Tag - sayaka-murata

 
 

SAYAKA MURATA

Sayaka Murata uses inventive language to bring the character of Keiko to life in "Convenience Store Woman."
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Mar 22, 2024
'Convenience Store Woman' and the 'normal' in life and literature
Author Sayaka Murata's use of marked and unmarked language provides new layers to a commentary on modern society.
An adult Natsuki (Manami Goto, center) and her husband (Hiromichi Aramaki, right) enter into a twisted relationship with her cousin (Mittsun, left) in “Earthlings.”
CULTURE / Stage
Feb 24, 2024
Sayaka Murata's 'Earthlings' is a fittingly wild ride on stage
The book’s gore and guts make for a fun, zany stage adaptation.
English translations of Japanese novels, like the ones seen here in a London bookstore, are getting a bump from TikTok.
CULTURE / Books
Jan 25, 2024
TikTok and YouTube fuel a Japanese literature boom in Britain
Translated novels sold a total of some 2 million copies in Britain in 2023, and Japanese works accounted for one-quarter of those sold.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Feb 3, 2023
Asian writers collaborate on anthology about modern disconnect
Sayaka Murata, Chung Se Rang and seven other authors from across Asia lend their talents to a new collection of stories themed on the stresses on relationships in today's world.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jul 10, 2022
‘Life Ceremony’: Sayaka Murata dishes out the grotesque with humor
Sayaka Murata's collection of hilarious and macabre short stories ask readers to take a hard look at humanity and reassess what is 'normal.'
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jan 8, 2022
Exciting translations and books about Japan to bookmark for 2022
From Yoko Tawada's “Scattered All Over the Earth” to Sayaka Murata's “Life Ceremony,” this year's new releases are sure to brighten up your 2022.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / 2020 in review
Dec 19, 2020
Our critics’ favorite books published in 2020
As 2021 approaches, six Japan Times book reviewers look back on their top reads released in English this year.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Oct 3, 2020
Sayaka Murata's 'Earthlings': Alienated misfits fight against the ties that bind
Sayaka Murata's latest novel is an incisive expose of societal pressures and expectations, and touches on taboo topics such as abuse and incest.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jan 25, 2020
Is Japan enjoying a new literary golden age?
The case for Yes
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jan 4, 2020
The books and translations about Japan to watch out for in 2020
A new decade brings a whole host of translations from prize-winning Japanese authors and books about Japan, from detective fiction to geopolitical studies.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jun 9, 2018
In 'Convenience Store Woman', Sayaka Murata questions normality in modern Japan
A former convenience store worker herself, Murata tells stories of women who don't fit in, who aren't ticking the boxes of middle class conformity.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 30, 2016
Sayaka Murata and the art of neutrality
When 36-year-old Sayaka Murata recently won the prestigious Akutagawa Prize for literature, the media latched onto the author's background rather than the novel itself. Murata continues to work part-time as a convenience store clerk, and gains inspiration for characters and plots from her work environment. Her novel is called "Konbini Ningen," which means "Convenience Store People."
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 20, 2016
Convenience store worker who moonlights as an author wins prestigious Akutagawa Prize
A 36-year-old part-time convenience store employee has won the 155th Akutagawa Prize, a prestigious literary award, for a book that explores life in and around convenience stores, the selection committee announced.
Japan Times
JAPAN / GENERATIONAL CHANGE
Jan 31, 2016
NPO founder fights to reverse plight of Asia child sex victims
When Sayaka Murata visited Cambodia while in university, she was shocked to see a little girl around 5 or 6 years old among those who had been rescued after being tortured by electric shock and forced into the sex trade.

Longform

Later this month, author Shogo Imamura will open Honmaru, a bookstore that allows other businesses to rent its shelves. It's part of a wave of ideas Japanese booksellers are trying to compete with online spaces.
The story isn't over for Japan's bookstores