Yamamoto Shūgorō Prize
The Yamamoto Shūgorō Prize is a Japanese literary award established in 1988 in memory of author Shūgorō Yamamoto. It was created and continues to be sponsored by the Shinchosha Publishing company, which published Yamamoto's Complete Works. The prize is awarded annually to a new work of fiction considered to exemplify the art of storytelling, by a five-person panel consisting of fellow authors. Winners receive ¥1 million.
Unlike the Mishima Yukio Prize, which was established at the same time and focuses on literary fiction, the Yamamoto Shūgorō Prize is more broad, encompassing a wide range of genre fiction that includes historical and period fiction, mysteries, fantasy, erotica, and more. Candidate works and prize winners for both prizes are typically announced in May each year and covered in national print media.
Notable winners have included Banana Yoshimoto, whose winning novel Goodbye Tsugumi was later published in English, erotic and romance novelist Misumi Kubo, and crime fiction and thriller author Kanae Minato. Several prize winners have gone on to win the Naoki Prize, including Riku Onda, Miyuki Miyabe, and Kaori Ekuni.
List of winners
An official list of winning and nominated works is maintained by Shinchosha, the prize sponsor.| Year | Author | Japanese Title | English Title |
| 1988 | Taichi Yamada | Ijin tachi to no Natsu | Strangers |
| 1989 | Banana Yoshimoto | TUGUMI | Goodbye Tsugumi |
| 1990 | Joh Sasaki | Etorofu-hatsu Kinkyūden | |
| 1991 | Itsura Inami | Dakku Kōru | |
| 1992 | Yoichi Funado | Suna no Kuronikuru | |
| 1993 | Miyuki Miyabe | Kasha | All She Was Worth |
| 1994 | Teruhiko Kuze | 1934 nen Fuyu: Edogawa Ranpo | |
| 1995 | Hōsei Hahakigi | Heisa Byōtō | |
| 1996 | Arata Tendō | Kazoku-Gari | |
| 1997 | Yūichi Shinpo | Dasshu | |
| 1997 | Setsuko Shinoda | Gosaintan: Kami no Za | |
| 1998 | Yang Sok-il | Chi to Hone | Blood and Bones |
| 1999 | Kiyoshi Shigematsu | Eiji | |
| 2000 | Shimako Iwai | Bokkē, Kyōtē | Too Scary |
| 2001 | Yuzaburo Otokawa | Go nen no Ume | The Five-Year Plum Tree |
| 2001 | Kaho Nakayama | Shiroi Bara no Fuchi made | To the Depths of White Roses |
| 2002 | Shuichi Yoshida | Parēdo | Parade |
| 2002 | Kaori Ekuni | Oyogu no ni Anzen de mo Tekisetsu de mo Arimasen | Not Safe or Suitable for Swimming |
| 2003 | Natsuhiko Kyogoku | Nozoki Koheiji | Peeping Koheiji |
| 2004 | Tatsuya Kumagai | Kaikō no Mori | |
| 2005 | Ryōsuke Kakine | Kimi tachi ni Asu wa Nai | You Have No Tomorrow |
| 2005 | Hiroshi Ogiwara | Ashita no Kioku | Tomorrow’s Memory |
| 2006 | Haruaki Utsukibara | Antoku Tennō Hyōkaiki | Emperor Antoku beneath the Sea |
| 2007 | Tomihiko Morimi | Yoru wa Mijikashi Aruke yo Otome | The Night Is Short, Walk on Girl |
| 2007 | Riku Onda | Nakaniwa no Dekigoto | The Incident in the Courtyard |
| 2008 | Kōtarō Isaka | Gōruden Suranbā | Remote Control |
| 2008 | Bin Konno | Kadan: Impei Sōsa 2 | Decision: Cover-Up Investigation 2 |
| 2009 | Kazufumi Shiraishi | Kono Mune ni Fukabuka to Tsukisasaru Ya o Nuke | |
| 2010 | Shūsuke Michio | Kōbai no Hana | Photophilous Flower |
| 2010 | Tokurō Nukui | Kōkai to Shinjitsu no Iro | The Colour of Truth and Regret |
| 2011 | Misumi Kubo | Fugainai Boku wa Sora o Mita | Feckless Me with Eyes to the Sky |
| 2012 | Maha Harada | Rakuen no Kanvasu | Painting of Paradise |
| 2013 | Fuyumi Ono | Zan'e | Lingering Pollution |
| 2014 | Honobu Yonezawa | ' | |
| 2015 | Asako Yuzuki | ' | |
| 2016 | Kanae Minato | ' | |
| 2017 | Takako Satō | ' | |
| 2018 | Satoshi Ogawa | ||
| 2019 | Kasumi Asakura |
Nominees available in English translation
- 1991 - Mariko Koike, A Cappella, trans. Juliet W. Carpenter
- 2004 - Otsuichi, Zoo, trans. Terry Gallagher