Nanae Kumagai was born in 1964 in Aomori, Japan but raised in SendaiinMiyagi Prefecture.[1] She graduated from Waseda University in 1987 and worked in an office for several years, then quit her job to try writing a novel after reading Ken'ichi Sakemi's 1991 novel Kōkyū shōsetsu (後宮小說).[2]
Onda made her literary debut in 1992 with the novel Rokubanme no Sayoko (六番目の小夜子, The Sixth Sayoko), which was adapted into the 2000 NHK show Rokubanme no Sayoko (六番目の小夜子, Sayoko is Back) starring Anne Suzuki and Chiaki Kuriyama.[3][4] More novels and adaptations followed, including the 1999 novel Mokuyō kumikyoku (木曜組曲), which was adapted into a 2002 film,[5] and the 2000 novel Nebārando (ネバーランド, Neverland), which was adapted into a 2001 TBS television series starring Tsubasa Imai.[6]
In 2005 Onda won the 26th Yoshikawa Eiji Prize for New Writers and the 2nd Japan Booksellers' Award Grand Prize for her novel Yoru no pikunikku (夜のピクニック, Nighttime Picnic), a story about two half-siblings participating in their school's annual hike.[7]Yoru no pikunikku was adapted into a 2006 film of the same name, directed by Masahiko Nagasawa and starring Mikako Tabe.[8] After being previously nominated for a 58th Mystery Writers of Japan Award for her book Q&A in 2005, Onda won the 59th Mystery Writers of Japan Award for Best Novel in 2006 for her murder mysteryYujinia (ユージニア, Eugenia).[9] The next year she won the 20th Yamamoto Shūgorō Prize for her book Nakaniwa no dekigoto (中庭の出来事, The Incident in the Courtyard), a complex story about a playwright writing a play about a playwright who is murdered while writing a play.[10][11] Onda's 2011 novel Yumechigai (夢違, Mistaken Dreams) was adapted into the 2012 television drama Akumu-chan, starring Keiko Kitagawa and shown on Nippon TV.[12][13]AnAkumu-chan film sequel, also starring Keiko Kitagawa, premiered in 2014.[14][15]
In 2017, after having been nominated six different times for the Naoki Prize, Onda won the 156th Naoki Prize for her 2016 book Mitsubachi to enrai (蜜蜂と遠雷, Honey Bee and Distant Thunder), a story about an international piano competition.[16][17]Mitsubachi to enrai also won the Japan Booksellers Award Grand Prize in 2017.[18] After winning the Naoki Award Onda visited her hometown of Sendai and received a special award from Mayor Emiko Okuyama.[19]
^"直木賞受賞者一覧" (in Japanese). 日本文学振興会. Archived from the original on November 7, 2018. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
^"夜のピクニック". Eiga.com (in Japanese). Archived from the original on August 3, 2018. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
^"悪夢ちゃん The 夢ovie". Eiga.com (in Japanese). Archived from the original on August 3, 2018. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
^Onda, Riku (2011). "The Big Drawer". Speculative Japan 2: "The Man Who Watched the Sea" and Other Tales of Japanese Science Fiction and Fantasy. Translated by Stevens Heath, Nora. Kurodahan. ISBN9784902075182.
^Onda, Riku (2012). "The Warning". Speculative Japan 3: "Silver Bullet" and Other Tales of Japanese Science Fiction and Fantasy. Translated by Ignatov, Mikhail S. Kurodahan. ISBN9784902075304.
