Flower of Life (manga)

Flower of Life (Japanese: フラワー·オブ·ライフ, Hepburn: Furawa obu Raifu) is a slice of life comedy manga series by Fumi Yoshinaga revolving around a group of friends in a high school. The manga is serialised in Shinshokan's Wings. It was nominated for the first annual Manga Taishō award in 2008 and one of the Young Adult Library Services Association's 2008 Great Graphic Novels. The manga is licensed in North America by Digital Manga Publishing.[1][2]

Flower of Life
Cover of the first volume of the manga as released by Digital Manga Publishing
フラワー·オブ·ライフ
(Furawa obu Raifu)
GenreComedy, Slice of life
Manga
Written byFumi Yoshinaga
Published byShinshokan
English publisher
MagazineWings
DemographicShōjo
Original runApril 2004 – March 2007
Volumes4

Plot

Harutaro Hanazono, a cheerful and outspoken boy, enrolls at his new high school a month late, as he has been recovering from a bone marrow transplant to treat his leukemia. He is befriended by Shota Mikuni, who is also friends with Kai Majima, an otaku. Harutaro finds Kai annoying. The story follows the school life of Harutaro.

Manga

Four bound volumes were released in Japan between April 2004 and March 2007 published by Shinshokan.[3][4] Digital Manga Publishing released the manga's four tankōbon between January 17, 2007 and May 20, 2009.[5][6]

No. Original release date Original ISBN English release date English ISBN
1 April 2004[3]978-4-40361-749-2January 17, 2007[5]978-1-56970-939-9
2 March 25, 2005[7]978-4-40361-792-8April 11, 2007[8]978-1-56970-873-6
3 April 2006[9]978-4-40361-829-1July 11, 2007[10]978-1-56970-829-3
4 March 2007[4]978-4-40361-867-3May 20, 2009[6]978-1-56970-055-6

Reception

Comics Worth Reading's Johanna Draper Carlson criticises the first volume of the manga for its plot which "jumps around a good deal".[11] A later review by Draper Carlson comments on the diversity of personalities in the second volume of the manga.[12] She comments on Fumi Yoshinaga's treatment of the manga like an anthology from her previous work, Antique Bakery.[13]

About.com's Deb Aoki commends the manga for its "charming mix of slice of life comedy and high school romance" but criticises it for the author's assumption that the "reader knows and understands manga culture and otaku slang". She also criticises it for having too much dialogue.[14] Erin Finnegan at Pop Shock Culture comments on her uncertainty of the demographic of the manga.[15] Mania.com's Patricia Beard comments on the manga's realistic "small glimpses of school life".[16] Jason Thompson, writing for the appendix to Manga: The Complete Guide, describes Flower of Life as being Yoshinaga's "take on the high school comedy genre". While there is use of the "same basic elements" in the plot, Thompson regards the characters as being "entirely original" and as being able to "carry the story".[17]

The fourth volume of Flower of Life was ranked 8th on the Tohan charts between May 29 and June 4, 2007.[18] In 2008, Yoshinaga was nominated for the Eisner Award for her work on The Moon and the Sandals and Flower of Life.[19] Flower of Life was nominated by the Young Adult Library Services Association for inclusion on its list of 2008 Great Graphic Novels for Teens.[20] Flower of Life was nominated for the first Manga Taishō award in 2008.[21]

References
  1. "Digital Manga Licenses Flower of Life". Anime News Network. 2006-08-05. Retrieved 2009-04-16.
  2. Scott, Sheridan. "Flower of Life". (January 2007) Newtype USA. Volume 6, Number 1, page 145.
  3. フラワー・オブ・ライフ (1) (Wings comics) (in Japanese). ASIN 4403617492.
  4. フラワー・オブ・ライフ (4) (Wings comics) (in Japanese). ASIN 4403618677.
  5. "Flower of Life Vol. 1". Digital Manga Publishing. Retrieved 2009-04-16.
  6. "Flower of Life Vol. 4". Digital Manga Publishing. Retrieved 2009-04-16.
  7. フラワー・オブ・ライフ (2) (Wings comics) (in Japanese). ASIN 4403617921.
  8. "Flower of Life Vol. 2". Digital Manga Publishing. Retrieved 2009-04-16.
  9. フラワー・オブ・ライフ (3) (Wings comics) (in Japanese). ASIN 4403618294.
  10. "Flower of Life Vol. 3". Digital Manga Publishing. Retrieved 2009-04-16.
  11. Draper Carlson, Johanna (July 7, 2007). "Flower of Life Book 1". Comics Worth Reading. Retrieved 2009-04-16.
  12. Draper Carlson, Johanna (July 9, 2007). "Flower of Life Book 2". Comics Worth Reading. Retrieved 2009-04-16.
  13. Draper Carlson, Johanna (July 20, 2007). "Flower of Life Book 3". Comics Worth Reading. Retrieved 2009-04-16.
  14. Aoki, Deb. "Flower of Life Volume 1". About.com. Archived from the original on 2009-07-22. Retrieved 2009-04-16.
  15. Finnegan, Erin (March 26, 2007). "March Manga Madness Reviews". Pop Shock Culture. Archived from the original on April 27, 2009. Retrieved 2009-04-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  16. Beard, Patricia (September 17, 2007). "Flower of Life Vol. #01". Mania. Demand Media. Archived from the original on 2009-07-22. Retrieved 2009-04-16.
  17. Thompson, Jason (December 30, 2009). "365 Days of Manga, Day 106: Flower of Life". Suvudu.com. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
  18. "Japanese Comic Ranking, May 29–June 4". Anime News Network. 2007-06-06. Retrieved 2009-04-16.
  19. "Manga Listed Among Eisner Award Nominees for 2008". Anime News Network. 2008-04-14. Retrieved 2009-04-16.
  20. "Library Group Finalizes 'Great Graphic Novels' Nominations". Anime News Network. 2007-12-13. Retrieved 2009-04-16.
  21. "12 Titles Nominated for 1st Ever Manga Taisho Awards (Updated)". Anime News Network. 2008-01-23. Retrieved 2009-04-15.
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