Japan's publication sales post largest drop in 2015

Japan's publication sales post largest drop in 2015

Photo taken Jan. 22, 2016, at Kyodo News in Tokyo shows some of Japan's bestseller novels in 2015; (from L) "Saraba!" by Kanako Nishi, "Hibana" by Naoki Matayoshi and "Ryu" by Akira Higashiyama. A research institute said Jan. 25 that sales of books and magazines in Japan for 2015 fell 5.3 percent from the previous year to an estimated 1.5 trillion yen ($12.6 billion), marking the largest drop on record and the 11th year of decline. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Comedian's award-winning novel to be screened

Comedian's award-winning novel to be screened

File photo taken in July 2015 shows comedian Naoki Matayoshi holding his Akutagawa Prize-winning book "Hibana" (Spark) in Tokyo. A major agency to deliver video across the Internet said Aug. 28, 2015, it will dramatize the novel and deliver it next year. Details, including the cast, have not yet been decided. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Publisher to print 1 mil. copies of Akutagawa Prize-winning "Hibana"

Publisher to print 1 mil. copies of Akutagawa Prize-winning "Hibana"

A bookstore in Osaka displays the novel "Hibana" (Spark), written by comedian Naoki Matayoshi, on July 17, 2015, a day after it won the prestigious Akutagawa Prize. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Prize- winning novel by comedian Matayoshi to top 1 million copies

Prize- winning novel by comedian Matayoshi to top 1 million copies

The novel "Hibana" (Spark) is piled up at a bookstore in Tokyo on July 17, 2015, as the author, Naoki Matayoshi, won the prestigious Akutagawa literary prize the previous day. His publisher has decided to reprint the novel to take the total publication to more than one million copies. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Winners of Akutagawa, Naoki literary awards announced

Winners of Akutagawa, Naoki literary awards announced

(From L to R) Akira Higashiyama, winner of the Naoki Prize, a literary award for popular fiction, and Naoki Matayoshi and Keisuke Hada, recipients of the Akutagawa Prize, a literary award for up-and-coming novelists, pose for photos at a hotel in Tokyo on July 16, 2015. Matayoshi, a popular 35-year-old comedian, won the award for his debut novel "Hibana" (Sparks), which already has sold about 640,000 copies. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Comedian Matayoshi bags Akutagawa literary award

Comedian Matayoshi bags Akutagawa literary award

Comedian Naoki Matayoshi speaks at a press conference in Tokyo on July 16, 2015, after winning the prestigious Akutagawa Prize for up-and-coming authors. His nomination, for a book titled "Hibana" (Spark), grabbed attention as it is rare for a popular entertainer to be recommended for the literature award. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Comedian Matayoshi bags Akutagawa literary award

Comedian Matayoshi bags Akutagawa literary award

Comedian Naoki Matayoshi throws up a deuce in Tokyo on July 16, 2015, after winning the prestigious Akutagawa Prize for up-and-coming authors. His nomination, for a book titled "Hibana" (Spark), grabbed attention as it is rare for a popular entertainer to be recommended for the literature award. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Books outsell magazines at major wholesaler for 1st time in 32 yrs

Books outsell magazines at major wholesaler for 1st time in 32 yrs

Photo taken Jan. 22, 2016, in Tokyo shows some of Japan's bestseller novels in 2015. Nippon Shuppan Hanbai Inc., a major Japanese wholesale bookseller, has said its unconsolidated book sales in fiscal 2015 through March 2016 grew slightly from the previous year to 247.6 billion yen ($2.42 billion), exceeding magazine sales for the first time in 32 years. The solid book sales were attributed to a number of hit novels including Akutagawa Prize-winning "Hibana" (Spark, C) by comedian Naoki Matayoshi. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Books outsell magazines at major wholesaler for 1st time in 32 yrs

Books outsell magazines at major wholesaler for 1st time in 32 yrs

File photo shows comedian Naoki Matayoshi posing with his Akutagawa Prize-winning book "Hibana" (Spark). Nippon Shuppan Hanbai Inc., a major Japanese wholesale bookseller, has said its unconsolidated book sales in fiscal 2015 through March 2016 grew slightly from the previous year to 247.6 billion yen ($2.42 billion), exceeding magazine sales for the first time in 32 years. The solid book sales were attributed to a number of hit novels including "Hibana." (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Copies of prize-winning novel "Hibana" to top 2 mil.

Copies of prize-winning novel "Hibana" to top 2 mil.

Photo shows Japanese comedian Naoki Matayoshi. Publisher Bungeishunju Ltd. said Aug. 4, 2015, it will print 400,000 more copies of Matayoshi's novel "Hibana" (Spark), bringing the total number of copies above the 2 million mark amid robust sales after it won the prestigious Akutagawa Prize in the previous month. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo