Kunie Iwahashi

Kunie Iwahashi (岩橋 邦枝) was a Japanese novelist. She was considered "the female Shintaro Ishihara".

Biography
Born Kunie Nemoto (邦枝根本), Iwahashi was born in Hiroshima. Her mother and father were both teachers and Christians. The family evacuated from Hiroshima to Saga, Kyushu two months before the atomic bombing of Hiroshima in 1945.

Iwahashi's career began when she gained attention for her writing while attending Ochanomizu Women's College. Her short story "Gyakukoosen" was one of these early works. It was adapted into a movie by the Nikkatsu film studio. Iwahashi graduated in 1957 with a degree in pedagogical sociology. The same year, she was employed as a special feature writer for a magazine.

Personal life
She married in 1957 and had one daughter. Iwahashi's husband died of cancer in 1983.

Awards

 * 1982 - Taiko Hirabayashi Prize for the short story collection Asai Nemuri
 * 1986 - New Artist Award for the novel Hanryo
 * 1992 - Women's Prize for Literature for the novel Ukihashi
 * 1994 - Nitta Jirou Prize for her biography of Hasegawa Shigure
 * 2012 - Murasaki Shikibu Prize for her biography of Nogami Yaeko