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Reading Lists

A library is like a treasure trove. So many hidden wonders but sometimes you need to know where to look. Our librarian has compiled useful lists of regularly sought categories and topics to help you find what you need.

Akutagawa Prize Works

The prize goes to a short to mid-length work of literary fiction by “an unknown or little-known new author,” and is intended to serve as a springboard for the author’s career. The media attention surrounding the semi-annual joint announcements of the Akutagawa and Naoki Prizes far surpasses any other literary prizes.

Naoki Prize Works

The prize is one of Japan’s most sought after literary awards along with Akutagawa Prize, and goes to a novel-length work or collection of popular fiction that has appeared in book form. Though once aimed at writers early in their careers, there has been a shift in recent years to more established authors.

NHK Educational DVD

A 12-volume set of DVDs on Japanese children’s television programs broadcast by NHK Educational. These programs are suitable especially for children of a Japanese-speaking parent aged 2 years and older. Most programs contain Japanese songs and rhymes with captions of lyrics, and the option of a vocal-free soundtrack (instrumental) is also available for selected chapters.

Japanese as community language

Titles included in this list can help deepen your understanding of Japanese as community language. Subjects covered in this list include: bilingualism in children, early childhood education, and multiculturalism.

City Pop

Immerse yourself in the neo-retro, city-pop revival. In 2020/2021 our gallery exhibited a collection of Hiroshi Nagai’s iconic art and the music that it has come to represent. This booklist features city pop music CDs, books on Nagai’s art and city pop discography, and the exhibition online catalogue.

Juvenile Reference Books on Japanese History and Culture

This book list helps both primary and lower secondary school children (as well as parents and teachers) to find reliable sources of information for their research on Japanese history and culture. The book list covers subjects such as mythology, food habits, festivals, rites and ceremonies in Japan.

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DVD collection of the titles screened at the past Japanese Film Festivals

Relive some of the films from our past Japanese Film Festivals. Beginning in Sydney in 1997, The JFF has brought hundreds of Japanese films to Australia. Some of these have received a DVD release and are available to borrow from our library. All have English subtitles and original Japanese dialogue.

Course Prescriptions for Drama. Stage 6, 2019-2024

Japanese Traditional and Contemporary Theatre is an elective topic of the HSC Drama Stage 6 Course Prescriptions. This reading list contains reference books, as prescribed on the course prescriptions, in our library collection.
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Beginners’ Japanese-language Textbooks

These textbooks are written for beginner learners of Japanese-language, particularly English speakers. Native scripts (hiragana, katakana and kanji) are minimally or optionally introduced. Since romanized Japanese writing is only seen in limited places and have minimal purposes in the real world, these texts will only help you achieve basic oral communication, often referred to as “survival Japanese”.

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