Hiroshi Osada

Hiroshi Osada
Native name	長田弘
Born	November 10, 1939 Fukushima, Japan
Died	May 3, 2015
Occupation	Poet/author
Education	Waseda University University of Iowa
Notable works	Every Color of Light Need for a Deep Breath『深呼吸の必要』
Notable awards	Mainichi Publishing Culture Award (1982) Kodansha Publishing Culture Award (2000) Miyoshi Tatsuji Award (2010) Mainichi Art Award, (2013)

Hiroshi Osada (長田弘, 1939–2015) was a Japanese poet and author known for his contributions to contemporary literature and children's literature.

Life

Born in Fukushima City, Japan, Osada graduated from Waseda University in 1963. He made his literary debut in 1965 with the poetry collection This Journey. In 1971, he traveled to the United States as a member of the International Creative Writing Program at the University of Iowa.

Known outside of Japan for his children's books, it was Osada's poetry that garnered him recognition in his native Japan. In 1982, he was awarded the Mainichi Publishing Culture Award for his book The Bookstore of the Century. In 1991, he received the Robō-no-ishi Literary Prize for The Making of Memories.

Osada's collaboration with illustrator Ryōji Arai on A Forest Picture Book, won the Kōdansha Publishing Culture Award for Children's Literature in 2000. The duo continued their partnership with the publication of Every Color of Light, which was later translated to English by David Boyd, subsequently winning awards for best book (Kirkus Reviews) and best picture book (Publishers Weekly).