A Toronto Miracle – Author Isaka Kotaro’s trip to the 2025 Toronto International Festival of Authors

Isaka Kotaro made his literary debut in 2000 with Ōdyubon no inori  [Audubon’s Prayer]. Since then, he has garnered a devoted following through a growing oeuvre of popular mystery novels, including Ahiru to kamo no koin rokkā [The Foreign Duck and the Native Duck’s Coin Locker], Gōruden suranbā [trans. Remote Control], and Jūryoku piero [Gravity Pierrot]. He continues to pour himself into his writing today, publishing a new, full-length version of Sayonara Jabawokku [Farewell to Jabberwock] in 2025, the twenty-fifth anniversary of his debut. Coinciding with this career milestone, the Japan Foundation, Toronto invited Isaka to one of the world’s leading international literary festivals: the Toronto International Festival of Authors (TIFA).

Click here for details of the event.

While Isaka’s novels have already attracted a global readership through translations into more than twenty languages, the trip to Toronto marked his first visit to North America, offering a rare chance for Isaka, a self-professed “non-traveler,” to see firsthand how his work resonates abroad. What did he encounter on his journey—and how did he feel? Read the interview with Isaka Kotarao.

A Toronto Miracle – Author Isaka Kotaro’s trip to the 2025 Toronto International Festival of Authors