Abe wins Akutagawa

[Aaron Gerow]

This is normally literary news, but I thought I would mention that 
Bungei Shunju announced that the novelist Abe Kazushige was awarded the 
132nd Akutagawa Prize, Japan's most famous literary award. He won for 
the novel Grande Finale, but he is also known for such works as 
Sensimilla, Nipponia Nippon and Amerika no yoru. I note this because 
Abe is an avid film fan, has written a considerable amount of film 
criticism, and has close connections with a number of directors. He 
recently published his first collection of film criticism:

Eiga oboegaki Vol. 1 (Bungei Shunju, 2004). ISBN: 416365920X

And earlier this year, this book of discussions on cinema with the 
director Aoyama Shinji and the novelist Nakahara Masaya also appeared:

Aoyama Shinji to Abe Kazushige to Nakahara Masaya no shinekon! (Little 
More, 2004). ISBN: 4898151329

Aaron Gerow
KineJapan owner

Assistant Professor
Film Studies Program/East Asian Languages and Literatures
Yale University

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