Kazuo Ishiguro
British novelist awarded the 2017 Nobel Prize in Literature.
Kazuo Ishiguro is a Japanese-British novelist, screenwriter, musician, and short-story writer, widely regarded as one of the most critically acclaimed contemporary authors writing in English. He was awarded the 2017 Nobel Prize in Literature, with the Swedish Academy citing his ability to produce novels “of great emotional force” that expose the hidden depths beneath humanity’s “illusory sense of connection with the world.” Born in Nagasaki, Japan, in 1954, Ishiguro moved to Britain at age five when his father, a physical oceanographer, took up research at the National Institute of Oceanography. He did not return to Japan until nearly three decades later. His early novels, *A Pale View of Hills* and *An Artist of the Floating World*, explore Japanese identity and a mournful tone, though Ishiguro later stated these settings were imaginary, built from a strong emotional tie to a country he barely remembered. Growing up in a Japanese family in the UK, he developed a unique perspective that shaped his writing. He initially aspired to be a songwriter, influenced by Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan, and his intimate, first-person narrative style owes much to songwriting. After studying English and philosophy at the University of Kent, he earned a master’s in creative writing from the University of East Anglia, where his thesis became his first novel. Ishiguro’s work often examines the outsider’s viewpoint, the search for elusive truth, and history as a trap in which humans struggle. He has been nominated for the Booker Prize four times, winning in 1989 for *The Remains of the Day*, which Salman Rushdie called his masterpiece for its departure from Japanese settings. *Never Let Me Go* was named the best novel of 2005 by *Time* and one of the 100 best English-language novels from 1923 to 2005. He was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for the 2022 film *Living*.
- born
- 1954
- field
- Novelist
- nationality
- British
- known_for
- 2017 Nobel Prize in Literature; novels of great emotional force uncovering the a
Lore & Background
Kazuo Ishiguro was born in 1954. Growing up in a Japanese family in Great Britain has colored his thinking and perspectives. His first two novels are set in Japan: *A Pale View of Hills* (1982) and *An Artist of the Floating World* (1986). His most celebrated work, *The Remains of the Day* (1989), is about an English butler and his feelings for a housekeeper around World War II. In later works, Ishiguro approached genres such as fantasy and science fiction, as in *Never Let Me Go* (2005) and *Klara and the Sun* (2021). His language is characterized by restraint, even when dramatic events are portrayed. He is the father of British short story writer Naomi Ishiguro. Memory, time and lifelong deception are central themes in his works.
Reader's Guide
The choice of Kazuo Ishiguro as the 2017 Nobel laureate was generally well received. John Mullan, professor of English at University College London, wrote in *The Guardian*: "It is because he writes for all times, using such carefully controlled means, rigorous yet utterly original, that Ishiguro is such a worthy winner." An editorial in the same newspaper said: "His work finds emotional force through self-restraint" and "Ishiguro’s novels illuminate reality in profound, surprising ways worthy of a Nobel." Dwight Garner in the *New York Times* described it as "a safe choice" but "a formidable and not uninteresting one," praising Ishiguro for creating "worlds that are clear in a sentence-by-sentence way, but in which the big picture recedes against the horizon." James Wood in *The New Yorker* said Ishiguro "may well be the first product of a creative-writing course to win the Nobel," praising *Never Let Me Go* as "one of the central novels of our age." Salman Rushdie congratulated "my old friend Ish." In her award ceremony speech on 10 December 2017, Sara Danius said: "An Ishiguro story is like a mix of Jane Austen and Franz Kafka." Ishiguro himself said: "It's a magnificent honour, mainly because it means that I'm in the footsteps of the greatest authors that have lived."
Did You Know?
- Kazuo Ishiguro is the 12th British writer to become a Nobel laureate in Literature, after 2007 laureate Doris Lessing.
- He was succeeded as Nobel laureate by novelist Abdulrazak Gurnah in 2021.
- His most celebrated work, *The Remains of the Day* (1989), is about an English butler and his feelings for a housekeeper around World War II.
- In her award ceremony speech, Sara Danius said an Ishiguro story is like a mix of Jane Austen and Franz Kafka.
- Ishiguro is the father of British short story writer Naomi Ishiguro.
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