Toshokan no Daimajutsushi (Magus of the Library)

Throughout civilization, books have been revered. They crystallize knowledge, link the past to the future, and convey thought itself. To protect all sorts of written texts, a man known as the Magus of the Library established the Central Library in Aftzaak—the City of Books.

In the slums of the desert village Amun lives Theo Fumis, a young boy who loves to read. Unfortunately, people from the slums are unable to use the local library. To make matters worse, he is continually bullied by his peers due to his unusually long ears. Seeking to escape from his miserable living conditions, he dreams of one day going to Aftzaak.

His unpleasant daily life is soon interrupted by the arrival of the Kafna—elite librarians skillful enough to work at the Central Library. Sedona Bleu, one of the Kafna, lends Theo her most cherished book; however, due to unforeseen circumstances, he is unable to finish reading it by the time the Kafna have to depart. Fortunately for Theo, Sedona renews his loan, giving him yet another reason to go to the City of Books.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Toshokan no Daimajutsushi has been published in English as Magus of the Library by Kodansha USA since July 9, 2019.

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Fumis, Theo

Main

Bleu, Sedona

Supporting

Guunjoh, Aya

Supporting

Ohgga

Supporting

Seros, Xtoh

Supporting

Schwimm, Sophie

Supporting

Hahal'k, Medina

Supporting

Midoreen, Kana

Supporting

Kavishmaf, Sumomo

Supporting

Loh Tei, Cynthea

Supporting

Reviews

Jul 29, 2024

cianoc

Recommended

Preliminary (15/? eps)

Excellent world building, interesting characters and beautiful art make this something special. So far this has avoided the many cliches that fantasy Manga tend to fall into. It can easily stand up to Frieren, My Metal Alchemist (though it's much gentler), or Nausica. More people should be talking about this.

The art in this manga is some of the best I've seen in a long time. The landscape and cities are rendered so that you feel you could step into them. This is not a manga you read quickly, but one where you linger on every panel drinking in the details.

Characterization is also excellent, with the ...

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Jun 12, 2024

jackskii

Recommended

Preliminary (46/? eps)

Every time I reread Magus of the Library, I go through a period of depression knowing there won't be any other work quite like it.

Let's cut away the synopsis that you can read from the description. This manga is great because of its world-building. Now, you might think you've read great world-building like Dungeon Meshi. Okay, let me be clear. Dungeon Meshi is one of my only two 10/10s out of the 150 mangas on my list, and the world-building of Magus of the Library makes Dungeon Meshi's feel like it's at the same level as In Another World With My Smartphone.

At its core, Magus ... of the Library created a world unique enough to be different from every major fantasy series from both Japan and Western media, while still maintaining a close connection to real life. Every race, religion, and history can be traced to a real-life counterpart, but also includes the author's own creative input to make them fantastical.

Creating a fantasy world is just the beginning. The author spends the majority of the manga realizing this carefully crafted world. Every chapter, every character, and even every panel is carefully drawn to maintain the consistency of the world to a tee. This comes to obvious things like physical traits and cultural differences of different races, different prayers for each religion, and how each house functions in and out of the library. It also includes less obvious details like which characters have to wear hijabs, different ways people channel their magic, and maintaining the illusion that this manga is translated from an in-universe work. Nothing is fully explained, but everything is extremely consistent. Once you realize that, you will be sucked in, looking at each panel, searching for any detail you might be missing, and creating theories based on them.

Aside from that, I think Magus of the Library did one thing very well: it utilized manga as a medium to an extreme. While it is a dialogue-heavy manga, it also excels at scenery. Not just drawing mesmerizingly detailed landscapes, but also moving through scenes quickly while conveying just enough information through a few panels and narration. The manga especially shines at using full-page panels, frequently using half the previous page as a setup, and using the entire next page to either highlight a character moment or reveal some important plot element. The reading experience itself is highly enjoyable.

Now, Magus of the Library does have some flaws, like the very slow pacing in the earlier chapters, and more importantly, the lack of a great conflict. Every aspect of the current story is hinting at some grand conflict in the near future, but every time the antagonists appear, I feel like the magic of the manga gets lost, and it just reverts to some decent fantasy story. Once the manga moves forward from world-building-focused to story-focused, will it still have the charm it has today? That's one thing I really can't answer.

Overall, 9/10. I do not give 10/10 to unfinished work because of how many times I've been disappointed by an ending, but I really, sincerely, hope that someday, when Magus of the Library is finished, I can give it a 10/10 and claim it is the greatest fantasy manga ever created.

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Aug 28, 2024

SeaCup

Not Recommended

Preliminary (34/? eps)

Spoiler

It's only good if its the first piece of fiction you've interacted with. The most typical of trite children stories. This will never be someone's favorite. It masks the lack of storytelling skill with enthusiasm and passion for the subject at hand, "isn't literature awesome!". It's world isn't vast like it pretends it is, the quirks of different races are nothing more than the same old stereotypes you see in any typical school setting, she's fiery, she's stern; the world building only serves to write a wikipedia entry no one will care to read, not to tell a story, that's why the information is presented ...

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Poll: Toshokan no Daimajutsushi Chapter 2 Discussion removed-user - Jul 30, 2021	4 replies	by otakuweek »» Feb 4, 7:24 AM
Poll: Toshokan no Daimajutsushi Chapter 1 Discussion Stark700 - Feb 10, 2018	9 replies	by otakuweek »» Feb 4, 6:45 AM
Volume eight discussion Avvenirista - Dec 9, 2024	0 replies	by Avvenirista »» Dec 9, 2024 2:54 PM
Possible Anime adaptation? AshTheChamp - Nov 9, 2024	6 replies	by JoeChip »» Nov 28, 2024 9:11 AM
Poll: Toshokan no Daimajutsushi Chapter 3 Discussion removed-user - May 4, 2020	5 replies	by Comander-07 »» Jul 18, 2024 2:23 AM

Toshokan no Daimajutsushi
Magus of the Library
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Magus of the Library
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