# Akimi Yoshida

Akimi Yoshida (吉田 秋生, Yoshida Akimi, born August 12, 1956) is a Japanese manga artist.

## Career

She is a graduate of Musashino Art University. She made her professional debut in 1977 with the short story Chotto Fushigi na Geshukunin (ちょっと不思議な下宿人, "A Slightly Strange Neighbor"), published in Bessatsu Shōjo Comic magazine. Her following series were critical successes. Her series Sakura no Sono was adapted as a live-action film in 1992.
Yoshida is best known for the crime thriller series Banana Fish, which she published between 1985 and 1994. The series was reprinted many times and received an anime adaptation produced by MAPPA in 2018.

## Style

While publishing mainly in shōjo manga magazines, her drawing style has often been compared to the aesthetics of shōnen manga. Yoshida herself reacted to this in an interview with a magazine in 1982: "Being a secret shojo manga artist suits me just fine. Hidden in some little corner of the world, staying out of people's way, I can actually do some pretty outrageous things. Which is really great. [...] So, yeah, you men can just shut up. Girls, let's just have our own fun right here."

## Reception

She is a three time recipient of the Shogakukan Manga Award – for Kisshō Tennyo in 1983 and for Yasha in 2001, both in the shōjo manga category, and for Umimachi Diary in 2015 in the general manga category. In 2002, Yasha was among the jury-selected works at the Japan Media Arts Festival 2002. In 2007, she received an Excellence Award for manga at the 11th Japan Media Arts Festival for Umimachi Diary, which was later adapted into a feature film titled Our Little Sister. In 2013, she was awarded the 6th Manga Taishō, again for Umimachi Diary.
Despite her work being solely published in shōjo manga magazines, she also has a broad readership among fans of shōnen manga.

### Awards

List of Akimi Yoshida's awards and nominations :
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result | Notes |
| 1983 | 29th Shogakukan Manga Award | Shōjo | Kisshō Tennyo and Kawa yori mo Nagaku Yuruyaka ni | Won | Results announced in early 1984 |
| 2001 | 47th Shogakukan Manga Award | Shōjo | Yasha | Won | Results announced in early 2002 |
| 2002 | 6th Japan Media Arts Festival Awards, Manga Division | Jury Selections | Yasha | Longlisted | Recommended by the jury |
| 2006 | 10th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize | Grand Prize | Eve no Nemuri | Nominated | Came in seventh place in the initial vote |
| 2007 | 11th Japan Media Arts Festival Awards, Manga Division | Excellence Award | Umimachi Diary | Won | |
| 2008 | 1st Manga Taishō | — | Umimachi Diary | Nominated | Came in third place with 42 points |
| 2008 | 12th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize | Grand Prize | Umimachi Diary | Nominated | Came in second place in the initial vote |
| 2009 | 13th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize | Grand Prize | Umimachi Diary | Nominated | Tied for first place in the initial vote |
| 2011 | 15th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize | Grand Prize | Umimachi Diary | Nomination declined | Tied for first place in the initial vote; Yoshida declined the nomination |
| 2013 | 6th Manga Taishō | — | Umimachi Diary | Won | |
| 2015 | 61st Shogakukan Manga Award | General | Umimachi Diary | Won | Results announced in January 2016 |
| 2019 | 23rd Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize | Grand Prize | Umimachi Diary | Nominated | Came in second place in the initial vote |

## Works
### Series

| Title | Year | Notes |
| California Story (カリフォルニア物語, California Monogatari) | 1978–1981 | Serialized in Bessatsu Shōjo Comic Published by Shogakukan in 8 vol. |
| Kawa yori mo Nagaku Yuruyaka ni (河よりも長くゆるやかに) | 1983–1985 | Serialized in Petit Flower Published by Shogakukan in 2 vol. |
| Kisshō Tennyo (吉祥天女) | 1983–1984 | Serialized in Bessatsu Shōjo Comic Published by Shogakukan in 4 vol. |
| Sakura no Sono (櫻の園) | 1985–1986 | Serialized in LaLa Published by Hakusensha in 1 vol. |
| Banana Fish (バナナフィッシュ) | 1985–1994 | Serialized in Bessatsu Shōjo Comic Published by Shogakukan in 19 vol. |
| Hanako Gekki (ハナコ月記) | 1988–1994 | Published in 1 vol. |
| Lovers' Kiss (ラヴァーズ・キス) | 1995–1996 | Serialized in Bessatsu Shōjo Comic Published by Shogakukan in 2 vol. |
| Yasha (YASHA―夜叉―) | 1996–2002 | Serialized in Bessatsu Shōjo Comic and Flowers Published by Shogakukan in 12 vol. |
| Eve no Nemuri (イヴの眠り) | 2003–2005 | Serialized in Flowers Published by Shogakukan in 5 vol. |
| Umimachi Diary (海街diary) | 2006–2018 | Serialized in Flowers Published by Shogakukan in 9 vol. |
| Utagawa Hyakkei (詩歌川百景) | 2019–present | Serialized in Flowers Published by Shogakukan in 3 vol. (as of March 2024) |

### Short story collections

* Yumemiru Koro wo Sugite mo (夢みる頃をすぎても), 1983

### Anime

* Bobby's Girl (ボビーに首ったけ), 1985, character designer

### Art books

* California Tuning, 1982
* The Making of Bobby's Girl, 1985
* Angel Eyes: Illustration Book Banana Fish, 1994 (1st ed.), 2018 (reprint)
* Double Helix: Illustration Book Yasha, 2003