Kawade Shobo Shinsha to Release 'Bungei Bessatsu Michiko Ishimure Expanded New Edition' on April 6! A Definitive Edition Exploring the Life of the Author Who Spun Words from Modernity's Darkest Depths to the Salvation of Souls, and the Rich Appeal of Her Works, Marking 70 Years Since Minamata Disease's Official Recognition.
Kawade Shobo Shinsha will release 'Bungei Bessatsu Michiko Ishimure Expanded New Edition' on April 6, 2026, commemorating the 70th anniversary of Minamata disease's official recognition. This definitive edition deeply explores Michiko Ishimure's life and works, presenting their relevance to contemporary societal issues.
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Kawade Shobo Shinsha Co., Ltd. (Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo / Representative Director Yu Onodera) will release 'Bungei Bessatsu Michiko Ishimure Expanded New Edition' (tax-included price 1,760 yen) on April 6, 2026.
2026 marks the 70th anniversary of the official recognition of Minamata disease.
Author Michiko Ishimure (1927-2018) supported the patients' movement and continued to question the problems of Minamata disease and modern civilization through works such as 'Kukai Jodo'.
Following Michiko Ishimure's passing, 'Bungei Bessatsu: In Memory of Michiko Ishimure - Farewell, Kotodama of the Shiranui Sea' was published in 2018. This edition will now be re-released with numerous additions.
"After Ishimure's death, COVID-19 confined the world, the invasion of Ukraine began, and then the genocide in Palestine. The effects of climate change are also clear for all to see. The end of modernity that Ishimure saw in Minamata is surely becoming a reality.
Meanwhile, approaches to Ishimure have deepened and broadened during this period. We hope to convey this through these additions.
To put it plainly, Ishimure must be read now more than ever."
(Excerpt from "Afterword" by Harumasa Abe)
In addition to Michiko Ishimure's works, our company has published many Minamata-related books over the years. Masato Ogata's book 'Chisso wa Watashi de Atta' (Kawade Bunko), who fought on the front lines of the Minamata disease patient certification movement, also became a topic of discussion when it was used as a problem text (Public/Ethics) in this year's Common Test for University Admissions.
On this occasion, please pay attention to the 2026 definitive edition 'Bungei Bessatsu Michiko Ishimure Expanded New Edition' and the various Minamata literature and related documents introduced within the book.
● Table of Contents for 'Bungei Bessatsu Michiko Ishimure Expanded New Edition' (* indicates additions)
Essays
- Shinya Fujiwara: Michiko Ishimure's Nekomanma.
- Fukumi Shimura: Enishi Maboroshi Fukakushite
- Mari Akasaka: I Want to Be Moved by the Mystery of Michiko Ishimure
- Koji Yonemoto: Michiko-san, From the Palace at the Bottom of the Sea
- Shinako Kyo: O Sadness, Become Water, Become Light
- Yoko Hiramatsu: The Taste of Jakko, the Taste of the Soul
- Kyohei Sakaguchi: Micchin's Song
- Miki Nagano: Agonizing Support
- Naomi Okuda & Junpei Okuda: Minamata/Ishimure Literary Map *
- Keiko Saiga: Drifting Here and There *
Lecture *
- Tatsushi Fujihara: Where Has the Capital of Living Things Gone? Towards the Ideological Succession of Michiko Ishimure
Dialogue
- Seiko Ito x Hideo Wakamatsu: The Meaning of Reading Michiko Ishimure
Roundtable Discussion
- Hiromi Ito x Genichiro Takahashi x Kyo Machida: The Melody of the Oppressed
Lecture 1
- Reading 'Kukai Jodo'
Keywords: Shinya Fujiwara, Tatsushi Fujihara, Seiko Ito, Hideo Wakamatsu, Hiromi Ito, Genichiro Takahashi, Kyo Machida, Kukai Jodo, Minamata disease, Natsuki Ikezawa
2026 marks the 70th anniversary of the official recognition of Minamata disease.
Author Michiko Ishimure (1927-2018) supported the patients' movement and continued to question the problems of Minamata disease and modern civilization through works such as 'Kukai Jodo'.
Following Michiko Ishimure's passing, 'Bungei Bessatsu: In Memory of Michiko Ishimure - Farewell, Kotodama of the Shiranui Sea' was published in 2018. This edition will now be re-released with numerous additions.
"After Ishimure's death, COVID-19 confined the world, the invasion of Ukraine began, and then the genocide in Palestine. The effects of climate change are also clear for all to see. The end of modernity that Ishimure saw in Minamata is surely becoming a reality.
Meanwhile, approaches to Ishimure have deepened and broadened during this period. We hope to convey this through these additions.
To put it plainly, Ishimure must be read now more than ever."
(Excerpt from "Afterword" by Harumasa Abe)
In addition to Michiko Ishimure's works, our company has published many Minamata-related books over the years. Masato Ogata's book 'Chisso wa Watashi de Atta' (Kawade Bunko), who fought on the front lines of the Minamata disease patient certification movement, also became a topic of discussion when it was used as a problem text (Public/Ethics) in this year's Common Test for University Admissions.
On this occasion, please pay attention to the 2026 definitive edition 'Bungei Bessatsu Michiko Ishimure Expanded New Edition' and the various Minamata literature and related documents introduced within the book.
● Table of Contents for 'Bungei Bessatsu Michiko Ishimure Expanded New Edition' (* indicates additions)
Essays
- Shinya Fujiwara: Michiko Ishimure's Nekomanma.
- Fukumi Shimura: Enishi Maboroshi Fukakushite
- Mari Akasaka: I Want to Be Moved by the Mystery of Michiko Ishimure
- Koji Yonemoto: Michiko-san, From the Palace at the Bottom of the Sea
- Shinako Kyo: O Sadness, Become Water, Become Light
- Yoko Hiramatsu: The Taste of Jakko, the Taste of the Soul
- Kyohei Sakaguchi: Micchin's Song
- Miki Nagano: Agonizing Support
- Naomi Okuda & Junpei Okuda: Minamata/Ishimure Literary Map *
- Keiko Saiga: Drifting Here and There *
Lecture *
- Tatsushi Fujihara: Where Has the Capital of Living Things Gone? Towards the Ideological Succession of Michiko Ishimure
Dialogue
- Seiko Ito x Hideo Wakamatsu: The Meaning of Reading Michiko Ishimure
Roundtable Discussion
- Hiromi Ito x Genichiro Takahashi x Kyo Machida: The Melody of the Oppressed
Lecture 1
- Reading 'Kukai Jodo'
Keywords: Shinya Fujiwara, Tatsushi Fujihara, Seiko Ito, Hideo Wakamatsu, Hiromi Ito, Genichiro Takahashi, Kyo Machida, Kukai Jodo, Minamata disease, Natsuki Ikezawa