Renowned worldwide for his playful, innovative storytelling and humorous, distinctive art style, Akira Toriyama burst onto the manga scene in 1980 with the wildly popular /Dr. Slump/ and followed that with his hit series /Dragon Ball/. He is also known for his design work on video games such as /Dragon Quest, Chrono Trigger, Tobal No. 1/ and, most recently, /Blue Dragon/. His recent manga works include /COWA!, Kajika, Sand Land, Neko Majin/ and a children's book, /Toccio the Angel/. He lives with his family in Japan.