to use polluted water and continued working to dig wells. It presents water, health, and international cooperation from a perspective children can understand.

One well brings hope into the lives of children in Cambodia.

143 pages
international cooperationCambodiawater and sanitationchildren’s nonfiction
Mineko Koyama こやま みねこ special award

Mineko Koyama’s poetry collection uses gentle language to portray familiar animals, nature, and children’s perceptions. As one volume in a trilogy, it carries small everyday discoveries in the rhythm of poems.

With the kind of imagination that turns a tail into a crayon, the poems transform everyday colors into verse.

45 pages
children’s poetrynatureimaginationeveryday discovery
Kenji Kitamura きたむら けんじ special award

Awarded for Kitamura Kenji’s body of children’s fiction, including Kujaku Toride kara no Utagoe. His work centers on adventure, growth, and the courage children find when stepping into unknown worlds.

クジャク砦からの歌声を含む創作実績 is a work in which 北村けんじ draws out the time and emotion beneath its subject.

children’s literatureadventurebody of work
Hisako Hirose ひろせ としこ award

まぼろしの忍者 by 広瀬寿子 is an award-winning work that conveys the author's voice through compressed language and a focused treatment of its themes.

まぼろしの忍者 by 広瀬寿子 is an award-winning work that conveys the author's voice through compressed language and a focused treatment of its themes.

award-winning workcontemporary literature
Emu Namae えむなまえ special award

失明後の多くの驚異的文筆活動 recognizes sustained creative, performance, or cultural contributions rather than a single book, honoring a long body of work.

失明後の多くの驚異的文筆活動 recognizes sustained creative, performance, or cultural contributions rather than a single book, honoring a long body of work.

career achievementcultural contributionaward citation
竹内もと代 たけうち もとよ award

不思議の風ふく島 by 竹内もと代 is known as a 日本児童文芸家協会賞 winning work, shaping its subject through relationships, memory, and the atmosphere of its time.

不思議の風ふく島 is an award-recognized work by 竹内もと代.

157 pages
award-winning workcontemporary literaturerelationships
Takuya Hamano はまの たくや special award

This 日本児童文芸家協会賞 entry recognizes Takuya Hamano's body of work, highlighting sustained contributions to literature and the arts.

「さよなら友だち」をはじめとする200冊以上の著作 is an award-recognized work by Takuya Hamano.

literary achievementarts and cultureaward recognition
Minoru Kume くめ みのる special award

翻訳書200冊刊行等の業績 is a work by 久米みのる recognized by the 日本児童文芸家協会賞. It is introduced here as the prize-winning work itself, with the available publication data checked against Japanese bibliographic sources.

翻訳書200冊刊行等の業績 brought wider attention to 久米みのる's writing through its prize recognition.

Children's literaturePrize-winning workModern Japanese literature
Mitsuo Yokoyama よこやま みつお award

光っちょるぜよ!ぼくら is 作品 by 横山充男. It is presented here as the award-recognized work.

The work offers a way into 横山充男's literary expression.

award-recognized literature
Hisako Yoshida よしだ ひさこ award

"すっとこどっこい" is a children's literary work by 吉田 比砂子. Reliable book identifiers for a standalone volume could not be confirmed.

"すっとこどっこい" is recognized as a children's literary work.

children's literary workaward-winning work
Nobuko Oka おか のぶこ award

A children's work that uses flowers, animals, and soap bubbles to portray children's feelings and small discoveries in daily life.

A children's work that uses flowers, animals, and soap bubbles to portray children's feelings and small discoveries in daily life.

children's literaturedaily lifeanimalschildren
Haruki Amanuma あまぬま はるき award

水に棲む猫 is a work by 天沼 春樹 associated with the 日本児童文芸家協会賞. It was recognized in a literary award context and is presented as a work centered on the concerns suggested by its title.

Recognized by the 日本児童文芸家協会賞, 水に棲む猫 draws readers in through the impression created by its title.

215 pages
日本児童文芸家協会賞水に棲む猫literature
大谷美和子 おおたに みわこ award

A children's story about parting and meeting again, told in language close to children.

A children's story about parting and meeting again, told in language close to children.

205 pages
work overview
Hamae Okamoto おかもと はまえ special award
Takashi Kawamura かわむら たかし award

天の太鼓 is a prize-recognized work that draws readers through its central subject, characters, and the texture of its period or setting.

天の太鼓 carries the distinctive qualities that made it a prize-recognized work.

award-winning literaturehuman experiencesociety and time
大原興三郎 おおはら こうざぶろう award

なぞのイースター島 by 大原興三郎 is a work recognized by japan-juvenile-writers-association-award. No standalone book identifiers were confirmed, so the entry focuses on the work itself.

An introduction to なぞのイースター島 by 大原興三郎 in its award context.

award-winning workliterary prizeなぞのイースター島
Yasuo Fujisaki ふじさき やすお award

沖縄の心を染める is a work of children’s literature by 藤崎康夫. It was honored by the 日本児童文芸家協会賞 and presents the writer's concerns and style in a focused form.

A useful entry point into 藤崎康夫's work.

189 pages
a work of children’s literatureaward-winning work
No winner
Hiroyuki Takahashi たかはし ひろゆき award

Mammoth Boy Yam / Princess of Loulan / Wolf King Ginstar refers to three works in Hiroyuki Takahashi's Roman Picture Story series. Set respectively in prehistory, the Silk Road, and the wild, they use pictures and narrative to awaken a young reader's sense of adventure.

Three picture-story works that carry children into distant eras and wild worlds.

334 pages
adventurepicture storyhistorical imaginationanimals
Yusuke Teshima てしま ゆうすけ award

ふしぎなかぎばあさん シリーズ is a children's literary work by 手島悠介. It follows a child-centered perspective and presents growth, family, friendship, and changes in everyday life as a story.

ふしぎなかぎばあさん シリーズ is an important work for reading 手島悠介's expression in the context of 日本児童文芸家協会賞.

growthfamilychild's perspective
Norihisa Akaza あかざ のりひさ award

A historical work for young readers that depicts the Jinshin War and ancient political change through people living in Kakamino. Amid the sweep of conflict, the weight of land, family, and choice comes forward.

Ancient conflict is viewed through the earth and sky of the people of Kakamino.

617 pages
ancient historyJinshin Warland
Kiyoharu Suzuki すずき きよはる award

津軽の山歌物語 is a work by 鈴木喜代春 selected in the 1988 cycle of 日本児童文芸家協会賞. As a prize-recognized work, it presents the author's concerns and distinctive mode of expression.

津軽の山歌物語 by 鈴木喜代春, recognized by 日本児童文芸家協会賞.

151 pages
prize-recognized workcontemporary literatureauthorial expression
Nanae Seo せお ななえ award

さようなら葉っぱこ is a 児童文学 by 瀬尾七重. It presents its subject through a clear artistic perspective, giving shape to personal experience, historical context, and the texture of expression in a way suitable for readers encountering the work today.

さようなら葉っぱこ condenses the qualities of 瀬尾七重's work in the form of a 児童文学.

257 pages
子ども成長家庭学校
No winner
Mieko Kozaki award

だぶだぶだいすき is a children’s literary work by 上崎美恵子. It centers a child’s view of the world and depicts curiosity, anxiety, and moments of growth through an approachable story.

だぶだぶだいすき conveys the qualities recognized at the time of the award through its period context, expression, and reach to readers.

幼年童話家族日常のユーモア
Kimio Endo award

A juvenile work by a writer attentive to birds and nature, depicting the time of thrushes in a harsh landscape. It connects observation of bird life with the severity of the natural world.

The thrushes crossing the wild landscape embody both nature’s severity and life’s persistence.

310 pages
juvenile literaturewild birdsnaturethrusheslife
森一歩 award

帰ってきた鼻まがり by 森一歩 is an award-winning work whose publication context and genre are identified from the award entry.

帰ってきた鼻まがり is one of the works associated with 森一歩's award record.

Ono Chuukou おのちゅうこう award

風にゆれる雑草 by おのちゅうこう is an award-winning work whose publication context and genre are identified from the award entry.

風にゆれる雑草 is one of the works associated with おのちゅうこう's award record.

Seika Shibusawa special award

大正の「日本少年」と「少女のとも」(特別賞) by 渋沢青花 is an award-winning work whose publication context and genre are identified from the award entry.

大正の「日本少年」と「少女のとも」(特別賞) is one of the works associated with 渋沢青花's award record.

Hikari to Kaze to Kumo to Ki to is a children's novel that passes on the memory of the Battle of Okinawa to young readers. With its title evoking light, wind, clouds, and trees, it looks at lives and everyday worlds broken by war and quietly deepens its appeal for peace.

A story that looks at what war took away through the remembered sky and trees of Okinawa.

142 pages
Battle of Okinawawar and peacechildren's literaturepassing on memorynature
Akiko Kayama award

Tosuke-san, Play the Flute! is a children's novel about the friendship between Tosuke, a boy who loves nature, and an injured kestrel. Through the eyes of a boy who listens to birds, it quietly speaks of the preciousness of vanishing nature and the cruelty of human behavior.

A boy's encounter with a kestrel awakens care for nature and attention to living beings.

195 pages
children's literaturenaturebirdsfriendshipenvironment

詩集・小さな愛のうた is an award-recognized work by 野長瀬正夫. It can be read through its subject, form, and the literary concerns that surrounded the award year.

詩集・小さな愛のうた conveys 野長瀬正夫's voice and the literary atmosphere in which the work was recognized.

children's literaturegrowthimagination

大地の園(4部作) is an award-recognized work by 打木村治. It can be read through its subject, form, and the literary concerns that surrounded the award year.

大地の園(4部作) conveys 打木村治's voice and the literary atmosphere in which the work was recognized.

children's literaturegrowthimagination

Through the eyes of Asako, a girl traveling into the northern wilderness, this recollective story depicts a shining river, family, friends, and life in a mining town. The vastness of nature and a child's daily life are joined with delicate feeling.

Beside a northern river, a girl's memories and daily life begin to flow quietly.

496 pages
Sakhalinnaturefamilya girl's growth

A creative children's story by Norio Miyawaki. Through an approachable story about a cat, it brings together a child's everyday sensibility and an attentive view of animals.

Calling the cat by name draws children and animals closer together.

72 pages
children's storycatchildren's literatureanimals