Murakami Ryu passes away on the 17th… "A writer ahead of his time"

[Dispatch=Lee Myung-joo] Japanese bestselling author Ryu Murakami has passed away. He was 74.

NHK reported on the 23rd that "Ryu Murakami passed away at his home on the 17th" and that "his funeral was held as a family ceremony."

Publisher Gentosha Books expressed deep sorrow over "the sudden death of Ryu Murakami. We pray for the repose of the soul of the late author who was ahead of his time."

He made his debut in 1976 with the novel "Coin Locker Babies" while enrolled at Musashino Art University. With this work, he received the Akutagawa Prize and the Gunzo Newcomer Literary Prize.

"Almost Transparent Blue" is one of Ryu Murakami's representative works. Based on his experience living in Fussa, Tokyo, where a U.S. military base is located, he depicted the decadent lives of young people.

"Coin Locker Babies" (1980) depicts the lives of children abandoned in coin lockers. In "Love and the Fascism of Fantasy" (1984), he dealt with the young generation of Japan that emerged after the collapse of the bubble economy.

He earned recognition as a writer who was foremost in addressing contemporary social issues of the era. In addition to novels, he was active in various fields including performance direction, sports reporting, hosting talk shows, and painting.