Minetaro Yamanaka

Novelist and children's writer. Born in Osaka. At the age of three, he was adopted by first-class military surgeon Yamanaka Kosai, and studied at the Army Cadet School and the Army Academy. He went on to the Army War College but dropped out and joined the Chinese Revolutionary Army. He returned to Japan as a refugee. While writing popular novels, he wrote military adventure novels for children that drew on his unusual experiences, and these became hugely popular among boys in the early Showa era. His style was a traditional military adventure novel in the vein of Oshikawa Shunro, and he serialized such novels as "Three Hundred Ri Across Enemy Lines" (1930), based on the Russo-Japanese War, and "The Dawn of Asia" (1931-32), featuring the protagonist Yoshiaki Hongo, who was an idealized version of the author, in "Shounen Club," "Invisible Airplane" (1935-36) in "Younen Club," and "The Royal Castle of All Nations" (1931-32) in "Shojo Club." After World War II, he won the Bungeishunju Readers' Award for "The True Story of the Dawn of Asia" (1962).

[Yoichi Fukami]

"Shounen Club Masterpiece Selection 2" (1966, Kodansha) ▽ "Kada Koji and Kami Shoichiro eds., "Invitation to Children's Literature" (1965, Nanboku-sha)" ▽ "Nigami Yoichi, "The Genealogy of Boys' Novels" (1978, Gen'ei-jo) ▽ "Ozaki Hideki, "Dreams Have Not Come True" (1983, Chuokoron-sha)"

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

小説家、児童文学者。大阪生まれ。3歳のとき1等軍医山中恒斎(こうさい)の養子となり、陸軍幼年学校、陸軍士官学校に学ぶ。陸軍大学校に進んだが中退、中国革命軍に投じた。亡命の形で帰国。大衆小説を書くかたわら、数奇な体験を生かして執筆した少年軍事冒険小説が、昭和初年代の少年たちの絶大な人気を得た。作風は押川春浪(しゅんろう)の流れをくむ正統的軍事冒険小説で、日露戦争に材を得た『敵中横断三百里』（1930）、作者の理想像を描いた主人公本郷義昭(ほんごうよしあき)が活躍する『亜細亜(アジヤ)の曙(あけぼの)』（1931～32）などを『少年倶楽部(くらぶ)』に、『見えない飛行機』（1935～36）を『幼年倶楽部』に、『万国の王城』（1931～32）を『少女倶楽部』に連載。第二次世界大戦後『実録アジアの曙』（1962）で文芸春秋読者賞を受賞した。

［二上洋一］

『『少年倶楽部名作選2』（1966・講談社）』▽『加太こうじ・上笙一郎編『児童文学への招待』（1965・南北社）』▽『二上洋一著『少年小説の系譜』（1978・幻影城）』▽『尾崎秀樹著『夢いまだ成らず』（1983・中央公論社）』

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