A formless soul is given a second chance. He must recall the biggest mistake of his past life while on 'homestay' in the body of fourteen-year-old Makoto Kobayashi, who has just committed suicide. Makoto doesn't have a single friend, and his family don't seem to care about him. But as the soul begins to live Makoto's life, he grows closer to the family and the people around him, and sees their true colours. Since its initial release over twenty years ago, Colorful has become a part of the literary canon, not only in Japan - where it has sold over a million copies - but around the world.