Japanese Literary Awards

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Okinawa Bookstore Grand Prize おきなわしょてんたいしょう

Edition 6 (2020)

Novel CategoryLocal Book CategoryLiterary Book CategoryChildren's Book CategoryPicture Book CategoryOkinawa Category

Winners

10 people
Mikito Chinen ちねん みきと grand prize

A long-form mystery that slips into the dreams of patients who cannot wake, tying together medicine, fantasy, family memory, and the mystery of a serial murder. Drawing on Okinawan yuta and mabui-gumi motifs, it blurs the boundary between reality and dream.

Deep in the dream, it unravels why they keep sleeping.

352 pages
mysterymedicinefantasyOkinawadreamsfamily
Fuyumi Ono おの ふゆみ runner-up grand prize

A new Twelve Kingdoms novel published as an 18-year-later long-form return, a four-volume epic in which Taiki and Risai search for Gyouso. Its blend of war chronicle, court drama, and detective elements expands the core of the series through Taiki's growth.

The long-awaited story of Taiki surges forward across four volumes.

384 pages
Twelve Kingdomsfantasywar chroniclecourt intrigueadventuremystery
Masayuki Uchikoshi うちこし まさゆき grand prize

A sociological reportage that follows Okinawan delinquents over more than ten years, tracing their lives from bosozoku to demolition work, the sex industry, and moves to the mainland. It squarely shows the dual nature of 'jimoto' as both a support and a constraint.

A hometown can be a place of belonging and an inescapable force at the same time.

304 pages
Okinawadelinquentssociologyreportagehometownyouth
岡本尚文 おかもと なおふみ runner-up grand prize

A visual reportage that traces the architecture and everyday life of Okinawa Island through photographs, interviews, and diagrams. From old houses to postwar buildings, it re-reads the island's record and memory.

It revisits Okinawa's life and history through its buildings.

192 pages
Okinawaarchitecturephotographylocal climatehistoryreportage
普久原朝充 ふくはら あさみつ runner-up grand prize

A documentary on Okinawa's architecture that records the overlapping lives and cultures visible through the island's buildings.

In the shape of each building, Okinawa's memories of daily life accumulate.

192 pages
Okinawaarchitecturephotographydaily lifememorylocal culture
Shinsuke Yoshitake よしたけ しんすけ grand prize

A picture book that uses a girl's inner thoughts and humor to explore how to deal with irritation and anger.

It looks for ways to protect yourself without being swallowed by bad feelings.

32 pages
picture bookemotionangerself-protectionhumor
Takeshita Fumiko たけした ふみこ runner-up grand prize

A picture book about a nameless stray cat walking through town in search of its place in the world and what it truly wants.

Even without a name, being called by someone can reveal what matters most.

32 pages
picture bookcatnamebelongingidentitykindness
Naoko Machida まちだ なおこ runner-up grand prize

A picture book about a nameless stray cat walking through town in search of its place in the world and what it truly wants.

Even without a name, being called by someone can reveal what matters most.

32 pages
picture bookcatnamebelongingidentitykindness
The Okinawa Times おきなわ たいむす しゃ special award

An emergency photo book that traces Shuri Castle's history and condition through photographs and illustrations after the fire.

A book that reexamines Shuri Castle before the fire through photos and source materials.

88 pages
Shuri CastleOkinawa historyphotographyrecord
The Ryukyu Shimpo Co., Ltd. りゅうきゅう しんぽう しゃ special award

A photo book that traces Shuri Castle's reconstruction and record through news photographs and articles.

A volume documenting post-fire Shuri Castle with news photographs and articles.

72 pages
Shuri CastleOkinawa historynews photographyreconstruction