Battle Royale
by Koushun Takami
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Book Reviews of Battle Royale
Book Review: Fascinating premise, addictive action, and satisfying depth. Recommended
Summary: 4 Stars
Every year, one class of junior high students is selected to participate in a game: isolated on a deserted island, provided with weapons, they must kill each other until just one student survives. When Shuya's class is picked, he must discover who to trust, how to fight, and if it is possible to survive--and perhaps even fight back against the system. A tense and grotesquely violent book, Battle Royale is addictive and boldly confrontational. Some characterization and psychological insight give depth to the violence, making it more than a cheap thrill. Despite a sometimes-awkward writing style, this is an engrossing read and which packs a wallop. Moderately recommended.
With more than 40 students to kill off, Battle Royale is by necessity long and densely packed with brutal violence. The slaughter is often unrelenting; when it does pause, it builds tension that makes subsequent violence all the more intense. A story like that isn't for all readers, but those that come anticipating a thrill will find it: this is a dense, high-adrenaline, violent novel which--despite its length--reads quickly. But the thrill doesn't come cheap: 600 pages also provides time to build characterization, examine psychological motivation, and even do a bit of world building. These aspects occur in moderation, but they give depth and meaning to all the violence and make the book worth reading even for those already familiar with the film.
Unfortunately, Battle Royale's writing style is a little awkward--character thoughts intermix with narration, punctuation is sometimes shady, and it's all stiff and stunted yet at the same time too informal. My problems with this style may be personal; furthermore I'm uncomfortable reviewing translated works because I never know what factors--be they regional differences, poor translation, or the nature of translation itself--may create weaknesses such as this one. But whatever the contributing or mitigating factors, even after 600 pages Battle Royale's writing style felt awkward to the point of distraction. That's my only major complaint, however. Battle Royale may be exceptional only in its premise, but that premise is fascinating and it makes for a dense, tense, quick read; other aspects balanced against the action give the the book enough purpose and depth to be fulfilling and thought-provoking. It's not must-read, but it's an intriguing book and to an interested audience, I recommend it.
Book Review: B.R. is a great book for adult readers.
Summary: 5 Stars
Battle Royale takes us to modern day Japan (or China? It's been awhile since I read it) where we find our hero Shuya Nanahara and his classmates on a school bus heading out for a field trip. Shuya & Company fall asleep and wake up in another school building, with a man (can't remember his name) who explains to them that their class has been chosen for "The Program" - the program is when the government takes a class, sends them to an island, and has the students slaughter each other until one person is left. He goes on to let them know there is no way to escape by sea because warships are waiting around the island to blow away anyone who attempts it, there are these "forbidden zones" announced every so-many hours that the students can't go into otherwise they explode because of this silver collar on their necks which allows the man to track their movements.
I'll start off by saying this book is VERY violent, very graphic, and very gorey - all the makings for a great book :). The book practically starts off with some killings - when the students arrive on the island and awake in the school building, the man demands silence but some girl keeps talking so the man throws a knife into her head. Battle Royale starts off with 40 students, and the author goes into great detail explaining how almost all of them get killed. Even better is there is a struggle between two really tough exchange students - Kazuya and Shogo - which, if interpreted right, appears to be a very intense battle of good verse evil.
Speaking of details, Koushun Takami also goes into deep details about the dense forests, blue glimmering water, buildings, ghost houses,steep hills, and other parts of the enviroment. He wrote it so well that I felt like I was there - in fact on the back of the front cover there is a little map to show you all the forbidden zones (and times), where all the above mentioned places are, and so on.
Battle Royale is a pretty long book, and sort of expensive & hard to find, but honestly it is worth it. Your eyes will be glued to the pages, your heat racing, your mind going "I wonder what is going to happen to Shuya and his friends". Not only is this a violent & action packed book, but it is just so well written that I highly recommend it.
Book Review: Ridiculous, Hilarious, Corny, Entertaining
Summary: 4 Stars
Having just read "Battle Royale" last week, I can assure you that it is not the deep, thought-provoking classic novel that some Amazon reviewers have made it out to be. "Lord of the Flies" is still pretty secure atop the "commentary on human nature, using kids killing each other on islands as a microcosm of society" genre. With that said, it's still a highly entertaining read and is definitely worth your time. The novel is about a class of 42 Japanese students, randomly selected by the government to take part in an annual "program" that pits the students against each other in a fight for survival. The last survivor is the winner. He or she gets to appear on the news, and wins an autographed photo of the Dictator, the leader of this fictional Japanese fascist regime.
Many have described "Battle Royale" as thought-provoking, and I suppose it is if you're younger and haven't read too many books. This book is clearly trying to make some social commentary, but it does so vaguely and in very general terms. Essentially, we "learn" that people who seem trustworthy and stand-up can turn ugly and vicious in situations where it's them or you, and that fascist dictators are a bunch of jerks who want to prevent you from living freely, loving, and listening to rock n' roll. The only thought this novel inspired in me was the thought of what I would do when faced with a situation like this; this factor alone makes the book highly entertaining.
Also entertaining is the brilliant comedy found throughout the novel. A particularly intelligent student finds a computer, gets it running by hooking it up to a car battery, and tries to save himself and his classmates with his hacking skills (and if you think this is completely implausible and preposterous, just wait for the ending). Also keep your eyes out for the class clown's thoughts as he tumbles down a hill, the gay kid (i laughed for about 10 minutes straight at some of the things he says) and the snobby, rich violin player.
Four stars for "Battle Royale". Its comedy (intentional or otherwise), violence, simplistic (but oddly charming) attempts at social commentary, and overall ridiculousness and implausibility make it a must if you're looking for a fun read.
Book Review: Violent Japanese Pulp Fiction
Summary: 3 Stars
I discovered this book at my local bookstore, in the Science Fiction section on the "Recommended" shelf, with a hand-written description that included the word "Disturbing." The premise of the book, according to the blurb on the back cover, looked interesting, so I bought it and proceeded to read the entire 600+ pages the next day, essentially in one sitting. Even so, I cannot justify giving this book over a 3-star rating.I read the book in one sitting because, once I got started, and got past the tedious introduction of 42 Japanese middle school students, the story carried itself and I wanted to find out the ending, which was not at all disappointing, if a bit predictable. I found the book to be an interesting commentary on Japanese culture by a Japanese author, in that the author envisioned a Japan ruled by an Orwellian authoritarian state, with a high standard of living, and a mostly docile population, capable of living with the atrocity of having numerous middle school classes selected each year for a killing game. Each such class is selected at random, moved to an undisclosed and private location, and the students in the class are forced to kill each other until only one student remains. Battle Royale is the story of one such class.
The story is full of violence, but rendered pseudo-comically, and the only disturbing part to me was the writing. The writing was almost adolescent in nature, with charicaturish heroes and villans, and the author felt the need to perpetuate the tired notion of the liberating and rebellious aspects of rock-and-roll music. It almost seems as if the novel would have worked better in comic/manga format, but part of my prejudice against the writing could have to do with the fact that the book was translated into English from Japanese, and the translation may share some of the blame for the quality of the writing.
On re-reading the back blurb, I realized that a part I overlooked ("Battle Royale is already a contemporary Japanese pulp classic") could explain my dissatisfaction with the book. This book is definitely pulp fiction, but an enjoyable read if you enjoy this type of material and have some time to kill.
Book Review: 1984 meets Lord of the Flies... in a slightly awkward translation
Summary: 4 Stars
Before purchasing Battle Royale in English translation, I had watched the movie and translated several chapters from the original Japanese for a language course. In response to other critics who have mentioned the awkward prose (especially in dialogue), I have to agree... BUT please be aware that the fault lies in the translation - the original was more linguistically engaging. Not that my amateurish attempt was any better...! So, while I would give the translation a 3, my overall perspective on the text forces me to concede a higher rating.
Ultimately, the premise of this text makes the annoying translation issues seem minimal. As other reviewers have mentioned, this sci-fi/horror story portrays a nationalistic Japan in some alternate present/future (slightly ambiguous). The isolated government employs fear as a control tactic, but citizens seem ambivalent to the situation. Supposedly for some unexplained "study" (or perhaps just to continue the scare tactics and provide people with a sensational news item), an entire junior high school class (consisting of around 40 students) is periodically selected for the Program. (Insert foreboding music!) The students, who believe they are travelling on a traditional school trip, find themselves collared with explosives, assigned a random weapon (ranging from various guns/weaponry to a seemingly useless compass) and entered in a killing game. To avoid a peaceful resolution, students are separated and informed that if they fail to kill each other, in three days their collars will explode.
With 42 students to work with, the author attempts to portray a variety of responses to this shocking situation. Some of the classmates attempt to band together, others abandon any hint of morality, and a few choose suicide over the prospect of participating in such a game. Though the characters occasionally strike me as oversimplified, the reader must remember that there are 42 students, so not all can be completely analyzed.
Certainly worth a read, and locate the movie if you can... I hate to say it (this is slightly sacrilegious for a reader) but I enjoyed the film more than the English translation.