Booker Prize-winning 'Taiwan Travelogue' set for Taiwan-Japan TV adaptation

Taipei, May 22 (CNA) Award-winning Taiwanese novel "Taiwan Travelogue," which recently became the first Taiwanese work to win the International Booker Prize, is set to be adapted into a television series through a Taiwan-Japan co-production, Taiwanese producer Chang Chen-yu (張辰漁) said Friday.

Chang, a producer at World Softest Production Film Co., wrote on Facebook that the company had been searching for projects with international appeal that retain a strong Taiwanese identity after colleagues and Japanese partners strongly recommended the novel.

After reading the book, Chang said he immediately decided to pursue the screen adaptation rights and was fortunate to obtain the rights.

"A great story has the power to transcend time and borders and connect countless people," Chang said, without providing further production details.

First published in 2020, "Taiwan Travelogue" is a work of historical fiction set in 1938 during the Japanese colonial era. The novel follows the journey of a Taiwanese woman and a Japanese woman traveling across Taiwan by railway while exploring themes of identity, empire and cultural exchange.

Chang described the novel as having a "layered narrative," blending a sensory journey through 1930s Taiwan -- including railways and food -- with deeper reflections on language, colonial power and cultural interpretation.

"The relationship between the two protagonists is not simply romantic," Chang said. "It also reflects the subtle dynamics between colonizer and colonized through repeated acts of translation and mistranslation."

Given the story's multilingual setting and international themes, Chang said the production team hopes to collaborate with partners around the world to bring different versions of "Taiwan Travelogue" to wider audiences.

Japanese writer Hikari Sumiki also voiced support for the Taiwan-Japan television adaptation on Facebook, saying it was exciting to imagine the novel becoming "a starting point for travelers from around the world to explore Taiwan."

Written by Yang Shuang-zi (楊双子) and translated into English by Lin King (金翎), "Taiwan Travelogue" won the 2026 International Booker Prize in London earlier this week, marking the first time a Taiwanese literary work has received the honor.