(born August 8,1983) is an award-winning Japanese novelist. A high school drop-out since the age of 15, Kanehara pursued her passion for writing with the support of her father, Mizuhito Kanehara, a literary professor and translator of children's literature. She was born and currently lives in Tokyo.

In 2003, Kanehara was awarded the Subaru Prize for her novel Hebi ni Piasu (Snakes and Earrings); later that same year the novel won her the Akutagawa Prize, one of the most prestigious literary awards in Japan, making her and Risa Wataya the youngest people ever to receive this honor.

Works

• Hebi ni Piasu. Shueisha Publishing Co., 2003. ISBN 4087746836
  • Snakes and Earrings (English translation of Hebi ni Piasu, translator David Karashima). Dutton, 2005. ISBN 0525948899
• アッジュベイビー (Ash Baby). Shueisha Publishing Co., 2004. ISBN 4087747018
• AMEBIC. Shueisha Publishing Co., 2005. ISBN 4087747018

1983 births | Living people | Japanese writers

Kanehara Hitomi | Hitomi Kanehara | 金原ひとみ