Battle Royale

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Binding: Paperback Dewey Decimal Number: 895.635 EAN: 9781569317785 ISBN: 156931778X Label: VIZ Media LLC Manufacturer: VIZ Media LLC Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 624 Publication Date: 2003-02-26 Publisher: VIZ Media LLC Studio: VIZ Media LLC
Customer review of: Battle Royale Customer Rating: Summary: Good story, questionable presentation Comment: 42 students in a dystopic, totalitarian Japan are taken to an evacuated island after being gassed on a bus, believing that they were on a field trip, and wake up in a classroom of the island's local school. To their horror, their sadistic, childish "Instructor" Kinpatsu Sakamochi announces that they are to be part of the year's Program, better known as Battle Royale. So begins Koushun Takami's bloody thriller as the junior-high students are released onto the island and, according to the rules of the Battle Royale, are to kill each other to the last 15-year old standing. Each student wears an explosive collar that will detonate should one of them break a rule or enter a "forbidden zone," areas on the island that are called off-limits by the instructor to make the playing field smaller. Distrust, past grudges, and in some cases vengeance all begin to manifest as the players are each given a weapon (ranging from a shotgun to a fork) and in a daze scatter across the island. It doesn't take long for the game to begin, despite what our protagonist, Shuya Nanahara hopes. Shuya pledges to protect Noriko Nakagawa, the crush of his friend, and soon they are joined by a tough survivalist, Shogo Kawada, whose past and trustworthiness are of course obscured through most of the story. Their opponents? Practically everyone as they devolve into paranoid wrecks. In particular though, there's Kazuo Kiriyama, a sociopathic, efficient killer, and Mitsuko Souma, a ruthless girl venting her frustrations and fury at her past abuses on her fellow classmates. Some kids form alliances, only to see them crumble, others try to form plans to escape, like athletic and intelligent Shinji Mimura and his friend, the class clown. This book is altogether not too bad, although there are numerous concerns. For one, it seems a bit lengthy for a novel of this type, and it seems like the author could have spaced out the killings and fights a little more. It can be rather boring at times, despite its subject matter, and there are some continuity issues, like the fact that Kazuo's machine gun appears to have infinite ammo, or a junior high student could have computer hacking skills that potentially disrupt the government's own system. The most pressing issue may be the grammar and-as other reviewers have pointed out- this could be the translation. As the book progresses, the grammatical errors only seem to get worse, until a page can be wracked with, among other less noticeable problems, missing words and unnecessary detail described in robotic fashion. The phrase, "That's right" must literally be used at least a hundred times throughout the novel, whether in dialogue or in the narrative itself (the author tends to practically switch to 1st person in some instances). Twice he even parenthesis's a scream. The story is good, the author's true skill at writing sporadically comes through the mélange of grammar flaws, and the characters are interesting; the point of view of each student is described at least once, even if said character may be killed at its finish. While the exact motivation for the Battle Royale program on the part of the "Republic of Greater East Asia" is never clearly explained, the despotic regime is actually believable. Finally, it can be fun and disturbing to imagine a given group of people you know, a class, workplace, or just a group of friends, in such a situation and figuring out who would do what. Customer Rating: Summary: A pretty good book if you know what you're getting into... Comment: If I could, I'd give the book 3 and a half stars. The only real knock I have against this book is the rough translation. It's about as rough as translations get. I know it must be hard translating Japanese into English but man...I really feel it took away from the book. Other than that, like I said, if you know what to expect it's an enjoyable read. Customer Rating: Summary: Im already on my third copy of this book Comment: Yes you heard me right, Ive read this book so many times that im on my third new copy, thr other two having fallen apart to peiced from being read too many times. This book is a Gory, violent, bloody, paranois, vicious, nail-biting, revenge seeking, MASTERPEICE. I wont give away ANY details in this review, because this is one of those books that if you jump into it completely unprepared, you will be blown off the edge of your seat. I have rarely been so taken away into a book like this one did. You feel the absoloute terror of all of the characters and you wonder; will anyone survive? When will which friends turn on each other? If anyone lives, will they be able to get revenge? If your squeamish, do NOT, i repeat, do not read this book. But if your an action, horror, and mystery fan, you MUST read this book. Customer Rating: Summary: BR Comment: It is truly an amazing pageturner. This is a perfect novel for those who loves cruel, mysterious, and blood scene of battle, and has a little knowledge of the Japanese culture. Although this book had been a controversial topic in Japan, still it won't stop the lovers of this kind of books. It exhibits much more detail than the movie does. If you haven't watched the movie yet, then go and watch it. You will understand the plot better after watching the movie. Customer Rating: Summary: INCREDIBLE Comment: One of the BEST books I've ever read. Couldn't put it down. Takami does an amazing job with the characterization of over 40 characters. A lot more than just a violent and gory story. It is about trust, human nature, and how people you think you know change when put in desperate situations. The friendship among the trio of Shuya, Noriko, and Shogo was developed beautifully. I had see the film before reading the book and I just watched it after reading the book, and it made watching the film a more fulfilling experience (even though, like all film adaptations, it did leave out certain parts). If you read one book this year, make it Battle Royale.
Editorial Reviews: Battle Royale, a high-octane thriller about senseless youth violence in a dystopian world, it is one of Japan's best-selling - and most controversial - novels. As part of a ruthless program by the totalitarian government, ninth-grade students are taken to a small isolated island with a map, food, and various weapons. Forced to wear special collars that explode when they break a rule, they must fight each other for three days until only one "winner" remains. The elimination contest becomes the ultimate in must-see reality television. A Japanese pulp classic available in English for the first time, Battle Royale is a potent allegory of what it means to be young and survive in today's dog-eat-dog world. The first novel by small-town journalist Koushun Takami, it went on to become an even more notorious film by 70-year-old director Kinji Fukusaku.
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