Sunmark Publishing Rights Highlights
and NEWS Mail--May 2017 Issue

A “new year” in Japan begins with the cherry blossoms out in full bloom

 

The new year for schools and companies in Japan starts from April 1st, a “calendar” that was established to match the fiscal year which also runs from the beginning of April to the end of March. Usually this is the same time of the year that the cherry blossoms are at their peak. For us, cherry blossoms, or sakura, mean more than just pretty flowers; they are symbols of farewells and new encounters. The cherry blossoms recall treasured sentiments of our own. We also love to have picnics under the cherry trees while they’re blooming. It’s is one of our favorite events of the year.

There are cherry trees in many other parts of the world, so we hope you’ll enjoy your own cherry blossom time, too!

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If you have any questions or inquiries about this NEWS Mail, please contact Ms. Shino Kobayashi, Rights Manager (rights@sunmark.co.jp).

Topic of the Month

Before the Coffee Gets Cold is still very hot in the market!

Our fiction title Before the Coffee Gets Cold has reached 480,000 copies since it was first published in December 2015, and its sales figures are still going well. Now it’s one of the 10 nominees for the Japan Booksellers’ Award.  Also the long-awaited sequel was just published in March 2017 and already has reached 100,000 copies within a few weeks. We’re very excited to work with this talented author, the playwright Toshikazu Kawaguchi.

Hot Titles

Mirai and the Rainbow Wings

by Shizuka Ouki

ISBN978-4-7631-3606-0 C0036

331 pages / March 2017 / 1,400 yen (w/o tax)

Shizuka Ouki, the author of Seven Teachings That Helped Even a Coward Like Me Become Brave, releases her highly anticipated new novel.

Description

In 2035, the ocean has turned black. The end of the world draws near owing to a shift in the poles and has been divided into two warring groups, the “ocean nation” and the “mountain nation.”

 

A rainbow soldier named Mirai was born to save the planet, and goes in search of friends who possess the rainbow wings. But what was awaiting Mirai was a harsh reality.

 

This is an adventure fantasy novel about love and courage by a popular playwright.

From the table of contents

The Rainbow Wing “The End of the World 2035 ”

The First Wing “The Sealed Wisdom”

The Second Wing “The Fallen Angel”

The Third Wing “The Injured Wings”

The Fourth Wing “The Vanished Wings”

The Fifth Wing “The Day the Wing Broke”

The Sixth Wing “The Truth of the Rainbow Wing”

The Seventh Wing “When the World Ends”

The Last Wing “Mirai and Yamato”

From the editor

You will be moved by Mirai’s brave journey as he risks his life to save the planet.

Author:

Shizuka Ouki

Shizuka Ouki is a playwright who was born in Tokushima and graduated from Rikkyo University. She has written numerous stories for TV dramas, drawing from her wealth of personal life experience. Her most representative work includes Super Queen, The Brothers Karamazov, Strawberry Night, Tokumei Kakarichō Tadano Hitoshi, Seigi no Mikata, Gabai Grandma from Saga, and Toilet Gods, among others. Her best-selling debut was Seven Teachings That Helped Even a Coward Like Me Become Brave, published in 2015 by Sunmark. She currently lives in Hayama, in Kanagawa Prefecture, where she enjoys surfing and hula dancing.

The Stanford Method for Ultimate Sound Sleep

by Seiji Nishino

ISBN978-4-7631-3601-5 C0030

251 pages / March 2017 / 1,500 yen (w/o tax)

How to achieve “extreme recovery from exhaustion” based on scientific research done by a Japanese professor at Stanford, the “Mecca of sleep research.”

Description

  A leading Japanese professor who currently works at Stanford reveals how to get the best sleep possible in his new book.   Stanford, a “sleep research Mecca” which has produced many famous researchers, also has the world’s latest information on sleep. The author, Seiji Nishino, is currently a member of the medical faculty and head of the world’s top sleep research institute there, which consequently makes him an authority on sleep research.   “Sleep is more about ‘quality’ than ‘time.’” After nearly 30 years of research, Professor Nishino reveals in this book the best sleeping methods for achieving “extreme recovery from exhaustion” and a “powerful wake-up.”   This one book will solve all of your sleep-related problems in one fell swoop, including difficulties with falling asleep, waking up early, and staying awake throughout the day.

From the table of contents

Chapter 0 – Physical performance doesn’t rely only on sleeping well Chapter 1 – Why people sleep for one-third of their lives Chapter 2 – The secret “rule of the golden 90 minutes” for night-time sleep Chapter 3 – The Stanford Method for Ultimate Sound Sleep Chapter 4 – The ultimate wake-up strategy that promotes sound sleep according to Stanford Chapter 5 – Those who take control of sleepiness can succeed in life  

From the editor "Umechan"

16hen_ume Author Seiji Nishino is a world-renowned sleep researcher who is currently a medical professor at Stanford University.   I was surprised by many of the facts he shared with me about sleep, but the most surprising to me was: “Even if you sleep as long as you want, curing the effects of sleep deprivation takes three weeks.”   This means that staying in bed for 14 hours repeatedly over three weeks will buy you back about 40 minutes of sleep lost from sleep deprivation. But since we can’t always control how long we can stay in bed, this seems unrealistic. You are probably wondering, “Well, then what is the solution?” That solution is waiting for you in this book.   The book contains a lot of important new knowledge related to sleep, including what kinds of baths to take to promote sound sleep, what kinds of dreams you shouldn’t be having, what to hold when you’re sleepy to eliminate sleepiness, and what drinks help you sleep!

Author:

Seiji Nishino

Dr. Seiji Nishino is a professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Stanford University, and the head of the Sleep and Circadian Neurobiology Lab (SCN lab) of the same institution. He was born in Osaka, Japan, in 1955. In 1987, he went from Osaka Medical College to study at the Stanford Center for Sleep Sciences and Medicine at Stanford University. Much of his research focuses on finding the cause for excessive daytime sleepiness brought on by hypersomnia and narcolepsy. After discovering a causative gene for narcolepsy in dogs in 1999, he began group studies with the hope of stopping what causes narcolepsy in humans.   He was made the head of the SCN lab in 2005 and continues to expand the field of sleep research down to the cellular and genetic levels. Desiring to “solve the mystery of sleep for society,” he is engaged in research and development for the mattress company Airweave, which is supported by a number of athletes.   In April, 2016, he was made the board representative of the Institute of Sound Sleep Science. With a passion for the development of human resources in the field of science, he is also the head of the North American Alumni Association at an Osaka Kyoiku University-affiliated high school in Tennoji. This book will be his first to be published originally in Japanese.   The Stanford Center for Human Sleep Research, founded by William C. Dement in 1968, is considered the world’s leading sleep science research institute for having produced a number of great sleep researchers.