Taiwan Novelist Named Winner of the Akutagawa Prize in Japan

In July this year, Taiwan novelist Li Qin-feng (李琴峰) was named winner of the Akutagawa Prize in Japan. Li Qin-feng’s 2021’s novel is written in Japanese-language and it is called "Island where Flowers Bloom on the Shore” in English, 彼岸花盛開之島 in Chinese and 彼岸花が咲く島 in Japanese. Li is 31 years old. She moved from Taiwan to Japan in 2013. After studying at Waseda University graduate school, she released her debut novel "Hitorimai" (Dance alone) written in Japanese in 2017. 

The novel is set on a fictional island between Taiwan and Japan whose culture and language are a blending of those of Japan and Taiwan. Joining us today is Sara Park, lecturer in Japanese studies at University of Helsinki. Sara discusses the importance of this award, the plot, and her personal view of the novel.