Moribito: Guardian of the Spirit (Japanese: 精霊の守り人, Hepburn: Seirei no Moribito) is a Japanese novel that was first published in July 1996. It is the first in the 12-volume Moribito (守り人) series of Japanese fantasy novels by Nahoko Uehashi. It was the recipient of the Batchelder Award An ALA Notable Children's Book in 2009. It has since been adapted into numerous media, including radio, manga, , and taiga drama adaptations. Scholastic released the first novel in English in June 2008. Media Blasters has confirmed that they acquired the rights to the anime. The anime series adaptation premiered on Adult Swim in the U.S. at 1:30 a.m. ET on August 24, 2008, but was dropped from the schedule without warning or explanation on January 15, 2009, after two runs of the first ten episodes. The progra