is a 1997 Japanese novel by author

Junichi Watanabe was a Japanese writer. Biography Jun'ichi Watanabe was born in Kamisunagawa, Hokkaido, Japan. His starting point as a literate was the death of a classmate who was his first love in high school. He published his first works while still studyin ...

. It tells the story of a married, former magazine editor aged 54; his

affair An affair is a relationship typically between two people, one or both of whom are either married or in a long-term Monogamy, monogamous or emotionally-exclusive relationship with someone else. The affair can be solely sexual, solely physical or ...

with a married 37-year-old typesetter and their double-suicide. The couple, Kūki and Rinko, are modeled after the famous case of

Sada Abe was a Empire of Japan, Japanese geisha and Prostitution in Japan, prostitute who murdered her lover, , via strangulation on May 18, 1936, before cutting off his Human penis, penis and testicles and carrying them around with her in her kimono. T ...

. The book became a

bestseller A bestseller is a book or other media noted for its top selling status, with bestseller lists published by newspapers, magazines, and book store chains. Some lists are broken down into classifications and specialties (novel, nonfiction book, cookb ...

throughout Asia, selling 3 million copies in Japan. ''Shitsurakuen'' became a slang word for having an affair. It was first serialized in the business newspaper ''

Nihon Keizai Shimbun ''The Nikkei'', also known as , is the flagship publication of Nikkei, Inc. (based in Tokyo) and the world's largest financial newspaper, with a daily circulation exceeding 1.73 million copies. The Nikkei 225, a stock market index for the Tokyo ...

'' in 1995. The book was made into a film and a TV drama the same year. The film, ''

Lost Paradise Lost or LOST may refer to getting lost, or to: Arts, entertainment, and media Television * ''Lost'' (TV series), a 2004 American drama series about people who become stranded on a mysterious island * ''Lost'' (2001 TV series), a short-lived Ameri ...

,'' was nominated for 13 Japan Academy Prizes winning one with

Hitomi Kuroki Hitomi Kuroki (Japanese: ; Katakana: ''Kuroki Hitomi''; born October 5, 1960, in Kurogi-Machi, Yame District, Fukuoka, Japan) is a Japanese actress and film director. Her birth name is Shoko Ichiji ( ''Ichiji Shōko'') née Egami ( ''Egami Shō ...

for lead actress.

References

External links

* (film)
''Shitsurakuen''
at JDorama.com (TV drama) Japanese drama television series Japanese novels adapted into films 1995 Japanese novels Japanese serial novels Works originally published in Japanese newspapers {{1990s-novel-stub