is a Japanese

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

series written and illustrated by

Yuki Midorikawa is a Japanese Mangaka, manga artist. She is primarily known for her shōjo manga, ''shōjo'' manga works in the magazines ''LaLa'' and ''LaLa DX'', published by Hakusensha. Her most successful works have been ''Hotarubi no Mori e'', which rece ...

. It started in

Hakusensha is a Japanese publishing company. It is headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo. The company mainly publishes manga magazines and is involved in series' productions in their games, original video animation, music, and their animated TV series. The com ...

's manga magazine '' LaLa DX'' in June 2003, where it ran until April 2008; it has been serialized in ''

LaLa ''LaLa'' is a monthly Japanese manga magazine published by Hakusensha on the 24th of each month. The magazine's bonus contents are usually calendars for New Year issues, drama CDs, and so on. In a 2006 survey conducted by Oricon, Japanese girls ...

'' since July 2007. Its chapters have been collected in 32 volumes as of April 2025. The manga is licensed for English release in North America by

Viz Media Viz Media, LLC is an American entertainment company headquartered in San Francisco, California, focused on publishing manga, and distribution and licensing Japanese anime, films, and television series. The company was founded in 1986 as Viz, ...

, which released the first volume in January 2010. The series follows Takashi Natsume, an orphan boy in his late teens who can

perceive Perception () is the organization, identification, and interpretation of sensory information in order to represent and understand the presented information or environment. All perception involves signals that go through the nervous syste ...

and combat . One day, Takashi finds a very old notebook called the "Book of Friends", left by his late maternal grandmother Reiko Natsume, an

exorcist In some religions, an exorcist (from the Greek „ἐξορκιστής“) is a person who is believed to be able to cast out the devil or performs the ridding of demons or other supernatural beings who are alleged to have possessed a person ...

who possessed strong spiritual powers. The notebook was used to bind dozens of powerful demonic

spirits Spirit(s) commonly refers to: * Liquor, a distilled alcoholic drink * Spirit (animating force), the non-corporeal essence of living things * Spirit (supernatural entity), an incorporeal or immaterial being Spirit(s) may also refer to: Liquids ...

, both good and evil, to follow Reiko's every whim and desire if called upon. Takashi resolves to give back all the names in notebook; in the process, he joins forces with another feline/wolf-like spirit called Madara (nicknamed "Nyanko-

sensei The term "先生", read in Chinese, in Japanese, in Korean, and in Vietnamese, is an honorific used in the Sinosphere. In Japanese, the term literally means "person born before another" or "one who comes before". It is generally used ...

"), who knew Reiko when she was alive. Madara takes the form of an overweight cat and intends to take back the notebook after Takashi dies. Until then, he agrees to protect Takashi from the nefarious spirits who want to harm him for being the grandson of Reiko. The series has been adapted into a series

drama CD Radio drama (or audio drama, audio play, radio play, radio theatre, or audio theatre) is a dramatised, purely acoustic performance. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine ...

s. An

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

television series adaptation, produced by

Brain's Base is a Japanese animation studio An animation studio is a company producing animation, animated media. The broadest such companies conceive of products to produce, own the physical equipment for production, employ operators for that equipment, ...

(seasons 1–4) and

Shuka Shuka ( , also Shukadeva ) is a rishi (sage) in Hinduism. He is the son of the sage Vyasa and the main narrator of the scripture ''Bhagavata Purana''. Most of the ''Bhagavata Purana'' consists of Shuka reciting the story to the king Parikshit ...

(seasons 5 onwards), have been broadcast on

TV Tokyo JOTX-DTV (channel 7), branded as is a Japanese television station that serves as the flagship of the TX Network.Natsume's Book of Friends the Movie'' and '' Natsume's Book of Friends: The Waking Rock and the Strange Visitor'', were released in 2018 and 2021, respectively. The first four seasons of the anime were licensed by

NIS America is a Japanese video game developer and publisher. The company was founded in 1991 and has developed several role-playing video games, most notably the ''Disgaea'' and '' Marl Kingdom'' series. Its mascot is the penguin-like ''Disgaea'' charact ...

for a North American release in 2012 and released on home video in Japanese with English subtitles. The series has also been streamed by

Crunchyroll Crunchyroll is an American Video on demand#Subscription models, subscription video on-demand Over-the-top media service, over-the-top Streaming media, streaming service owned by Sony, Sony Group Corporation. The service primarily distributes fi ...

, who produced an English dub in 2022. By September 2023, the manga had over 16 million copies in circulation.

Story

For as long as he can remember, Takashi Natsume has had the rare spiritual ability to see and commune with and , inheriting the powers from his late maternal exorcist grandmother Reiko Natsume. This ability resulted in his having a lonely childhood, because children his age considered him strange. He had also been passed from one paternal relative to another. Upon her death at a young adult age, Reiko bequeathed to her grandson her "Book of Friends"—a book containing the names of hundreds of spirits she had bullied into servitude. The Book of Friends is considered a highly prized item in the supernatural world, and such demons and spirits—both good and malicious—hunt Takashi constantly because of it. Takashi spends his time dissolving the contracts that Reiko created and releasing the various spirits that come to him. Malicious spirits, on the other hand, try to kill him to obtain possession of the book, which is where Madara (called "Nyanko-sensei" by Takashi) comes in. Madara serves as Takashi's bodyguard and spiritual advisor of sorts, even though he is ostensibly motivated by his own desire to possess the book once Takashi dies. He later begins to become more attached to Takashi, with the latter forming a similar bond with Madara (despite the latter's attempts to deny it). Takashi also finds a good friend in an

named Shuuichi Natori, who is also one of the very few humans who is capable of perceiving and taking down spirits via certain banishing or sealing spells, but also finds a dangerous adversary in Seiji Matoba, who has plans for Takashi to join him and his nefarious clan of exorcists. Takashi is determined to release all of the names before the conniving Matoba clan or other malicious spirits attempt to use it for their own gain as he tries to learn whatever he can about his maternal grandmother and the strong spiritual connection they share.

Characters

Main characters

; : : High school student Takashi inherits his grandmother Reiko's ability to see and receives her "Book of Friends," a ledger containing names of she subdued. The book's power to control spirits makes it coveted by both seeking freedom and exorcists pursuing its power. Many spirits confuse Takashi for Reiko, leading to both conflict and unexpected connections. The Madara protects him in exchange for inheriting the book after Takashi's death, while he works to return the spirits' names. Though raised by reluctant relatives due to his spiritual sight, he finds stability with the Fujiwaras while concealing his abilities. Despite his peaceful nature, Takashi possesses strong spiritual power that attracts attention, particularly from exorcist Seiji Matoba. Each name he releases drains his energy but grants him visions of the spirits' pasts, revealing more about Reiko's life. ; : : Madara is a powerful accidentally released by Takashi from long confinement in a shrine. Normally appearing as a (which Takashi nicknames Nyanko-sensei), this form allows him to be visible to humans, requiring Takashi to pass him off as a pet. Though contracted to protect Takashi in exchange for inheriting the Book of Friends upon the boy's death, Madara frequently complains when names are returned from the book. Their relationship involves frequent quarrels, yet gradually develops mutual affection. Despite his protests about being treated like a cat, Madara exhibits feline behaviors. His connection to Takashi deepens through their shared history with Reiko, whom Madara knew well before her untimely death. Nyanko's design is based on a lucky cat statue Midorikawa was given as a child. ; : : Reiko, Takashi's late maternal grandmother, was a powerful spiritualist who distanced herself from humans and sought companionship among spirits. She collected the false names of defeated in her Book of Friends, compelling their obedience. Though she commanded most spirits, she maintained an unusual rapport with Madara. Described as forgetful with poor manners, Reiko died young beneath a tree, fading from human memory as she desired. Her formidable spiritual power continues to resonate in the supernatural world, attracting both fear and fascination from and exorcists alike—a legacy now inherited by her grandson Takashi, who possesses comparable abilities.

Yowake High School

; : : An student that had recently moved into the area. He is sickly and quite susceptible to illnesses. Like Takashi, he is able to detect spirits, but to a lesser degree limited to seeing merely shadows and sensing slight presence of spirits. He wants to help Takashi in any way he can, but is afraid that he will just be a burden because of his weak ability. He became a close companion and even knew about Takashi's secret of seeing spirits and always helped him whenever he is in a tight spot. ; : : A new girl at school who rarely talks because of a curse a spirit has placed on her, which Takashi later helps her to break. She is an onmyouji; she cannot see spirits without drawing a magic circle. Taki, like Tanuma, wants to help Takashi in any way possible. She has an older brother who is staying at university and flatly refuses to believe that even exist. ; : : The class president of Takashi's homeroom. Sasada believes that Takashi can see, hear and battle spirits, although he repeatedly denies this to her. To Takashi's chagrin, she frequently tries to accompany him when he is on business involving

. She is a recurring character in the anime; in the manga, she is rarely seen after the encounter with Shigure due to transferring to another school from her stepfather's new job. ; : : A classmates of Takashi. Kitamoto is a sensible and rational person, while Nishimura is funny and easy-going, with a slightly perverted side. Although Takashi initially rejects their overtures of friendship because of his fears of his ability being found out, he eventually becomes friends with them, although they still hang around more with each other than Takashi. Nishimura has a crush on Taki, but thinks that she and Takashi are going out.

Exorcists

; : : An exorcist and actor who possesses spiritual sight, marked by a moving lizard birthmark. He controls three spirits and employs paper , using harsh methods rooted in childhood trauma that contrast with Takashi's compassion. While maintaining his techniques, he grows concerned about Takashi's merciful nature toward hostile spirits and exorcists, despite recognizing his superior power. Learning of the Book of Friends, he deems it dangerous but accepts Takashi's choice to keep it. ; : : Seiji Matoba leads his clan as a formidable exorcist who prioritizes human protection above all else. His pragmatic approach includes sacrificing innocent when necessary. A distinctive eye patch covers his scarred right eye - a hereditary curse from a broken pact between his ancestor and a powerful . This legacy brings both supernatural targeting and distrust from rival clans. Upon discovering Takashi's lineage as Reiko's grandson, he actively seeks to recruit him, recognizing his exceptional spiritual potential. ; : : An elder member of the Matoba clan who serves as the current head's secretary and assistant.

Recurring ''yōkai''

; : : ; : ; : : A powerful whose form is a blue-haired human woman. She was madly in love with Reiko. Being knowledgeable, she often acts as Takashi's mentor. Hinoe enjoys teasing Takashi and Madara; mostly the former because of his uncanny resemblance to Reiko. ; : :A powerful horse with many followers. He acknowledges that Takashi is a worthy holder of the Book of Friends and offers himself as Takashi's bodyguard in place of Madara. ; : ; : : An orphaned fox whose form is a boy with fox ears and tail however humans only see him as an infant fox. He becomes friends with Takashi after being rescued from bullying . ; : : A large-headed spirit with a small mustache and a pale green robe. He wears a comb that he had lost and is replaced by a dragon scale-encrusted comb Takashi had made for him. His true form is that of a dragon.

Other characters

; : : The Fujiwaras, a childless middle-aged couple, become Takashi's foster parents. Shigeru, a second cousin of Takashi's late father, once unknowingly met Reiko in his youth. They wholeheartedly accept Takashi as family and frequently express concern for his wellbeing. Though Takashi consciously maintains emotional distance - addressing them formally and concealing his spiritual abilities - he gradually realizes this prevents deeper bonds. Despite his growing comfort with them, he continues to fear rejection should they discover his supernatural connection to the world. ; : : A classmate of Takashi in elementary school. He used to bully Takashi and refused to believe in his spiritual abilities. After falling in love with a , and eventually realizing that she was indeed one thanks to Takashi, he apologizes to him and become friends.

Development

Midorikawa created ''Natsume's Book of Friends'' as an episodic serial for a manga magazine published every two months, so that each chapter was a story that could be read on its own. As the result of earlier writing a

ghost story A ghost story is any piece of fiction, or drama, that includes a ghost, or simply takes as a premise the possibility of ghosts or characters' belief in them."Ghost Stories" in Margaret Drabble (ed.), ''Oxford Companion to English Literature''. ...

that an editor made her revise to include more

romance Romance may refer to: Common meanings * Romance (love), emotional attraction towards another person and the courtship behaviors undertaken to express the feelings ** Romantic orientation, the classification of the sex or gender with which a pers ...

than she initially wanted, Midorikawa specifically created ''Natsume's Book of Friends'' as a

supernatural Supernatural phenomena or entities are those beyond the Scientific law, laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin 'above, beyond, outside of' + 'nature'. Although the corollary term "nature" has had multiple meanin ...

story with less romance, containing supernatural elements that stir readers' imaginations the way stories about and local gods stirred hers while growing up in a rural area. For the basic story, she wanted to write about a boy and his non-human teacher, and include the incongruous element of the boy's grandmother in a

school uniform A school uniform is a uniform worn by students primarily for a school or otherwise an educational institution. They are common in primary school, primary and secondary schools in various countries and are generally widespread in Africa, Asia, O ...

. This was the first series Midorikawa wrote in which the protagonist was also the central character. Midorikawa claimed that as a character, Takashi is almost as bad as herself at expressing his thoughts, which caused her to use more interior monologue than she was comfortable with for a male character.

Media

Manga

Written and illustrated by Yuki Midorikawa, ''Natsume's Book of Friends'' was first published in

's manga magazine '' LaLa DX'' from June 10, 2003, to April 10, 2008; it has been serialized in the monthly sister magazine ''

'' since July 24, 2007. The chapters have been collected in 32 volumes. The series is licensed in English in North America by

, with the first volume published in January 2010. Additionally, fanbook was published on January 5, 2009, and a notebook reproduction of ''Natsume's Book of Friends'' was published on July 3, 2009.

Volumes

Drama CDs

''Natsume's Book of Friends'' has been adapted as a series of three

s, which were distributed as extras with issues of ''LaLa''. # ''LaLa Treasure'' Drama CD (October 2007) # ''LaLa Excellent'' Drama CD (November 2008) # ''LaLa Double Premiere'' Drama CD (May 2009)

Anime

''Natsume's Book of Friends'' has been adapted into an

television series, directed by

Takahiro Omori (born June 25, 1965) is a Japanese animator, storyboard writer, and director. He has directed many anime series, including ''Fancy Lala'', '' Koi Kaze'', ''Gakuen Alice'', '' Hell Girl'', '' Natsume's Book of Friends'', ''Baccano!'', ''Durarara! ...

, and broadcast on

TV Tokyo JOTX-DTV (channel 7), branded as is a Japanese television station that serves as the flagship of the TX Network.Brain's Base is a Japanese animation studio An animation studio is a company producing animation, animated media. The broadest such companies conceive of products to produce, own the physical equipment for production, employ operators for that equipment, ...

animated the first four seasons, while

has animated the fifth one onwards. The 13-episode first season was broadcast from July 8 to September 30, 2008; the second 13-episode season, , was broadcast from January 6 to March 31, 2009; the third 13-episode season, , was broadcast from July 5 to September 27, 2011; the 13-episode fourth season, , was broadcast from January 3 to March 27, 2012; the fifth 11-episode season, , was broadcast from October 5 to December 21, 2016; the sixth 11-episode season, , was broadcast from April 12 to June 21, 2017; the seventh 12-episode season, , aired from October 8 to December 24, 2024. In North America, the first four seasons were licensed by

and released on home video in Japanese with English subtitles. The seven seasons have been streamed by

. An English dub by Crunchyroll premiered on July 24, 2022.

Films

'' Natsume's Book of Friends the Movie: Ephemeral Bond'' was released in theaters on September 29, 2018. A second theatrical anime, titled ''Natsume's Book of Friends: The Waking Rock and the Strange Visitor'', premiered on January 16, 2021. The film is composed of two stories, "Ishi Okoshi" and "Ayashiki Raihōsha". The main staff and cast members from the previous film returned to reprise their roles with the addition of

Hisako Kanemoto , also known professionally as , is a Japanese voice actress and singer. She is represented by Production Baobab. Biography Kanemoto attended high school in Kamogata, Okayama and enrolled in the voice acting course at the vocational school of ...

as a guest-star.

Other

original video animation , abbreviated as OVA and sometimes as OAV (original animation video), are Japanese animated films and special episodes of a series made specially for release in home video formats without prior showings on television or in theaters, though the ...

(OVA) titled was released on February 5, 2014, with the staff and cast of the previous anime seasons returning. The BD/DVD consisted of two discs, the second containing a clip of the "Sound Theatre × Natsume Yuujinchou: Tsudoi Ongeki no Shou" musical event which was held on September 28, 2013. Separate soundtrack albums for the two seasons were released in Japan by

Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), commonly known as Sony Music, is an American multinational music company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation. It is the recording division of Sony Music Group, with the other half being the ...

on September 24, 2008 and March 18, 2009, respectively. The series opening and closing theme songs were also released by Sony Music. As singles, "Issei no Sei" reached a peak rank of 48th on the

Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics Statistics (from German language, German: ', "description of a State (polity), state, a country") is the discipline that ...

singles chart, "Natsu Yūzora" reached 27th, and "Ano Hi Time Machine" reached 38th. "Aishiteru" was not released as a single, but instead included on an album called Uta no Hibi by Kourin (also known as Callin'). A

visual novel A visual novel (VN) is a form of digital interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with static or animated illustratio ...

adaptation of the series, , was announced in December 2024 by Bushiroad Games. It is set to be released in Japan for

Windows Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...

(via

Steam Steam is water vapor, often mixed with air or an aerosol of liquid water droplets. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization. Saturated or superheated steam is inv ...

) and

Nintendo Switch The is a video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. Released in the middle of the Eighth generation of video game consoles, eighth generation of home consoles, the Switch succeeded the ...

on June 5, 2025.

Reception

Since the fifth volume of the series, the individual volumes have made the best-seller list for manga in Japan. Volume 5 was ranked at number 8 on the charts for the week of March 4–10, 2008; Volume 6 was number 5 for the week of July 8–14, 2008; Volume 13 has done the best so far of the volumes, staying on the chart for three consecutive weeks (number 2 for the week of January 2–8, 2012, number 4 for the week of January 9–15, 2012, then falling to number 19 the following week). By February 2022, the manga has sold over 16 million copies. By September 2023, the manga had over 17 million copies in circulation. ''Natsume's Book of Friends'' was one of twelve finalists for the first

Manga Taishō The is a Japanese List of comics awards, comics award recognizing achievement in manga. It is awarded annually to a manga series published in the previous calendar year of eight or fewer Tankōbon, collected volumes in length. The Manga Taish� ...

award in 2008. Both the anime and the manga have been noted for their optimistic themes and presentation.

Notes

References

External links

* * * {{Shuka Anime series based on manga Aniplex franchises Brain's Base Exorcism in anime and manga Hakusensha franchises Hakusensha manga Iyashikei anime and manga Mystery anime and manga Shōjo manga Supernatural anime and manga TV Tokyo original programming Viz Media manga Yōkai in anime and manga