Exhibition of Genji Keita, a Naoki Prize-winning author born in Toyama

2026Years1Month17Day(Sat)~2026Years3Month9Day(Mon)

　Genji Keita (1912-1985) pioneered the new genre of "salaryman novels" with bestsellers such as "Third-Class Executive" and became Toyama Prefecture's first Naoki Prize-winning author. In recent years, Mariko Yamauchi's commentary on "Blue Sky Girl" gained popularity, leading to a series of subsequent reprints of his paperbacks, bringing renewed recognition. After graduating from Toyama Commercial High School, Genji joined Sumitomo Headquarters and continued working there for approximately 26 years, publishing a series of humorous works that warmly explore the joys and sorrows of salaryman life. Reflecting his own ideal of rewarding good and punishing evil, his works, timely and relevant to the times, resonated with readers and led to numerous films and television dramas based on his novels. His engaging writing style, featuring lively dialogue and engaging stories, remains compelling even today. In his later years, he became interested in "ghost novels," depicting the grudges of salarymen and the darkness of the human heart. This exhibition will focus on Genji's representative and popular works, and will explore the appeal of his world and the history of his career as a writer through handwritten manuscripts, original illustrations, photographs, and readings. In addition, we will introduce his literary activities in his younger days, when he submitted poems to newspapers and magazines in Toyama, through valuable poetry notebooks and publications from that time. Image: Genji Keita