SPY×FAMILY Vol. 18 Takes the Top Spot on Japan's Book Chart

Tatsuya Endo's SPY×FAMILY Vol. 18 is the No. 1 title on the Billboard Japan Book Hot 100, the weekly chart that ranks Japanese books by sales. The volume went on sale on Nov. 4, and the chart published on Nov. 12 covers the week from Nov. 2 to 8.

The chart is built from three sales channels. Physical bookstores are listed as brick-and-mortar. Online retail is listed as EC, short for e-commerce. The third is e-books. Billboard reports that Vol. 18 led all three, which is what gave it the top position.

The series has now surpassed 42 million copies in circulation through this volume. Its previous volume also reached No. 1, on the chart released Apr. 9 covering Mar. 30 to Apr. 5.

Fans have another reason to look ahead. On Nov. 8, it was announced that the TV anime will return with Season 4 in 2027, and a second theatrical film will open the same year.

Behind the top spot, the chart's other titles moved as follows:

• Yukinobu Tatsu's Dandadan Vol. 26 ranked No. 2. It placed No. 2 in bookstores, No. 2 in e-books and No. 9 in online retail.
• Yuto Suzuki's SAKAMOTO DAYS Vol. 29 ranked No. 3. It placed No. 3 in bookstores, No. 4 in e-books and No. 12 in online retail.
• Yuu Nagira's Nanji, Hoshi no Gotoku dropped to No. 4. It had been last week's No. 1 and is now in its 52nd week on the chart.
• Takahiro and Yohei Takemura's Mato Seihei no Slave Vol. 22 debuted at No. 5, and it placed No. 3 in e-books.

Chart positions move with each new release. A title can rise on a fresh volume and fall back a week later, which is why the rankings are published every week rather than once a year.

For readers new to manga, the format is a long-running comic series published in volumes, with each new volume often arriving on a set date and then selling most of its copies in the first few weeks. Charts like this one track those early weeks closely. Whether a volume holds its place is a question the next weekly chart will answer.