Tamai Kobayashi is a Toronto-based writer of short stories, poetry, screenplays, and a novel, Prairie Ostrich. Prairie Ostrich, which follows eight-year-old Egg Murakami and her family on their ostrich farm in rural southern Alberta, has been called an ‘exquisitely crafted story’ with ‘insights into childhood, loss, cruelty and triumph’.  Prairie Ostrich was listed by the CBC as one of 100 Young Adult Books That Make You Proud to be Canadian and was the recipient of the Dayne Ogilvie Prize in 2014.

Born in Japan, Kobayashi was raised in Canada. She was a founding member of Asian Lesbians of Toronto in the 1990s. Kobayashi was the co-writer of Short film/Silent War, directed by Charles Officer (screened at the Montreal World Film Festival, the Toronto International Film Festival, and the Sundance Film Festival). Her short play, Cold Feet, was performed at the Toronto Queer Theatre Festival and the Hamilton Queer Stage. She wrote, directed and acted in a short film, Later, In the Life. She is working on an animated poetry project, along with a film, tentatively titled “Little Sisyphus.”