Zira Nauryzbai is a writer and cultural anthropologist. She is the author of multiple books and of more than three hundred articles. She is also a translator from Kazakh into Russian. She is the coauthor, with Lilya Kalaus, of Batu and the Search for the Golden Cup (and its sequels), which was a bestseller in Kazakhstan. Her short story "The Rival" (trans. by Shelley Fairweather-Vega) was included in "Best Asian short story 2019". She is currently based in Astana, Kazakhstan. In her free time, Zira volunteers in the search for petroglyphs, rides horses, and practices shooting from a traditional Turkic bow.
