Natsume's Book of Friends (Japanese: 夏目友人帳, Hepburn: Natsume Yūjin-chō) is a Japanese manga series by Yuki Midorikawa. Natsume's Book of Friends has been adapted as a series of drama CDs, as well as an anime television series produced by Brain's Base (seasons 1–4) and Shuka (seasons 5–6), which was broadcast on TV Tokyo for 6 seasons in 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2016 and 2017. The manga is licensed for English-language release in North America by Viz Media, which released the first volume in January 2010. The first four seasons of the anime have been licensed by NIS America for a North American release in 2012. A fifth season began airing on October 4, 2016. A sixth season began airing on April 11, 2017. Natsume's Book of Friends the Movie: Tied to the Temporal World was released in theaters on September 29, 2018. A new film titled Natsume's Book of Friends: The Waking Rock and the Strange Visitor was released in theaters on January 16, 2021.