Mia Kankimäki (born 1971 in Helsinki) [1] is a Finnish writer, and author of two non-fiction books, which blend travelogue, memoir, biography and women's history. [2] Her second book The Women I Think About At Night was published in the US by Simon & Schuster in 2020. [3]
Kankimäki has a master's degree in comparative literature from the University of Helsinki, and she has worked as a copywriter and editor at various publishing houses. [4] Japanese culture is her special interest, and she's qualified as a teacher of Japanese flower arranging of Sogetsu Ikebana school. [5] [1]
In 2010, she left her job and traveled to Japan on the trail of Sei Shōnagon, a lady-in-waiting and author who lived in Kyoto a thousand years ago. [6] The book about this journey, Asioita jotka saavat sydämen lyömään nopeammin (Things That Make One's Heart Beat Faster) was published in 2013 by Otava. [4] It was awarded with Helmet Award 2015 given by Helsinki libraries to "a future classic", [6] [7] and selected as the Best Travel Book of the year 2013. [8] [9] It has been translated to Estonian and Italian, and will be published in Japanese and German as well. [10] [11]
Her second book, Naiset joita ajattelen öisin, published in 2018, was inspired by her travels in the footsteps of female figures in Tanzania, Kenya, Italy, and Japan. [1] It was published as The Women I Think About At Night in the US in 2020, translated by Douglas Robinson. [12] Translation rights of the book have been sold to 15 territories to date, and it has already been published in Czech, Estonian, Norwegian, Latvian and Russian. [13]
Kankimäki lives in Helsinki, Finland. [1]
Mia Kankimäki (born 1971 in Helsinki) [1] is a Finnish writer, and author of two non-fiction books, which blend travelogue, memoir, biography and women's history. [2] Her second book The Women I Think About At Night was published in the US by Simon & Schuster in 2020. [3]
Kankimäki has a master's degree in comparative literature from the University of Helsinki, and she has worked as a copywriter and editor at various publishing houses. [4] Japanese culture is her special interest, and she's qualified as a teacher of Japanese flower arranging of Sogetsu Ikebana school. [5] [1]
In 2010, she left her job and traveled to Japan on the trail of Sei Shōnagon, a lady-in-waiting and author who lived in Kyoto a thousand years ago. [6] The book about this journey, Asioita jotka saavat sydämen lyömään nopeammin (Things That Make One's Heart Beat Faster) was published in 2013 by Otava. [4] It was awarded with Helmet Award 2015 given by Helsinki libraries to "a future classic", [6] [7] and selected as the Best Travel Book of the year 2013. [8] [9] It has been translated to Estonian and Italian, and will be published in Japanese and German as well. [10] [11]
Her second book, Naiset joita ajattelen öisin, published in 2018, was inspired by her travels in the footsteps of female figures in Tanzania, Kenya, Italy, and Japan. [1] It was published as The Women I Think About At Night in the US in 2020, translated by Douglas Robinson. [12] Translation rights of the book have been sold to 15 territories to date, and it has already been published in Czech, Estonian, Norwegian, Latvian and Russian. [13]
Kankimäki lives in Helsinki, Finland. [1]