I have to say, I never saw what all the fuss was about award-winning bigshot author Haruki Murakami. He’s a great writer, sure, but from the critical attention he attracts you’d think he was Japan’s only living author. Of course, I hold that the best literature coming out of Japan today is illustrated, but there is a middle ground between the tiny clique of haute couture novelists and Love Hina. Today I’d like to train my spotlight on two female Japanese authors (authoresses?) who’ve achieved some notice in the States, and whose fiction is distinguished not so much by outstanding technical skill as a robust gift for storytelling: Asa Nonami and Miyuki Miyabe.

Sometimes referred to as the Stephen King of Japan, Miyabe’s work has been enjoying popularity ever since the release of her sociological and surprisingly low-key mystery All She Was Worth (in the original Kasha, a Buddhist term for a fiery cart sent to fetch sinners down to hell). In contrast, last year saw the release of her delightfully crafted young adult fable Brave Story, which is probably shelved with the manga at your local bookstore. Miyabe’s writing can be uneven, but it brims with vitality and, no matter how fantastic its plotline, connects solidly with modern social issues.

Nonami’s work is only beginning to come out in translation, and her first English-language title was also a mystery: The Hunter (pictured above). I can’t praise this novel enough for what it is; it’s an effective mystery, but from her prose style alone (and some of this may be the translator’s fault), it’s not immediately clear how insightful and original a writer she is. Her second title is the grotesque and disturbing family drama Now You’re One Of Us, which recently came out in paperback.