Noriko Ogiwara
Encyclopedia
is a Japanese
fantasy
writer
.
' Chronicles of Narnia
at a very early age, she decided to become a fantasy writer.
Her first book
, won her several awards for children's literature and was translated into English
by Cathy Hirano as Dragon Sword and Wind Child
; the English version was out-of-print until it was re-released by Viz Media
in October 2007. The two sequel
s, and , have only been published in Japanese
. The re-issuing of Dragon Sword and Wind Child encouraged Viz to publish the next novel in the sequence, Hakuchou Iden, as Mirror Sword and Shadow Prince in May 2011, also translated by Cathy Hirano. These three books together are called "The Jade Trilogy
".
Ogiwara's most recent work is Nishi no Yoki Majo (西の善き魔女 "Good Witch of the West Astraea Testament"), a western-styled high fantasy series featuring a girl on the quest of finding out the mysteries surrounding the legends of her country and her friends. The series consists of eight books, including three side stories also penned by her. Nishi no Yoki Majo has been adapted into a manga series by Haruhiko Momokawa in Comic Blade, and licenced for English publication as The Good Witch of the West
. The Good Witch of the West was also animated as The Good Witch of the West Astraea Testament and aired in Japan in 2006.
Japanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
.
Biography
Noriko Ogiwara was born in 1959. Having read C. S. LewisC. S. Lewis
Clive Staples Lewis , commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis and known to his friends and family as "Jack", was a novelist, academic, medievalist, literary critic, essayist, lay theologian and Christian apologist from Belfast, Ireland...
' Chronicles of Narnia
The Chronicles of Narnia
The Chronicles of Narnia is a series of seven fantasy novels for children by C. S. Lewis. It is considered a classic of children's literature and is the author's best-known work, having sold over 100 million copies in 47 languages...
at a very early age, she decided to become a fantasy writer.
Her first book
Book
A book is a set or collection of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of hot lava, paper, parchment, or other materials, usually fastened together to hinge at one side. A single sheet within a book is called a leaf or leaflet, and each side of a leaf is called a page...
, won her several awards for children's literature and was translated into English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
by Cathy Hirano as Dragon Sword and Wind Child
Dragon Sword and Wind Child
Dragon Sword and Wind Child is the first book of award-winning fantasy writer Noriko Ogiwara. The book, originally written in Japanese in 1988 as: Sorairo Magatama , won her several awards for children's literature and was later translated into English by Cathy Hirano in 1993 as Dragon Sword and...
; the English version was out-of-print until it was re-released by Viz Media
VIZ Media
VIZ Media, LLC, headquartered in San Francisco, is an anime, manga, and Japanese entertainment company. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ Media LLC, which is jointly owned by Japanese publishers Shogakukan and Shueisha, and...
in October 2007. The two sequel
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
s, and , have only been published in Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
. The re-issuing of Dragon Sword and Wind Child encouraged Viz to publish the next novel in the sequence, Hakuchou Iden, as Mirror Sword and Shadow Prince in May 2011, also translated by Cathy Hirano. These three books together are called "The Jade Trilogy
The Jade Trilogy
The Jade Trilogy is a set of three fantasy novels written by Japanese award-winning fantasy writer Noriko Ogiwara. The trilogy consists of the original novel and its two sequels.-Overview:...
".
Ogiwara's most recent work is Nishi no Yoki Majo (西の善き魔女 "Good Witch of the West Astraea Testament"), a western-styled high fantasy series featuring a girl on the quest of finding out the mysteries surrounding the legends of her country and her friends. The series consists of eight books, including three side stories also penned by her. Nishi no Yoki Majo has been adapted into a manga series by Haruhiko Momokawa in Comic Blade, and licenced for English publication as The Good Witch of the West
Good Witch of the West Astraea Testament
is a series of fantasy light novels by Noriko Ogiwara. The series has been adapted into both a manga series and a thirteen episode television anime series broadcast in Japan in 2006...
. The Good Witch of the West was also animated as The Good Witch of the West Astraea Testament and aired in Japan in 2006.