Miyuki Miyabe
Encyclopedia
Miyuki Miyabe is a popular contemporary Japanese
author
active in a number of genres that include science fiction
, mystery fiction
, historical fiction
, social commentary
, and juvenile fiction
. Her most famous novels in the English-speaking world are Crossfire (クロスファイア), published in 1998, and Kasha (火車), translated by Alfred Birnbaum as All She Was Worth
, published in 1999. Amongst anime
fans, her fantasy novel Brave Story
is well regarded; it has notably been adapted into an animated film, an "alternate retelling" manga
series, and a series of video games.
of Tokyo
, Japan
and graduated from Sumidagawa
High School. She started writing novels at the age of 23. In 1984, while working at a law office, Miyabe began to take writing classes at a writing school run by the Kodansha
publishing company. Her debut work is considered to be her 1987 short story "Warera ga rinjin no hanzai" (我らが隣人の犯罪). She has been a prolific writer, publishing dozens of novels and winning many major literary prizes, including the Yamamoto Shūgorō
Prize in 1993 for Kasha
and the Naoki Prize
in 1998 for Riyū [The Reason] (理由). A Japanese film adaptation of Riyû, directed by Nobuhiko Obayashi, was released in 2004 (reviewed by Mark Schilling in The Japan Times (5 January 2005)).
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...
author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
active in a number of genres that include science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
, mystery fiction
Mystery fiction
Mystery fiction is a loosely-defined term.1.It is often used as a synonym for detective fiction or crime fiction— in other words a novel or short story in which a detective investigates and solves a crime mystery. Sometimes mystery books are nonfiction...
, historical fiction
Historical novel
According to Encyclopædia Britannica, a historical novel is-Development:An early example of historical prose fiction is Luó Guànzhōng's 14th century Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which covers one of the most important periods of Chinese history and left a lasting impact on Chinese culture.The...
, social commentary
Social commentary
Social commentary is the act of rebelling against an individual, or a group of people by rhetorical means, or commentary on social issues or society...
, and juvenile fiction
Young adult literature
Young-adult fiction or young adult literature , also juvenile fiction, is fiction written for, published for, or marketed to adolescents and young adults, roughly ages 14 to 21. The Young Adult Library Services of the American Library Association defines a young adult as "someone between the...
. Her most famous novels in the English-speaking world are Crossfire (クロスファイア), published in 1998, and Kasha (火車), translated by Alfred Birnbaum as All She Was Worth
All She Was Worth
All She Was Worth is a crime novel by Miyuki Miyabe originally published under the Japanese title "Kasha" , an allusion to the mythical Shinto creature said to devour dead bodies.-Plot introduction:1992...
, published in 1999. Amongst anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
fans, her fantasy novel Brave Story
Brave Story
is a Japanese fantasy novel written by Miyuki Miyabe. It was serialized in various regional newspapers between the November 11, 1999 and February 13, 2001 before being published in two hardcover volumes by Kadokawa Shoten in March 2003...
is well regarded; it has notably been adapted into an animated film, an "alternate retelling" manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
series, and a series of video games.
Biography
Miyabe was born in the Kōtō wardKoto, Tokyo
is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. As of 2008, the ward has an estimated population of 442,271 and a population density of 11,070 persons per km². The total area is 39.48 km². The ward refers to itself as Kōtō City in English....
of Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and graduated from Sumidagawa
Sumida River
The is a river which flows through Tokyo, Japan. It branches from the Arakawa River at Iwabuchi and flows into Tokyo Bay. Its tributaries include the Kanda and Shakujii rivers....
High School. She started writing novels at the age of 23. In 1984, while working at a law office, Miyabe began to take writing classes at a writing school run by the Kodansha
Kodansha
, the largest Japanese publisher, produces the manga magazines Nakayoshi, Afternoon, Evening, and Weekly Shonen Magazine, as well as more literary magazines such as Gunzō, Shūkan Gendai, and the Japanese dictionary Nihongo Daijiten. The company has its headquarters in Bunkyō, Tokyo...
publishing company. Her debut work is considered to be her 1987 short story "Warera ga rinjin no hanzai" (我らが隣人の犯罪). She has been a prolific writer, publishing dozens of novels and winning many major literary prizes, including the Yamamoto Shūgorō
Yamamoto Shugoro
was the pen name of , a Japanese novelist and short-story writer active during the Showa period of Japan. He was noted for his popular literature, and is known to have published works under at least fourteen different pen names.-Early life:...
Prize in 1993 for Kasha
All She Was Worth
All She Was Worth is a crime novel by Miyuki Miyabe originally published under the Japanese title "Kasha" , an allusion to the mythical Shinto creature said to devour dead bodies.-Plot introduction:1992...
and the Naoki Prize
Naoki Prize
The Naoki Prize is a Japanese literary award presented semiannually. The official name is Naoki Sanjugo Prize. It was created in 1935 by Kikuchi Kan, then editor of the Bungeishunjū magazine, and named in memory of novelist Naoki Sanjugo...
in 1998 for Riyū [The Reason] (理由). A Japanese film adaptation of Riyû, directed by Nobuhiko Obayashi, was released in 2004 (reviewed by Mark Schilling in The Japan Times (5 January 2005)).
Works in English translation
- All She Was WorthAll She Was WorthAll She Was Worth is a crime novel by Miyuki Miyabe originally published under the Japanese title "Kasha" , an allusion to the mythical Shinto creature said to devour dead bodies.-Plot introduction:1992...
(original title: Kasha), trans. Alfred Birnbaum (Mariner Books, 1999) - CrossfireCrossfire (Miyuki Miyabe novel)is a novel by Miyuki Miyabe. The novel, published in Japan in 1998, and was published in English by Kodansha America in 2006. The English version was translated by Deborah Stuhr Iwabuchi and Anna Husson Isozaki.-Plot introduction:...
, trans. Deborah Iwabuchi and Anna Isozaki (Kodansha America, 2006) - Shadow Family (original title: R.P.G.), trans. Juliet Winters Carpenter (Kodansha America, 2006)
- Brave StoryBrave Storyis a Japanese fantasy novel written by Miyuki Miyabe. It was serialized in various regional newspapers between the November 11, 1999 and February 13, 2001 before being published in two hardcover volumes by Kadokawa Shoten in March 2003...
, trans. Alexander O. SmithAlexander O. SmithAlexander O. Smith is a professional English/Japanese translator and author. While his output covers many areas such as adaptation of Japanese novels, manga, song lyrics, anime scripts and various academic works, he is best known for his software localizations of Japanese video games...
(VIZ FictionVIZ MediaVIZ 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...
, 2007) - The Devil's Whisper (original title: Majutsu wa sasayaku), trans. Deborah Iwabuchi (Kodansha America, 2007)
- The Book of Heroes (original title: Eiyu no sho), trans. Alexander O. SmithAlexander O. SmithAlexander O. Smith is a professional English/Japanese translator and author. While his output covers many areas such as adaptation of Japanese novels, manga, song lyrics, anime scripts and various academic works, he is best known for his software localizations of Japanese video games...
(HaikasoruVIZ MediaVIZ 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...
, 2010) - The Sleeping Dragon (original title: Ryū wa nemuru), trans. Deborah Iwabuchi (KodanshaKodansha, the largest Japanese publisher, produces the manga magazines Nakayoshi, Afternoon, Evening, and Weekly Shonen Magazine, as well as more literary magazines such as Gunzō, Shūkan Gendai, and the Japanese dictionary Nihongo Daijiten. The company has its headquarters in Bunkyō, Tokyo...
America, 2010)—the winner of the 45th Mystery Writers of Japan AwardMystery Writers of Japan AwardThe are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of Japan. They honor the best in crime fiction and critical/biographical work published in the previous year.- MWJ Award for Best Novel winners :...
Criticism
- Amanda C. Seaman, Bodies of Evidence: Women, Society, and Detective Fiction in 1990s Japan (University of Hawai'i Press, 2004), 26–56 (on All She Was Worth)
- Idem, "There goes the neighbourhood: community and family in Miyabe Miyuki's Riyû," Japan Forum 16/2 (2004): 271–87