Confessions (Minato novel)

Confessions
AuthorKanae Minato
TranslatorStephen Snyder
LanguageJapanese
GenreMystery/Thriller
PublisherFutabasha
Publication date
5 August 2008
Publication placeJapan
Published in English
19 August 2014
AwardsShosetsu Suiri New Writers Prize (2007; for the first chapter)
Japanese Booksellers Award (2009)
Alex Award (2015)
Nominee for Strand Critics Award for Best First Novel (2015)
Nominee for Shirley Jackson Award for Best Novel (2015)
ISBN978-4-575-23628-6

Confessions (Japanese: 告白, Hepburn: Kokuhaku) is the 2008 debut novel by Kanae Minato. It is a suspense novel that traces the impact of a schoolteacher's act of revenge, and it deals with themes of motherhood and power as well as social issues like AIDS and hikikomori. The novel's chapters are in the form of a one-sided conversation, a letter, a diary entry, a reminiscion, a blog post, and a one-sided phone call. The novel was translated into English by Stephen Snyder and published in 2014. The novel was also adapted into a 2010 Japanese feature film of the same name; Minato has received many awards for her debut work.