Famed Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami receives US award for bilateral ties
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Japanese writer Haruki Murakami lived in the United States in the early 1990s.
PHOTO: AFP
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TOKYO - Famed Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami received an annual award from a US -Japan exchange group in New York on Dec 11 for his contributions to strengthening bilateral relations through his literary work.
Murakami, 76, who seldom makes public appearances, lived in the United States in the early 1990s.
He attended an event hosted by Japan Society, a major nonprofit cultural institution with more than 100 years of history.
While he was in the United States, “I almost never came across contemporary Japanese fiction in American bookstores,” Murakami said through an interpreter.
“As a Japanese writer I couldn’t help but feel a real sense of crisis about this.”
“I’m just a novelist. All I have to offer are stories. But if I’ve contributed even a little to this positive current, I can’t imagine a greater joy,” he said.
After Murakami added, “A few weeks ago I finished my new novel,” the audience broke into loud applause.
The award was presented by the president of Japan Society at a musical event attended by about 1,500 people in midtown Manhattan, titled Murakami Mixtape: An Evening Of Music And Spoken Word In Celebration Of Acclaimed Author Haruki Murakami.
Murakami fan Jingxi Wu, a 21-year-old New York University student from China studying psychology and data science, said the programme made her feel like she was “no longer in New York”. KYODO NEWS
