Tatsuo Nagai

Tatsuo Nagai (永井 龍男, Nagai Tatsuo, 20 May 1904 – 12 October 1990) was a writer of short stories, novels, and essays, active in the Shōwa period Japan, known for his portrayals of city life. Nagai was also known as a haiku poet under the pen-name of "Tomonkyo".

Early life

Nagai was born in the Sarugakuchō neighborhood of Tokyo in impoverished circumstances. He was forced to quit school after graduation from elementary school due to his father's illness and premature death. However, he had already begun to exhibit signs of literary talent, and his first novel Kappan-ya no Hanashi ("Tale of a Printer's Shop") was published when he was 16. This novel won a prize in a competition and was highly praised by the well-known author and editor, Kikuchi Kan.

Literary career

Due to this encouragement, Nagai devoted his energies to writing, submitting a stage play to the Imperial Garden Theater in 1923, and publishing Kuroi Gohan ("Black Rice") in Bungeishunjū, a monthly literary journal founded by Kikuchi Kan. In 1924, together with the famous literary critic Kobayashi Hideo and some others, he launched his own monthly literary magazine called Yamamayu.