Milan, 23 Oct. (LaPresse) – The writer Ryu Murakami has died. His publisher, Gentosha, announced the news on X, stating that “he passed away on 17 October 2026 at his home at the age of 74”. The same publishing house “expresses its deepest condolences and shares this news. The funeral was held in private, attended only by family members”. Since the publication of ‘Almost Transparent Blue’, Murakami “continued to produce compelling works consistently aimed at the younger generations; the news of Mr Ryu Murakami’s untimely passing fills us with a profound grief that we cannot bear. We pray for the peaceful rest of the man who led the way as a pioneering figure of his era,” the statement continues. His first work, a short novel entitled ‘Almost Transparent Blue’, which deals with promiscuity and drug use amongst young Japanese people, won the Gunzo Literary Prize for Debut Authors in 1976. The novel received rave reviews, which praised its novelty on the literary scene, although there were also those who denounced it as decadent. In the same year, ‘Almost Transparent Blue’ also won the Akutagawa Prize and quickly became a bestseller. In 1980, Murakami published *Coin Locker Babies*, which once again garnered widespread acclaim from critics and the public alike, winning the Noma Literary New Face Prize the following year. In 2000, *Parasites* won the 36th Tanizaki Prize.
Books: Farewell to Japanese writer Ryu Murakami, aged 74
Milan, 23 Oct. (LaPresse) – The writer Ryu Murakami has died. His publisher, Gentosha, announced the news on X, stating that “he passed away on 17 October 2026 at his home at the age of 74”. The same publishing house “expresses its deepest condolences and shares this news. The funeral was held in private, attended only by family members”. Since the publication of ‘Almost Transparent Blue’, Murakami “continued to produce compelling works consistently aimed at the younger generations; the news of Mr Ryu Murakami’s untimely passing fills us with a profound grief that we cannot bear. We pray for the peaceful rest of the man who led the way as a pioneering figure of his era,” the statement continues. His first work, a short novel entitled ‘Almost Transparent Blue’, which deals with promiscuity and drug use amongst young Japanese people, won the Gunzo Literary Prize for Debut Authors in 1976. The novel received rave reviews, which praised its novelty on the literary scene, although there were also those who denounced it as decadent. In the same year, ‘Almost Transparent Blue’ also won the Akutagawa Prize and quickly became a bestseller. In 1980, Murakami published *Coin Locker Babies*, which once again garnered widespread acclaim from critics and the public alike, winning the Noma Literary New Face Prize the following year. In 2000, *Parasites* won the 36th Tanizaki Prize.