Book Reviews with the Burnham: "Spy X Family Vol. 1" by Tatsuya Endo

Editor's note: "Book Reviews with the Burnham" is a book review series submitted by Burnham Memorial Library staff members, which the Sun publishes every other week. 

"Spy X Family" by Tatsuya Endo is a Japanese manga about a pretend family where everyone is keeping a secret. The story’s setting is based on Germany’s cold war, with the countries of Westalis and Ostania in a precarious truce

after many long years of fighting each other. In the midst of this, a Westalis spy codenamed Twilight has been given the task of getting close to the leader of Ostania’s National Unity Party, who has been deemed a threat to this fragile peace. The only problem is that the target is a recluse, who only comes

out into public to attend his son’s school functions. To succeed at the mission, Twilight is ordered to put together a fake family with a wife and child, and to successfully enroll them in the prestigious Eden Academy.

Taking on the persona of Loid Forger, Twilight first adopts an orphan named Anya, before eventually meeting Yor, who agrees to a fake marriage with him for her own reasons. What he doesn’t know is that his new wife is actually a trained assassin, whose targets are potential threats to Ostania. Not only that,

but Anya is a telepath who can read minds, and she knows everything that is going on with their new family but is too young and foolish to do anything about it. How will this messy group function as a family, and will they manage to succeed at Twilight’s mission?

"Spy X Family" is a comedy that places the characters into ridiculous situations, often brought about by their lack of knowledge on social norms. Their inability to truly fit in with society is not only funny but is also what prevents them from realizing each other’s secrets. Despite the humor, the series doesn’t shy

away from its serious setting. It often has storylines that remind the reader of the horrors of war that led these characters to where they are now. The series strikes a good balance of comedy, action and seriousness that keeps the reader invested in this found family’s antics.

The first six volumes of "Spy X Family" are available at the library.