Mieko Kawakami
Author Mieko Kawakami seated at a table while speaking into a microphone
Mieko Kawakami in 2014, giving a lecture in Tokyo
Native name
川上未映子
Born (1976-08-29) August 29, 1976
Osaka, Japan
OccupationWriter, poet
LanguageJapanese
GenreFiction, poetry, short story
Notable works
Notable awards
Website
Official website

Mieko Kawakami (川上未映子, Kawakami Mieko, born August 29, 1976) is a Japanese writer and poet from Osaka. Her work has won prestigious Japanese literary awards in several genres, including the 138th Akutagawa Prize for her novella Chichi to Ran (乳と卵), the 2013 Tanizaki Prize for her short story collection Ai no yume to ka (愛の夢とか) (Dreams of Love, etc.), and the 2008 Nakahara Chūya Prize for Contemporary Poetry for Sentan de, sasuwa sasareruwa soraeewa (先端で さすわ さされるわ そらええわ). Her 2019 novel Natsu Monogatari, an expanded version of Chichi to Ran, became a bestseller and was translated into English under the title Breasts and Eggs. Kawakami's works have been translated into several languages and distributed throughout the world.

Early life

Kawakami was born in Osaka on August 29, 1976 to a working-class family.[1][2]

Career

Kawakami worked as a hostess and bookstore clerk, before embarking on a singing career.[3] Kawakami released three albums, but she quit her musical career in 2006 to focus on writing.[4]

Subsequently, Kawakami made her literary debut as a poet in 2006, and she published her first novella, My Ego, My Teeth, and the World, in 2007. Before winning the Akutagawa Prize in 2008 for Chichi to Ran, Kawakami was known in Japan primarily as a blogger.[3] At its peak, her popular blog received over 200,000 hits per day.[5]

In 2010, Kawakami's first full-length novel, Heaven, won the Murasaki Shikibu Prize for Literature.[6] In 2012, an English translation of her short story "March Yarn" appeared in March was Made of Yarn, which is a collection of essays and stories about the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.[7]

From 2015 to 2017, Kawakami conducted a series of interviews with Haruki Murakami, in which she notably asked him about women and sexualization in his novels.[8] The edited volume of these interviews, titled Mimizuku wa Tasogare ni Tobitatsu (みみずくは黄昏に飛びたつ, Haruki Murakami: A Long, Long Interview) was published in 2017. During this same period, Kawakami was selected as a 2016 Granta Best of Young Japanese Novelists for her short story "Marie's Proof of Love."[9]

Kawakami's novel, Ms Ice Sandwich, made the shortlist of the 2018 edition of the Grand Prix of Literary Associations.[10] In 2019, Kawakami published Natsu Monogatari (Summer Stories), a considerably expanded version of her novella Chichi to Ran and received the 73rd Mainichi Publication Culture Award.[11]

In 2020, the English translation of Natsu Monogatari was published under the title Breasts and Eggs by Europa Editions. The New York Times ran a review by Katie Kitamura on the day of publication, in which she observes, "Mieko Kawakami writes with a bracing lack of sentimentality, particularly when describing the lives of women."[12]

Her 2022 book, All the Lovers in the Night, was a finalist for the 2023 National Book Critics Circle Award in Fiction.[13]

Writing style

Kawakami's writing often employs Osaka dialect, which is a distinctive Japanese dialect spoken in Osaka and surrounding cities. She also incorporates experimental and poetic language into her short stories and novels, citing Lydia Davis and James Joyce as literary influences.[4] Her writing is known for its poetic qualities and its insights into the female body, ethical questions, and the dilemmas of modern society.

Japanese author, Haruki Murakami, called her his favorite young novelist[14] and has described her writing as "ceaselessly growing and evolving".[15][16]

Personal life

Kawakami lives in Tokyo, Japan.[17] She is married to author Kazushige Abe, with whom she has a son.[18]

Awards and recognition

In addition to the awards noted above, Kawakami has also received the following:

  • 2007 Tsubouchi Shoyo Prize for Young Emerging Writers for Watakushi ritsuin hā, mata wa sekai (My Ego Ratio, My Teeth, and the World)[19]
  • 2008 Chūya Nakahara Prize for Sentan de, sasuwa sasareruwa sora eewa[20]
  • 2008 Akutagawa Prize for Chichi to Ran[21]
  • 2010 Murasaki Shikibu Prize for Heaven[6]
  • 2013 Tanizaki Prize for Ai no Yume toka (Dreams of Love, etc.)[22]
  • 2016 Watanabe Junichiro Prize for Akogare (Yearning)[23]
  • 2019 Mainichi Publication Culture Award for Summer Stories

Bibliography

Books in Japanese

  • Watakushi ritsu in ha, mata wa sekai (わたくし率 イン 歯一、または世界, My Ego Ratio, My Teeth, and the World), Kodansha, 2007, ISBN 9784062142137
  • Chichi to Ran (乳と卵), Bungeishunju, 2008, ISBN 9784163270104
  • Sentan de, sasuwa sasareruwa soraeewa(先端で、さすわ さされるわ そらええわ), Seidosha, 2008, ISBN 9784791763894
  • Hevun (ヘヴンHeaven), Kodansha, 2009, ISBN 9784062157728
  • Subete mayonaka no koibito tachi (すべて真夜中の恋人たち, All the Lovers in the Night), Kodansha, 2011, ISBN 9784062779401
  • Ai no yume to ka (愛の夢とか, Dreams of Love, etc.), Kodansha, 2013, ISBN 9784062177993
  • Akogare (あこがれ, Yearning), Shinchosha, 2015 ISBN 9784103256243
  • Wisteria to sannin no onna tachi (ウィステリアと三人の女たち, "Wisteria and Three Women"), Shinchosha, 2017, ISBN 9784103256250
  • Natsu Monogatari (夏物語, "Summer Stories"), Bungeishunju, 2019, ISBN 9784163910543
  • Haru no kowai mono (春のこわいもの, "The Fears of Spring"), Shinchosha, 2022, ISBN 9784103256267

Selected work in English

  • "From Breasts and Eggs," trans. Louise Heal Kawai, Words Without Borders, 2012[24]
  • "March Yarn," trans. Michael Emmerich, March was Made of Yarn: Reflections on the Japanese Earthquake, Tsunami, and Nuclear Meltdown, 2012[7]
  • "Where Have All the Sundays Gone?", trans. Hitomi Yoshio, Words Without Borders, 2015[25]
  • "About Her and the Memories That Belong to Her", trans. Hitomi Yoshio, Granta 132, 2015[26]
  • "Strawberry Fields Forever and Ever," trans. Hitomi Yoshio, Pleiades: Literature in Context, 2016[27]
  • "The Flower Garden," trans. Hitomi Yoshio, Freeman's: The Future of New Writing, 2017[28]
  • Ms. Ice Sandwich, trans. Louise Heal Kawai, Pushkin Press, 2018, ISBN 9781782273301[29]
  • "How Much Heart," trans. David Boyd, Granta Online, 2018[30]
  • Breasts and Eggs, trans. Sam Bett and David Boyd, Europa Editions, 2020, ISBN 9781609455873[31]
  • "The Flowers Look More Beautiful Now Than Ever," trans. Hitomi Yoshio, Granta Online, 2020[32]
  • "Shame", trans. Louise Heal Kawai and Hitomi Yoshio, Granta Online, 2020[33]
  • Heaven, trans. Sam Bett and David Boyd, Europa Editions, 2021, p. 192. ISBN 9781609456214[34]
  • All the Lovers in the Night, trans. Sam Bett and David Boyd, Europa Editions, 2022, p. 224. ISBN 9781609456993[35]

References

  1. ↑ 未映子, 川上 (August 9, 2019). "脅迫に屈しないとはどういうことか。作家・川上未映子さんが体験して考えた｢わたしの戦い方｣". BUSINESS INSIDER JAPAN (in Japanese). Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  2. ↑ Emre, Merve (May 31, 2021). "A Japanese Novelist's Tale of Bullying and Nietzsche". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
  3. 1 2 Kageyama, Yuri (March 25, 2008). "Writer blogs her way to top literary prize". Japan Times. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  4. 1 2 Lee, Jian Xuan (November 22, 2015). "J-pop singer turned writer". The Straits Times. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  5. ↑ McNeill, David. "Young commuter bloggers snatch Japan's literary laurels". The Independent. Archived from the original on May 14, 2022. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  6. 1 2 "紫式部文学賞". 宇治市図書館 (in Japanese). Retrieved June 21, 2018.
  7. 1 2 Kawakami, Mieko (2012). "March Yarn". In Luke, Elmer; Karashima, David James (eds.). March was Made of Yarn: Reflections on the Japanese Earthquake, Tsunami, and Nuclear Meltdown. Translated by Emmerich, Michael. Vintage Books. pp. 55–70. ISBN 9780307948861.
  8. ↑ Kashiwazaki, Kan (June 16, 2017). "Haruki Murakami talks of how he goes with the flow". Asahi Shimbun. Archived from the original on June 16, 2017. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  9. ↑ "Mieko Kawakami". Granta. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
  10. ↑ GPLA 2018 Finals: Maybe the Year of English
  11. ↑ "毎日出版文化賞の人々：／上 文学・芸術部門 川上未映子さん／人文・社会部門 関根清三さん". 毎日新聞 (in Japanese). Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  12. ↑ Kitamura, Katie (April 7, 2020). "A Japanese Literary Star Joins Her Peers on Western Bookshelves". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  13. ↑ Varno, David (February 1, 2023). "National Book Critics Circle Announces Finalists for Publishing Year 2022". National Book Critics Circle. Retrieved February 3, 2023.
  14. ↑ Murakami, Haruki (October 4, 2017). "Haruki Murakami on his favorite young novelist". Literary Hub. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  15. ↑ Janney, Matthew (January 5, 2018). "Why Mieko Kawakami is the One Japanese Writer You Should Be Reading". The Culture Trip. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  16. ↑ "Mieko Kawakami: 'Women are no longer content to shut up'". TheGuardian.com. August 18, 2020.
  17. ↑ Hunt, Joshua (February 7, 2023). "'Breasts and Eggs' Made Her a Feminist Icon. She Has Other Ambitions". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 29, 2023. The comfortable life she has ended up with — married to another successful novelist, with whom she shares a 10-year-old son and a modest home in Tokyo — doesn't always fit as well as the designer dresses that disguise her working-class roots.
  18. ↑ Cook, Grace (April 22, 2022). "Rooms of their own". Financial Times. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
  19. ↑ "第一回 早稲田大学坪内逍遙大賞選考委員会" (in Japanese). Waseda University. September 25, 2007. Retrieved June 21, 2018.
  20. ↑ "第14回中原中也賞が川上未映子さんの『先端で さすわ さされるわ そらええわ』に決定しました". Yamaguchi City (in Japanese). June 15, 2017. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  21. ↑ Newcomb, Amelia (December 15, 2008). "Mieko Kawakami: From blogger to global novelist". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  22. ↑ "Tanizaki Jun'ichiro Prize". Books from Japan. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  23. ↑ "第１回渡辺淳一文学賞に川上未映子さん". The Nikkei (in Japanese). March 31, 2016. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  24. ↑ Kawakami, Mieko (August 1, 2012). "From Breasts and Eggs". Words Without Borders. Translated by Heal Kawai, Louise. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  25. ↑ Kawakami, Mieko (March 1, 2015). "Where Have All the Sundays Gone?". Words Without Borders. Translated by Yoshio, Hitomi. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  26. ↑ Kawakami, Mieko (July 1, 2015). "About Her and the Memories That Belong to Her". Granta. Translated by Yoshio, Hitomi. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  27. ↑ Kawakami, Mieko (2016). Translated by Yoshio, Hitomi. "Strawberry Fields Forever and Ever". Pleiades: Literature in Context. 36: 65–67. doi:10.1353/plc.2016.0007. S2CID 111219381.
  28. ↑ Kawakami, Mieko (October 10, 2017). "The Flower Garden". In Freeman, John (ed.). Freeman's: The Future of New Writing. Translated by Yoshio, Hitomi. Grove Press.
  29. ↑ Maloney, Iain (March 31, 2018). "'Ms Ice Sandwich': Lonely and obsessive, a boy comes of age". Japan Times. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  30. ↑ Kawakami, Mieko (August 15, 2018). "How Much Heart". Granta. Translated by Boyd, David. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
  31. ↑ Kitamura, Katie (April 7, 2020). "'A Japanese Literary Star Joins Her Peers on Western Bookshelves". New York Times. Retrieved April 28, 2020.
  32. ↑ Kawakami, Mieko (June 5, 2020). "The Flowers Look More Beautiful Now Than Ever". Granta. Translated by Yoshio, Hitomi. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
  33. ↑ Kawakami, Mieko (November 9, 2020). "Shame". Granta. Translated by Heal Kawai & Yoshio, Louise & Hitomi. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
  34. ↑ Kosaka, Kris (May 27, 2021). "'Mieko Kawakami's 'Heaven': The world as seen through the eyes of bullied children'". Japan Times. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
  35. ↑ Kosaka, Kris (May 12, 2022). "All the Lovers in the Night' ignites a spark of hope for lonely hearts'". Japan Times. Retrieved May 19, 2022.
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