Mieko Kawakami facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Mieko Kawakami
|
|
|---|---|
Mieko Kawakami in 2014, giving a lecture in Tokyo
|
|
| Native name |
川上未映子
|
| Born | August 29, 1976 Osaka, Japan |
| Occupation | Writer, poet |
| Language | Japanese |
| Genre | Fiction, poetry, short story |
| Notable works |
|
| Notable awards |
|
| Website | |
| Official website: https://www.mieko.jp/mieko-kawakami | |
Mieko Kawakami (川上未映子, Kawakami Mieko, born August 29, 1976) is a famous Japanese writer and poet. She was born in Osaka, Japan. Her books and poems have won many important awards in Japan.
Mieko Kawakami is known for her unique writing style. Her stories have been translated into many languages. This means readers all over the world can enjoy her work.
Contents
Her Early Life
Mieko Kawakami was born in Osaka, Japan, on August 29, 1976.
Her Journey to Becoming a Writer
Before becoming a writer, Mieko Kawakami had a few different jobs. She worked in a bookstore and even had a singing career. She released three music albums. However, in 2006, she decided to stop singing. She wanted to focus completely on writing.
Starting as a Poet
Mieko Kawakami began her writing journey as a poet in 2006. The next year, she published her first short novel. It was called My Ego, My Teeth, and the World.
Before she won the famous Akutagawa Prize in 2008, many people in Japan knew her as a popular blogger. Her blog was very successful. It sometimes received over 200,000 visits every single day!
Major Works and Awards
In 2008, Mieko Kawakami won the Akutagawa Prize for her novella Chichi to Ran. This was a big achievement for her.
Her first full-length novel, Heaven, won the Murasaki Shikibu Prize for Literature in 2010. This book was later translated into English.
In 2012, one of her short stories, "March Yarn," was translated into English. It appeared in a collection of stories about the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.
From 2015 to 2017, Kawakami had a series of interviews with another famous Japanese author, Haruki Murakami. These interviews were later published as a book.
In 2016, she was recognized as one of the best young Japanese novelists. This was for her short story "Marie's Proof of Love."
Her novel, Ms Ice Sandwich, was nominated for a big award in 2018. In 2019, she published Natsu Monogatari, which means Summer Stories. This book was a much longer version of her earlier novella, Chichi to Ran. It also won an important award.
Her Books Go Global
In 2020, the English version of Natsu Monogatari was released. A famous newspaper, The New York Times, wrote a review about it. The review praised Kawakami's honest way of writing about women's lives.
Her novel Heaven was translated into English and published in 2021. It was so well-received that it was nominated for the 2022 International Booker Prize. This is a very important award for books translated into English.
In 2022, her book All the Lovers in the Night was also translated into English. It was a finalist for another major award in 2023, the National Book Critics Circle Award.
Her Writing Style
Mieko Kawakami often uses the Osaka dialect in her writing. This is a special way of speaking Japanese from Osaka. She also likes to use creative and poetic language in her stories.
She has said that other famous writers like Lydia Davis and James Joyce have influenced her work. Haruki Murakami, another well-known Japanese author, has called her his favorite young novelist. He described her writing as "always growing and changing."
Her Personal Life
Mieko Kawakami lives in Tokyo, Japan. She is married to author Kazushige Abe. They have a son together.
Awards and Special Recognition
Mieko Kawakami has received many awards for her amazing writing. Here are some of them:
- 2007 Tsubouchi Shoyo Prize for Young Emerging Writers for Watakushi ritsuin hā, mata wa sekai
- 2008 Chūya Nakahara Prize for Sentan de, sasuwa sasareruwa sora eewa
- 2008 Akutagawa Prize for Chichi to Ran
- 2010 Murasaki Shikibu Prize for Heaven
- 2013 Tanizaki Prize for Ai no Yume toka
- 2016 Watanabe Junichiro Prize for Akogare
- 2019 Mainichi Publication Culture Award for Summer Stories
See also
In Spanish: Mieko Kawakami para niños
