“The Fall of Mathias Giri” The Democratic Republic of Navidado, a South Pacific island nation. Mathias Giri, who rose to the presidency with the backing of Japan and seemed to have everything under control, with no political enemies, until the bus carrying a group of 47 Japanese war dead suddenly disappeared... Rumors among the kind islanders, a gossiping ghost, a mysterious high-class brothel, and the spiritual power of a shrine maiden. Something bigger than all of these engulfs the president. A masterpiece that weaves a rich narrative space. Winner of the Tanizaki Prize. “Silent Earth” It was my dream to write a novel about my ancestors who fell after a short period of prosperity—In the early Meiji era, Saburo Munakata and Shiro, who immigrated from Awaji Island to Shizunai, Hokkaido. A grand epic depicting the Munakata brothers who opened a ranch, and the efforts and failures of the Ainu people. A story of the author's own ancestors, and at the same time, a historical novel, 10 years in the making, that looks at the values that modern Japan discarded with multiple perspectives. Winner of the 3rd Shinran Prize. “The Sister Who Carries Flowers” Tetsuro, a painter, is arrested in Bali after falling into a drug trap. Kaoru, who returns from Paris and learns of her brother's arrest, flies to Bali alone. In the unfamiliar chaos of Asia, will the sister be able to save her brother...? Intertwining life and death, the West and Asia, despair and salvation. A dance drama unfolds in the dense atmosphere of Bali, and the battle between the witch Rangda and the monster Barong continues forever. A masterpiece novel that asks what true salvation is. Winner of the Mainichi Publishing Culture Award. “Kadena” The giant bomber B-52, taking off from Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, rains bombs on North Vietnam. To neutralize its attacks, there was a small spy organization connecting the inside and outside of the base—Set in Okinawa at the end of the Vietnam War, this novel depicts the courageous figures of ordinary people who try to resist the irresistible reality of war, through the post-war history of Okinawa. A masterpiece novel that incorporates all of the author's thoughts and experiences from over a decade of living in Okinawa. Natsuki Ikezawa Author. Born in Obihiro, Hokkaido in 1945. He spent three years in Greece in his 30s, ten years in Okinawa in his 40s and 50s, and five years in France in his 60s, and now lives in Sapporo. He began writing poetry and translations in Greece. In 1984, he made his debut with the novel "Stratosphere of a Summer Morning." He won the 98th Akutagawa Prize for "Still Life" published in 1987. Other works include "Mother Nature's Breasts" (Yomiuri Literature Prize), "The Fall of Mathias Giri" (Jun'ichiro Tanizaki Prize), "Happy Apocalypse" (Sei Ito Literature Prize), "Silent Earth" (Shinran Prize), and "The Sister Who Carries Flowers" (Mainichi Publishing Culture Award).