Japanese Literary Awards

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Kodansha Nonfiction Award こうだんしゃノンフィクションしょう

Edition 42 (2020)

NonfictionLiterary award

Winners

2 people
片山夏子 かたやま なつこ award

Based on the Tokyo Shimbun series Fukushima Workers' Diary, this reportage records nine years of testimony from people involved in post-accident stabilization and decommissioning work at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Through fears of radiation exposure, layered subcontracting, and family life, it depicts the daily realities and conflicts that official announcements can obscure.

A record that brings forward the voices of people working at Fukushima Daiichi after the accident, drawn from nine years of reporting.

464 pages
Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disasterdecommissioning worknuclear plant workersradiation exposurelayered subcontractingjournalism
Chia Yoshida よしだ ちあ award

This nonfiction account records, through first-hand testimony, how firefighters of the Futaba Fire Department faced rescue work, evacuation guidance, and emergency operations at the Fukushima Daiichi plant after the Great East Japan Earthquake and nuclear accident. It follows their decisions and conflicts as they tried to protect their community in extreme circumstances.

A carefully assembled record of the actions and voices of firefighters who remained in their community amid the nuclear disaster.

222 pages
Great East Japan EarthquakeFukushima Daiichi nuclear accidentfirefighterstestimonylocal community