大地の子〈2〉

by Toyoko Yamasaki

養父と友人たちの尽力により、労働改造所から釈放された陸一心は、恩人である江月梅と結婚。そのかたわらで、中国と日本共同のプロジェクト「宝華製鉄」建設チームに抜擢された。一方、プロジェクトに協力することになった日本の「東洋製鉄」からは、松本耕次が上海事務所長として派遣される。松本は戦前、開拓団の一員として満州にわたった。しかし敗戦時妻子の生死も不明となり、傷心のまま仕事に生きてきた。戦後三十年を経て、両国で残留孤児探しが始まる──。

397 pages, Paperback Bunko

First published January 1, 1994

About the author

Toyoko Yamasaki (山崎 豊子, real name Sugimoto Toyoko; 3 November 1924 – 29 September 2013) was a Japanese novelist.

A native of Osaka, Yamasaki worked as a journalist for the Mainichi Shimbun from 1945 to 1959 after graduating from Kyoto Women's University in Japanese literature. She published her first story, Noren (1957), a story of a kelp trader, based on the experiences of her family's business. The following year, she won the Naoki Prize for her second novel Hana Noren, the story about the founder of an entertainment group. A major influence on her writings of that period was Yasushi Inoue, who was deputy head of the Mainichi Shimbun's cultural news desk.

Yamasaki wrote some stories based on actual events. For example, Futatsu no Sokoku is derived from the biography of a Japanese American David Akira Itami, and Shizumanu Taiyō is based on the Japan Airlines Flight 123 accident. Several works of hers were featured in films and television dramas.

Reviews

[Hiromi Kashino · Rating 2 out of 5]

一心を育てた父と、一心に出会った江月梅のおかげで苦の生活から抜け出すことが出来た。単位に復帰はしても製鉄現場には戻れず、図書館の掃除と整理係をしている。