Professor Roger K. Thomas

For his translation of A Tale of False Fortunes (Namamiko Monogatari) by Fumiko Enchi
Publisher: University of Hawai’i Press

Professor Thomas is an Associate Professor at Illinois State University, where he teaches Japanese language and culture.  He received his Ph.D. in 1991 at Indiana University.  His research and publications have focused primarily on poetry and poetics of the Edo period, but he has an active interest in modern fiction as well.  Although Enchi Fumiko is a twentieth-century novelist, A Tale of False Fortunes is distinguished by its long passages in archaic Heian-period prose style.  For this reason, Professor Thomas’ translation was considered eligible for the award in the category of classical literature.

Ms. Meredith McKinney

For her translation of Ravine and Other Stories (Tani, etc.) by Yoshikichi Furui
Publisher: Stone Bridge Press

Ms. McKinney is a freelance translator and part-time lecturer in Japanese and Asian Literature at Australian National University.  Her other published translations include, The Flame Tree/Aogiri no Uta (translations of the poetry of Judith Wright, with introduction, co-translated with Sakai Nobuo); Cooloola no Tasogare (translations of the poetry of Judith Wright, with introduction, co-translated with Sakai Nobuo); and The Tale of Saigyô (translation with introduction and notes).   She is currently completing a Doctorate in Asian Studies (subject of research: A Study of The Tale of Saigyô) at Australian National University.