Name: Magus of the Library 1
ISBN: 9781632368232

Mitsu Izumi

A story about a poor boy swept away by a kind library mage and the (literal) magic of reading, Magus of the Library is a beautifully-drawn, spirited fantasy adventure, like a Fullmetal Alchemist for all ages! Ages 13 and up. In a lushly-detailed fantasy world reminiscent of Arabian Nights, the Great Library is the center of learning in the world, and its librarians are capable of magnificent feats of magic! In a small village far from the Library, a poor little elf boy struggles against bullies who call him "knife-ears." His only solace: the books he sneaks out of the village's tiny branch library, which he's not allowed in. When a librarian from the Great Library arrives, he's dazzled by her knowledge and glamor. Their meeting will change his life and begin the adventure he's always dreamed of having!

Magus of the Library 1

altlovesbooks

This was such an unexpected surprise!

This first volume in a series I'm most definitely going to continue follows a boy named Theo, banned from his local library for being poor and ostracized for being different. He meets three Kafnas, librarians from the City of Books, Aftzaak, who have come to his village after hearing rumors of a magical tome there. Theo loves books, loves the idea of Aftzaak, and idolizes these three librarians and what they represent. 

This is basically librarianship: the manga. It touches on proper book care, repairs, the history of books, and the librarian code of ethics (admittedly in a fantastical, manga sort of way). It also contains a sweet story about the love of books, what they mean to Theo personally, and the larger role they play in society. And the art. The artwork is fantastic. The four-page spread (two, two-page spreads back to back) near the end of the book as Theo is dreaming in particular is gorgeous. The detail in just about every panel is incredible.

Do you like manga? Do you like books? Do you support your local library? Read this one. It's fantastic.

Magus of the Library 2

Seriously though, visit your local library.

I was incredibly worried that volume two of this series that was such a delightful surprise to me wouldn't be as good as the first one. The art was *so good*, and the story was *incredibly interesting*, and it has *libraries* as the feature. Surely something had to give. It did not give, and volume two was just as engaging as the first.

Theo's on his way to take the test to be a Kafna and meets a fellow Kafna-hopeful along the way. He also acquires a pet, has a few flashbacks establishing his desire to be a Kafna and work in *the* library and not just *a* library, and arrives, whole and intact, in time to take his test. And what a test! The written portion, one of three, is three days long! I'm suddenly incredibly glad my Masters wasn't nearly as rigorous. 

The art remains incredible. Lots of full-page spreads, including world-building snapshots at the beginning of each chapter highlighting a different aspect of the world. I also liked the thoughts about why one would even bother becoming a librarian--sorry, Kafna--when Theo could have just as easily worked at a local branch without credentials and with a lot less effort. An interesting thought, and one that has parallels in the actual library community.

Great series, can't wait for volume 3!

Magus of the Library 3

Just so we're clear, it is important to bring your books back on time.

Three (massive) volumes in, and this remains one of my favorites I've read. In this volume, Theo takes his Kafna examinations, and I said a silent thanks that my personal college experience was nowhere near as rigorous. Three very different trials later, Theo is let loose to explore the city on his last day there, and he finds a bit more than he bargained for. He returns home then, to the family and friends that supported him (or didn't) on his path to Kafna. Did he pass the trials? Is he a Kafna now? That'd be a spoiler.

The artwork remains stellar. I loved the emphasis on the different aspects of librarianship reflected in the trials. In this age of Google and ready reference solutions we hardly have to recall each and every tiny fact about all aspects of history, but there's lots of similarities between their search for an answer and ours. I also liked the introduction of a larger, darker plot to all this, perhaps politically motivated? Too early to tell, but I liked the inclusion of intrigue.

I have volume 4 waiting for me on my shelf as we speak! Can't wait to continue!

Magus of the Library 4

"Freedom of choice is absolute. The library will not tolerate anyone who infringes upon it, no matter who they are."

You go girl. 

The intro to this book involving the librarian engaging in shelving bias really hits home in today's controversy surrounding removing books from libraries. This was written before that was a thing, but it really does hit close to home--in manga format.

So Theo is back in Aftzaak, having passed his exams and beginning his (long) road toward working at the Central Library. Upon arriving, he meets his fellow classmates and tutors, and is suddenly stricken with a bit of imposter's syndrome. All these people who have clear ideas of what they want to do and where they want to work, and all he can do is turn in a blank sheet of paper when asked where he wants to work at the library. It really hit close to home here, as well. Theo also meets up with the kafna who started him down this path, Sedona, and we get a bit of ominous hinting at the end that something isn't quite right.

I kind of didn't like having all these new characters to keep up with (and there's a ton introduced here), and it's super easy for me to get them confused. I'm hoping it becomes easier as we go along, or that maybe some of them are more important to remember than others, because as it is there's a lot going on here.

Still, my favorite manga series ever, thus far.

Kim Tyo-Dickerson

An adventure-filled manga featuring powerful librarians with magical abilities and wicked fast book repairing tools/skills? Yes, please!

This is rated T for teen 13+ but manga readers in grades 6 and up would enjoy this series opener as it stars a young boy meeting the librarian team sent to his town, although there are some definitely for-mature-readers-only manga advertisements at the end that might cause some questions. I'm probably going to read the whole series., six books in the series so far.

Tania Joana da Silva Monteiro

This was beautiful and magical and broke my heart and put it back together. I had to hold back the tears. Books are like a character in here,not just part of the title and it is beautiful to see how important books can be for a one single person and for humanity. Theo is a cinnamon roll and Sedona is one of my favourite characters ever! In every kind of media! I feel like thanking Mitsu Izumi for creating this and I want to grab the next volumes as fast as I can.

Sabrina D. 

Rain Forest Blackbird

Lorien O'Brien

A story about a poor boy swept away by a kind library mage and the (literal) magic of reading, Magus of the Library is a beautifully-drawn, spirited fantasy adventure, like a Fullmetal Alchemist for all ages! The Magic of the Written Word In the small village of Amun lives a poor boy named Theo. Theo adores books, but because of his pointed ears and impoverished life, he isn’t allowed to use the village library. As he endures the prejudice and hatred of the village, he dreams of going where such things don’t exist: Aftzaak, City of Books. But one day, Theo chances to meet a Kafna–a librarian who works for the great library of Aftzaak–and his life changes forever…

Magus of the Library 1

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