33 of 33 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Fantasy Novel, October 7, 2007
This review is from: Brave Story (Novel) (Hardcover)
A boy, whose family is in crisis, sets out on a journey into a fantastical world in order to change his destiny. Actually, there is a lot more to the book than this.
The lead character, Wataru, faces many different kinds of struggles. In addition to combating magical statues and demons, he also faces real psychological and moral dilemmas. Faced with two, complex worlds, Wataru frequently struggles to decide what is right and how he should proceed. It is easy to empathize with characters on both sides of many of this book's conflicts. As such, this complex book really makes you think.
In this book, there are both fantastical elements and real-world elements. This is what makes the book so remarkable. In fact, the first couple hundred pages of this weighty tome (the book itself is over 800 pages long) are set in the real world and deal primarily with Wataru's domestic crises as his family begins to fall apart. The first chunk of the book does have strong, very-important fantasy themes, but these are used largely for the benefit of telling Wataru's domestic story.
And then, once Wataru does enter and remain in the fantasy world, his real-world problems continue to plague him. The fantasy world, Vision, resembles the real world in many important respects.
In the beginning of the book, the fantasy world bleeds into the real world. In the rest of the book, the real world bleeds into the fantasy world.
I'm sure I'm making the book sound too dry. For most of the book, I was on the edge of my seat, racing through pages, seeing and experiencing the adventures Wataru faces. My heart was racing as Wataru barely survived his encounters with demons, magical statues, and the worshipers of the old God. This book is, for the large part, a truly fast read, and often it is quite gripping. I finished this 800 page behemoth in the course of a week.
I've heard people compare this book to books from the Harry Potter series. While there are numerous similarities, "Brave Story" is a far darker novel. I probably wouldn't have liked this book as much had it not been for some very dark, scary moments. I like those moments - they make the book seem more real and relevant. Much of the book isn't disturbing at all, but some of it really is. This is something to keep in mind.
I loved this book - sometimes-dark, it was always complex and gripping and had great characters and a wonderful fantasy world. A true must-read.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Outstanding, August 25, 2007
This review is from: Brave Story (Novel) (Hardcover)
This is a book that turned out to be a little different from my expectations. Judging from the cover, the book appears to almost be a children's story, or much lighter in tone. Unlike the book jacket, the first 200 pages of the book have almost nothing to do with the fantasy world of Vision... it is mostly grounded in the real world, where Waturu goes through daily life in modern Japan: days of school, times with his friend, and the collapse of his family and his parent's impending divorce.
This story struck me as an instant classic. I found it to be deeply moving; at times quite dark, yet also uplifting and inspiring. The characters are quite memorable, and you want to embrace them all. One of the things I found the most thought provoking is that all of the characters-- even the ones that do terrible things and could be considered the villains-- do things for reasons that can be readily understood and even sympathized with. When Wataru's parents talk of divorce, you can see how painful and touchy a subject it is, and why both sides want what they do. Neither side is completely right, neither side is completely wrong. The motivations and approaches of Wataru and Mitsuru are polar opposites, yet you sympatize with both.
This is a moving book, and has a deep undercurrent of complicated emotions. A very enjoyable read that I found very difficult to put down. I am very happy that I bought this book in hardcover, as I look forward to reading it again and again. An instant favorite.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Phenomenal read, August 30, 2007
This review is from: Brave Story (Novel) (Hardcover)
A very deceptive book that initially comes across as a typical 'save the magical world' novel but is actually far, far deeper and has incredible character development and emotional explanation. The characters, desite their fantastic background, appealed to my own emotions as they go through happy and sad times very similar to real life. A must-read to anyone.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
![[Start the discussion]](http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/x-locale/communities/discussion_boards/start-new-discussion-sec._V192250339_.gif){kind=small}
