"Magus of the Library" is a fantasy manga written and drawn by Mitsu Izumi that focuses on a young mixed-blood boy called Theo Fumis who is an avid fan of literature, but because of his pointed ears and impoverished life, he isn't allowed to use the village library and on top of that, ostracized and mistreated by most folks in the village, particularly from his classmates in school. As he endures the prejudice and hatred of the village, he aspires of traveling to a place where such things don't exist; the City of Books, also known as, Aftzaak. But one day due to 'fate', Theo encounters a Kafna, a librarian who works for the great library of Aftzaak, and this encounter would change his life forever.
Now that I've gotten the synopsis out of the way, let me explain my short, brief thoughts on why this manga with just reading 4 volumes, is one of my all-time favorite manga and a manga that everyone should give a shot at some point.
#1. The passion behind literature
The key aspect to what Mitsu Izumi brought out to this series which I admired so much, was portray how valuable books are with various applications that really showcase so many different sides behind them. Whether it has to do with entertainment, or knowledge regarding cultures and traditions, or grimories, or knowledge regarding educational subjects, or autobiographies and preserving works from many, many years back and making sure the community, rich or poor, could experience such wealth of knowledge with freedom, the story manages to portray why books can be such a special, special thing to experience, with a lot of practicality that could even relate to real life, although we also have the Internet to thank for all of this information.
Because of books, characters can be inspired to have dreams like Theo, can be more culturally aware and diversive, and communicate a lot easier with others without worrying about offending other races, can be a lot more knowledgable in various areas that could benefit in the future, and much, much more.
And the writing also not only goes into why books are useful, but also shows the amount of work put into actually maintaining so many books, translating and making sure different cultures benefit from this, and so much more. Books hold so much value there and getting to know the behind-the-scenes antics behind them through the eyes of what the kafna do, and being aware of how valuable they are to society there despite being presented as a luxury only in the past, is just fascinating. The writing really benefits from amazing, natural pacing to organically present books in this sort of light without making it feel like forced propaganda.
#2. Theo Fumis and Sedona Bleu
Theo Fumis is such a wonderful character since he is so lovable, endearing and honest, and you could feel his desire to become a kafna and help with the future of books to be inspiring of sorts. Even with a background that makes many people wary of him and being shunned a lot, he still aspires to one day travel to the City of Books and join the library where he would feel the happiest in his life, a place where many different races could be seen and he can blend in without being ostracized, as well as being surrounded by tons and tons of books of all kinds. His character is not only lovable, but his journey to becoming a kafna is also quite challenging since there is a ton of competition to successfully become one, so the actual path to see him succeed feels intense and exciting too.
Sedona Bleu is also a really great and compelling character, and I loved her advice to Theo, basically telling him that she loves his appearance despite what everyone else thinks of him, since he has to be the hero of his own story, and having a unique appearance sounds fitting and cool. In so many shounen manga, wacky appearances like that seem like the norm but for this case, his appearance and her advice to give him the boost of confidence to push forward is amazing to watch. And on top of that, loads of mystery is surrounding her too so she's lovable and interesting in various ways.
Furthermore just for other characters than these two, they're all really charismatic, lovable to read and fun too. Also display tons of passion that makes reading this series feel more heartwarming.
#3. The artwork and world building
The setting, the details put into the world, and even just the little details with how books were handled and maintained. All done to beautiful levels, with amazing character designs too. I also love how multicultural the series is, and seeing so many characters be presented with different attire that befits their races makes the world feel more like an actual 'world' than a lot of other anime/manga I've come across. Due to how well written the whole element of books and uniting everyone is, the world building really shines.
And to further elaborate on how good the art is, I love how at times, they depict Theo's state of mind as he's focused or inspired with books with detailed imagery of him for example, intensely writing while having papers representing his entire journey surround him as he pours all his heart and soul into utilizing his whole journey of ups and downs and turn that into success for his ambitions.
I could go into more detail but for now, that's enough to just showcase a glimpse of why this series in 4 volumes is already incredible and why there's so much potential for this series to be even greater than what it already is right now. The journey is slow, and updates will take time, but the actual adventure would be guaranteed greatness in my opinion. A true emotional rollercoaster at its finest.
"If you but learn to unlock the secrets of books, you can carry yourself to any place you wish to go."
