Shaw Kuzki
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Shaw Kuzki

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Shaw Kuzki is one of Japans best-loved writers for children and young people. Born in Hiroshima, she is a second-generation A-Bomb survivor. Kuzki received an MA from Sophia University in Japan and completed her post-graduate studies at Trinity College Dublin, Ireland. While teaching in higher education, Kuzki began writing stories in 2004 and her debut novel, Kawatare (The Tale of Kappa, the Water-Sprite; Fukuinkan 2005) received four awards, including the JAWC New Talent Award and the Japan Juvenile Writers Association Newcomers Prize. Since then Kuzki has continued to win major awards for children's' books in Japan. To name a few: Higanbana Wa Kitsune No Kanzashi (The little fox and the flower Garland; Gakken 2008) won the Japan Juvenile Writers Association Prize; and Kaze No Kutsu (Clogs for Wind; Kodansha, 2009) won the Sankei Children's Book Award. Hikari No Utsushie (Soul-Lanterns; Kodansha, 2013) won two prizes, including the Shogakukan Children's Book Award; and Ahiru No Tegami (Letters of 'Duck’ ; Kosei, 2014 )won the JAWC Award. In 2015, 'Ishi No Kioku'('The Trace' from Flash in August; Shogakukan 2012) was translated into 17 languages and broadcast to 50 countries by NHK International. The story has as its central theme the Hiroshima bombing. In 2020 Kuzki was invited to the White Ravens Festival at the International Youth Library in Munich as the first writer from East Asia, however the festival was postponed to 2021 (and held with writers only within EU) because of the pandemic. The text to be used for German students was selected from Soul Lanterns. Also in 2020, Tazunebito (Missing; Mitsumura Tosho) was selected for inclusion in a new fifth-grade textbooks for Japanese schools. It is another story about Hiroshima. Her works span various genres including fantasy, realism and Hiroshima connection. They are highly praised for their clarity, depth and sense of compassion. Kuzki loves books, music, arts, animals and sailing. Her treasures are a sketch by Garth Williams, her 19-year-old cat and two year-old granddaughter. She lives in Kamakura or Koajiro Bay, both in Kanagawa Prefecture.
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