Michael Pronko is a Tokyo-based writer of murder, memoir and music. He writes the Detective Hiroshi series of detective mysteries set in Tokyo and the Tokyo Moments series of essays on Tokyo life. Both series have won awards and five-star reviews. Michael also runs the website, Jazz in Japan, which covers the vibrant jazz scene in Tokyo.

During his nearly 30 years in Japan, he has written about Japanese culture, art, society and politics for Newsweek Japan, The Japan Times, and Artscape Japan and appeared on NHK TV and Nippon Television about his writings.

Michael grew up in Kansas City, studied philosophy at Brown University, and then traveled for years. He taught English in Beijing for two years and studied Chinese for one year. Somewhere in there, he finished an MA in Education and another in Comp Lit before completing his Ph.D. on film adaptations of Charles Dickens.

He finally settled in Tokyo as a professor of American Literature at Meiji Gakuin University. His seminars focus on contemporary novels, American culture, and film adaptations. His research interests include film adaptation, crime fiction, jazz, and contemporary novels. After discussing Kurt Vonnegut or Jackson Pollock in class he’s in the right frame of mind to wander Tokyo contemplating its intensity.

More reviews and awards can be found at:

https://www.michaelpronko.com/awards https://www.michaelpronko.com/reviews