Sanshiro

Natsume Soseki (1867-1916), one of Japan's most influential modern writers, is widely considered the foremost novelist of the Meiji era (1868-1914) and a master of psychological fiction. As well as his works of fiction, his essays, haiku, and kanshi have been influential and are popular even today.

Jay Rubin (translator) is an American translator and academic. He is the translator of several of Haruki Murakami's major works.

Haruki Murakami (introducer) is one of Japan's most admired and widely read novelists, whose work has been translated into more than fifty languages. His more than twenty books include The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, Kafka on the Shore, Norwegian Wood, and Killing Commendatore. Born in Kyoto in 1949, Murakami now lives near Tokyo.