Battle Royale (Novel)

Worth Reading

I thought this sounded like an interesting book, but I was undecided for a while if I wanted to get involved. I loved Hunger Games and Lord of the Flies, but it was the whole Japanese translation that made me almost not read it. I thought it would be hard to tell the characters apart, I'm not familiar with Japanese names, I can't tell the female names from the male. Once i got into it, it was much easier than I expected, and there was a list of students in the beginning that I used to keep track of the students. This book was long, but interesting, and I really loved the characters. Although I enjoyed it, if I had to choose between this and The Hunger Games, I would choose The Hunger Games.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Friend or Foe?

How do you know if you really trust a person? One minute you might be laughing and enjoying your time, but the next you might find a loaded gun pointed at your face. Battle Royale takes readers to a heart-pounding, stomach-turning, gripping journey as Koushun Takami brings the action to you. A class of 42 Junior High students thought they were on a study trip, but after a dose of sleeping gas, the bus takes a little detour. A fascist government known as ¿The Greater Republic of East Asia¿ assigns The Program to this lucky class. Shuya Nanahara and the rest of his classmates, unaware of their location, wake up in bewilderment. To their surprise a menacing looking man, Kinpatsu Sakamochi, walks in with a special treat that brought silence into the room. ¿Let me explain the situation. The reason why you¿re all here today then . . . is to kill each other.¿ What? Students killing each other, how absurd! But that¿s not all. Get this, all the students are wearing metal collars 'these students aren¿t dogs!' that detonate a bomb if activated or meddled with. Given a daypack with a random weapon and supplies inside, these students are forced to participate in this game on a deserted island until the last person stands. There¿s more, if within 24 hours no one is killed, all the collars will be activated and there will be no winner. Shuya Nanahara 'Male student No. 15' is the popular star athlete in his class it¿s not uncommon for a girl to have a crush on him. Just like the rest of the class he thinks this game is ridiculous like some kind of prank. But merciless Sakamochi kills off two of the students in front of them, one of them being Shuya¿s best friend. ¿Everyone now knew, this was real. It was no mistake, nor was it a prank. They were going to be forced to kill each other.¿ Shuya vowed to seek revenge and not take part in such a game. He believed that the rest of the class wouldn¿t participate as well. Shuya Nanahara has a hard time understanding how friends could kill off each other. It just didn¿t seem possible. But who to really know these people he calls classmates? He just knows them from school. Can¿t he trust everyone? Only 40 students remaining . . . Takami writes this book in third person omniscient with a handful of dialogue to fill in the suspense. With blood filled action, and eye-catching events, it sent me watching my back and holding onto my book as I was reading. The detail and descriptive diction that is integrated into the story only elevates the horror of teenage students on the kill. This isn¿t your ordinary action book with superman to the rescue. Battle Royale is certainly ¿a Lord of the Flies for the 21st century.¿ I cannot stress enough of how much suspense gets me reading 10 times faster. Takami fills the book in with flashbacks to get the reader¿s into the student¿s lives, but once the scene shifts back into battle mode it always seems like the end. Can¿t you imagine, Gripping onto your gun or weapon with a stir of emotion? Who can you trust? Paranoia and traumatizing events hang these students from their sanity. Where can you hide? Who is my enemy? Who is your friend? In the end the only person you can really trust is yourself. Surely, this isn¿t a simple game of hide-and-seek. If you like suspenseful bloody action, these 616 pages is definitely worth your time. When I was reading, I was already growing contempt for Takami's made up fascist government. This is almost like a non-fictional trip to World War II. The book highlights the ideas of trust, betrayal, dealing with death, and the cruelty of survival. The game begins once you start reading . . .

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Hard to put down

This book is probably the best book i've ever read. And it's not like it's a hack and slash title either. You get to know pretty much everyone in this book and see what is going through their heads. This book is just like a roller coaster ride. So if you're into thrillers, check this bad boy out.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Amazing Read

This book was and sgtill is one of my favorites i read it when i was in the sixth grade and five years later it is still my favorite. it's a well writeing book and kept me on the edge of my seat i couldn't put it down and as soon as i began to read nothing could get me to put it down.

World shaking.

Imagine your self killing your classmates. Well, no need to imagine cause' Battle Royale will take you to another world. Battle Royale has a simple plot,and that is to escape the island. However, Due to the good character development, the whole book becomes unputdonwnable. I read The Hunger games before this. I must say that Battle Royale is better than The Hunger games.

Amazing book ...

I had seen the movie "Battle Royale" and had an interest in the book. As it usually happens, the movie doesn't even compare. Though the film is good, the level of character development in this book is outstanding. I became completely enthralled and felt such an attachment to the different people. I have read plenty of books, but this has to be in my top five. If you have seen the movie and liked it, or even if you just want a good read, please check into this book. You will not regret it. I cannot stop looking at the cover and thinking about the story - this book will stay with me for a long time, and I am sure the same will happen for you. Really, buy it, and make your friends read it as well. A great investment, and time very well spent.

Simply Genius

A class of junior high students is chosen by the government to forcibly fight each other in an evacuated island until one survivor is left. Some students hid in fear, while some committed suicide and among some¿.were willing to play the ¿game¿. Imagine your dearest friend pointing a gun mercilessly at you. Is he your friend? Or is he your enemy? Who can you trust? Battle Royale is a thriller packed with heart-stopping suspense. Takumi¿s descriptive details literally makes feel as you were slowly dying and suffering with the kids. His use of flashbacks brings the reader deeper into the student¿s lives. The tension of the novel casts a spell on the reader to keep reading to the end. At the end of each chapter, a remaining amount of students is reported which raises the intensity level in the novel. You¿re not only reading what the kids are doing to each other, but what you would do if you were in their position. From betrayal, gunfights, gore, death, Battle Royale has it all.

the perfect book!

i loved this book! it was amazing! it truly was the perfect book!

Astounding

This book is on my shelf of amazing works of literature. I have passed this book around to all my friends and regardless of background they have found it enjoyable. Buy this book, buy this book, buy this book. You will be glad that you did.

Best, Most Emotional Thrill ride I Have Ever Experienced

Simply amazing, EVERYONE SHOULD READ THIS!!!!!!! Even if you don't like books from this genre you have to read this. I think this book should be a required read for any American citizen. It has really given me a great idea of who to trust in life and why our world is so corrupt. This has left a HUGE impact on my life and I will read this book once every single year. Has outstanding character, plot, and setting. But whatever you do, DON'T READ THE MANGA VERSION FIRST!!!!! I believe that it completely destroys what the story is about and leads people to believe the wrong things this book is trying to teach. If you do read the book and enjoy it, give the movie a try before touching the manga, the movie has left out a lot of details, and has some flaws, but is still a good watch and brings the characters to life even more. The movie is a Japanese made and directed film and you may have to do some searching to find it. I suggest going onto www.watchmovies.net because you can just type in the name BATTLE ROYALE in the search box and you can watch the whole thing on there. If you have a Netflix account they have it on their DVD list and I would definently check it out. I sincerely hope you enjoy this and hope it leaves as much of an impact on you as it has left on me.

AMAZING

This book has opened my mind to so many things that was unseen to me before. After finishing this book, the things the government did was just an outrage. This is THE greatest book of all time. SHOGO FOREVER!!!

Battle Royale

This was one of the most intense novels I've ever read. Not one page was boring or seemed to drag on. The story line alone was action packed for me. The book didn't allow you to favor any characters.

A Battle To The Bookshelves

'Battle Royale' is one of the most outstanding novels I've ever read. It takes your imagination and digs deep to the core to tingle your fears and unleash your wildest dreams. From the moment I started the novel, I was hooked. It no where near compares to the movie, so I highly recommend reading the book prior to watching it. Koushun Takami is truly the Stephen King of Japanese literature. Amazing journey and a fantastic read.

Koushun Takami is the Japanese Stephen King

A very creative book that will fuel a twisted imagination, and make anyone else sick.

Battle Royale Takes The Lead In All Japanease Movies/mangas/novels

I've only gotten to pg 130 because it was currently taken from me .. But Still I got to say its one of the best japan novels I've ever read !This Shows all the in side story into the film of 2000 . What was really going on behind the doors of the battle field . The Movie is just half of the book it gets better and better . it keeps you guessing with Shuya and Noriko . so If you Got about 5 to 6 hours to spare go Ahead

Battle Royale is Amazing.

Battle Royale is a book that pushed the boundries of most other novels. I saw it as a mixture of 1984 by George Orwell, and Lord of the Flies by William Golding. I first read this when I was the same age as most of the characters so it hit me pretty hard back then. I just recentlt re read it and having been in some heavy duty literary classes now understand it even more. It's scary to think our world can one day end up like this but hopefully we can prevent this happening by being forewarned by these authors.

Bloody, but thats only one side of it

I, like some people, saw the movie first. I thought that the movie, even though in Japanese, was very good. I later read this book and it made me think the movie was crap! The author uses imagery to express the rage, betrayal, and even love that the characters feel. Along with an immense amount of gore, the book includes insight into human personality. Some of the teens break down while others rise up and try to protect themselves and their fellow classmates. For a simple premise, this story delivers a rich (and long) masterpiece of Japanese literature. A must read.

An intense thriller you don't want to miss

I read a lot of books every year, most of them Fantasy novels. A friend sent me Battle Royale for Christmas, and I have to say I was a bit nervous about reading it. It's not my typical genre--far outside of it, in fact--so I wasn't sure I'd like it. However, I now feel that Battle Royale was one of the best books I have ever read. The plotline is simple--a group of classmates who, due to a sinister game instituted by the government, must either kill one another or be killed. Throughout the story you meet differnt characters and have a look inside their heads at what they are thinking as they are forced to play the game. Each chapter ends with a statement recording the number of students left alive. This book is intense. I have never before had such a physical reaction to a book--my back is full of knots from the tension I felt as I read, and near the end my palms were literally sweating as I read what became of the characters. This book will keep you guessing until the very end--it is not predictable, regardless of the simplicity of the story. The psychology and idealogy imbedded within the book will make you think and perhaps alter your view of the government and especially the necessity of trust. I highly recommend this book. It is, at times, perhaps a bit gory 'though I didn't think it was overly so' and is not intended for younger readers, but the book is overall a worthwile read.

Awesome

Battle Royale is an amazing book which will keep you occupied from the beginning to the end.

A reviewer

this book is mind-blowing! its soooo awesome and so surprising! one of the best story lines i've ever read. i hope koushun takami writes another book, because even though nothing could beat battle royale, i'm sure his other work will be just as good. greatest ending to a book ever!!!