Yasunari Kawabata published 11 novels, 4 novellas, 3 short story collections, 1 children's book and 4 other books, beginning with Snow Country (1935).
Updated September 2026
Where to start with Yasunari Kawabata
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Snow Country
Yasunari Kawabata's most-read book.
Standalone novels in order
The Scarlet Gang of Asakusa (1930)
Snow Country (1935)
Otome No Minato (Apr 1938)
The Master of Go (1951)
Shōnen (Apr 1951)
The Lake (1954)
The Sound of the Mountain (1954)
The Old Capital (Jun 1962)
Beauty and Sadness (1964)
One Arm (1964)
The Izu Dancer (1964)
Novellas in order
Thousand Cranes (1952)
The House of the Sleeping Beauties (1961)
Tanpopo (Sep 1972)
Dandelions (2017)
Short story collections in order
Palm-of-the-hand Stories (1988)
The Dancing Girl of Izu and Other Stories (1997)
First Snow on Fuji (1999)
Children's books in order
The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter (Taketori Monogatari) (1998)
Other books in order
The Existence and Discovery of Beauty (1969)
Japan the Beautiful and Myself (1971)
Snow Country and Thousand Cranes (1972)
Lo Bello Y Lo Triste (1977)
Film and TV adaptations
- Snow Country (1957)Film · from Snow Country
- Sleeping Beauty (2011)Film · from The House of the Sleeping Beauties
- Twin Sisters of Kyoto (1963)Film · from The Old Capital
- With Beauty and Sorrow (1965)Film · from Beauty and Sadness
About Yasunari Kawabata
Yasunari Kawabata was a Japanese novelist and short story writer whose spare, lyrical, subtly-shaded prose works won him the 1968 Nobel Prize in Literature, the first Japanese author to receive the award. His works have enjoyed broad international appeal and are still widely read.
Biography from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.
Yasunari Kawabata FAQ
- How many books has Yasunari Kawabata written?
- Yasunari Kawabata published 11 novels, 4 novellas, 3 short story collections, 1 children's book and 4 other books that we list, as of September 2026.
- What order should I read Yasunari Kawabata's books in?
- Publication order is a safe choice; the full list is above. Most readers start with Snow Country.
- What is Yasunari Kawabata's last book?
- Tanpopo (1972).
- What is Yasunari Kawabata's most famous book?
- Snow Country (1935) is Yasunari Kawabata's most widely read book.
- Which Yasunari Kawabata books have been adapted?
- 4 books have been adapted for film or TV, including Snow Country (film, 1957), The House of the Sleeping Beauties (as Sleeping Beauty, film, 2011), The Old Capital (as Twin Sisters of Kyoto, film, 1963) and Beauty and Sadness (as With Beauty and Sorrow, film, 1965).
Authors like Yasunari Kawabata
Sources: book lists and dates from Wikidata and Open Library, ratings from Open Library readers. Last updated September 2026.