Asako Yuzuki's Novel 'Butter' Surpasses 2 Million Copies Worldwide
The novel's international sales now far exceed its domestic sales, marking a rare and significant overseas success for a contemporary Japanese literary work.
Key Facts
- Asako Yuzuki's novel 'Butter' has sold over 2.01 million copies worldwide, with 740,000 in Japan and 1.27 million overseas.
- The Kawade Bunko edition of 'Butter' was released on June 15 at 1,045 yen and includes two new manuscripts: a speech and a UK tour diary.
- The novel received an emergency reprint on June 25, with another reprint scheduled for July.
- 'Butter' has won four UK awards and been translated into 40 countries.
- The rights to 'Butter' were transferred from Shinchosha to Kawade Shobo Shinsha in April, which Yuzuki described as 'a concrete action she could take as a writer.'
Reporting from 1 source: KAI-YOU.
Asako Yuzuki's novel 'Butter' has sold over 2.01 million copies worldwide, with 740,000 in Japan and 1.27 million overseas. The Kawade Bunko edition, released June 15, ranked first at major bookstores and received an emergency reprint on June 25, with another reprint scheduled for July. The novel has won four UK awards and been translated into 40 countries.
The Kawade Bunko edition of 'Butter' was published on June 15 at 1,045 yen. It includes two new manuscripts: the 7th Noma Publishing Culture Award acceptance speech 'A Wonderful Standing Party at the Imperial Hotel' and the UK tour diary 'Novels and Karaoke Are Everywhere'. The commentary is by translator and literary critic Yukiko Konosu, and the cover design by Naoko Nakui is based on the UK edition. A limited-time 'Butter' sticker is included with copies from the first printing through the June 25 reprint.
The rights to 'Butter' were transferred from Shinchosha to Kawade Shobo Shinsha in April. Yuzuki cited a column published in Weekly Shincho in 2025 as the reason, calling the transfer 'a concrete action she could take as a writer.'
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.