Hiromi Kawakami (1958~) was born in Tokyo. After graduating from university, she became a teacher at a private junior high school. She continued teaching until when her husband was transferred. In 1994, she made her debut with Kamisama (God Bless You), which she won the Pascal Short Story Prize for New Writers.

1996 Akutagawa Prize, for Hebi wo Fumu (Step on a Snake)

1999 Prix Bunkamura Deux Magots, Murasaki Shikibu Literary Prize, for Kamisama (God‘s Bear )

2000 Ito Sei Literary Prize, Women's Literary Prize, for Oboreru (Drown)

2001 Tanizaki Junichiro Prize, for Sensei no Kaban (The Briefcase)