Love Like the Falling Petals Getting First-Ever English Translation Via Kickstarter

The Japanese bestselling novel Love Like the Falling Petals by Keisuke Uyama is finally coming to America. First published by Shueisha in 2017, the romance became a massive success in Japan with its exploration of the beauty and pain of young love, as two souls are brought together by fate, only to be torn apart by circumstance. The novel became a runaway bestseller and inspired a popular, live-action Netflix movie of the same name in 2022, which was directed by Yoshihiro Fukagawa, written by Tomoko Yoshida, and starring Kento Nakajima and Honoka Matsumoto. 

Now, Media Do International and Clover Press are partnering together with publisher Shueisha for a Kickstarter campaign for the first-ever English publication of the book. With a charming translation by Terry Gallagher, a cover by artist Heikala, and variant covers by LAL!ROLE and Cheseely, this beautifully written and emotionally charged novel is primed to connect with a new international audience. The campaign is now live on Kickstarter.

"Growing up, dreaming I would one day become a writer, I never thought that my stories would be read outside of Japan and reach people around the world," said novelist Keisuke Uyama, ,who is also an accomplished screenwriter. "I am deeply moved and excited about the English-language edition of Love Like the Falling Petals. I wish I could convey this excitement to my childhood self. Of course, I did not get here alone. I would like to thank Terry Gallagher for his translation and Heikala for her wonderful cover illustration, and Cheseely and LAL!ROLE for the variant covers for the English edition."

You can take a look at a variant cover, being offered through Kickstarter and previewed exclusively here at ComicBook.com:

"It was a pleasure to translate Love Like the Falling Petals by Keisuke Uyama, a classic 'meet cute' love drama with a dark twist," said translator Terry Gallagher. "The characters are very believable and identifiable. Their Tokyo is my Tokyo. The language of the book is the language of real life: heat of summer, chill of winter, the grind of work, the thrill of young love, a family-run pub, a fancy French restaurant, the smell of hospital hallways. But something untoward happens to this couple. The story takes a novel approach to explore our collective obsession with youth, connection, and 'relationships.' Will they find their way out of their predicament?"

"I first got to know the story of Love Like The Falling Petals through the Netflix film," said cover artist Heikala, a Finnish artist who resides in Tokyo. "Then when I got the chance to read the book, I was touched by the way that Uyama depicts the varying forms of love in his book. In addition to being a beautiful depiction of a budding relationship between young adults, the story illustrates the themes of familial love, and that of grief and loss in a sincere way. In my illustration for the cover, I wanted to depict the book's themes of fleeting beauty symbolized by the short life of the cherry blossom. I wanted the cover art to be a delicate depiction of the main characters with an emphasis on the beautiful world that they are surrounded with."

"At Clover Press, we're all about trying new genres, formats, and ways to get great books that we love into people's hands," said Clover Press Publisher Hank Kanalz. "Love Like the Falling Petals is no exception and is a great example of Clover Press's plans to expand into bringing quality international material to North America. We started with importing some European books, continued with our recent art books with pixiv featuring exciting artists from Taiwan and Korea, and now we are pleased to share this new prose novel from Japan in partnership with Shueisha. We're also diversifying our line to include more prose, with more planned later this year and next."

The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles (JFLA) which promotes international awareness and mutual understanding between Japan and the U.S. through a wide range of cultural programs and grants, plans to help raise awareness of the campaign with YouTube video featuring Uyama and Heikala.

Love Like the Falling Petals is a heart-wrenching tale that takes readers on an emotional journey in which a young couple—Misaki and Haruto—navigates the ups and downs of life and relationships. Set in the stunning landscape of Japan, and the fleeting symbolism of cherry blossoms, the novel paints a vivid picture of the country's culture and traditions, while exploring the universal themes of love, sacrifice, and the power of the human spirit. The Love Like the Falling Petals campaign will feature rewards including bookmarks, tote bags, hand towels, greeting cards, folders, and calendar prints, all adorned with gorgeous art.