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Kōshun Takami

Nathan Collins

Battle Royale: Remastered (Battle Royale (Novel)) Paperback – April 1, 2014

by Koushun Takami (Author), Nathan Collins (Translator)

1,026 ratings

Part of: Battle Royale (Novel) (1 books)

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In a dystopian future Japan, forty-two junior high school students are outfitted with weapons and bid to kill one another until there is only one left standing.

Koushun Takami's notorious high-octane thriller envisions a nightmare scenario: a class of junior high school students is taken to a deserted island where, as part of a ruthless authoritarian program, they are provided arms and forced to kill until only one survivor is left standing. Criticized as violent exploitation when ﬁrst published in Japan—where it became a runaway best seller—Battle Royale is a Lord of the Flies for the 21st century, a potent allegory of what it means to be young and (barely) alive in a dog-eat-dog world.

Part of series

Battle Royale (Novel)
Print length

656 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Haikasoru
Publication date

April 1, 2014
Dimensions

5.25 x 1.8 x 8 inches
ISBN-10

9781421565989
ISBN-13

978-1421565989
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About the Author

Koushun Takami was born in 1969 in Amagasaki near Osaka and grew up in Kagawa Prefecture of Shikoku (the fourth largest island in Japan), where he currently resides. After graduating from Osaka University with a degree in literature, he worked for a newspaper company, Shikoku Shinbun, for five years, reporting on politics, police reports, and economics. Also, he attended Nihon University’s liberal arts correspondence-course program and acquired an English teaching certificate for junior high and high school.

Battle Royale, completed after Takami left the newspaper company, was his debut work and his only novel published so far. With its publication in Japan in 1999, it received widespread support and became a best seller. Battle Royale was serialized as a comic, made into a feature film in 2000, and has been translated into more than ten languages. Since its initial release, Battle Royale continues to be a cult favorite in Japan and internationally.

In 2012, Battle Royale: Angels' Border, a spin-off manga scripted by Koushun Takami, was released.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ 1421565986
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Haikasoru; Translation edition (April 1, 2014)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 656 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9781421565989
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1421565989
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.33 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.25 x 1.8 x 8 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #25,756 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #363 in Dystopian Fiction (Books)
- #976 in Science Fiction Adventures
- #3,715 in Suspense Thrillers

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4.8 out of 5

1,026 global ratings

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Chrissy B

Hunger Games was boring, Battle Royal is not

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 12, 2019

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I picked up this book to read as a recommendation from a friend. I mentioned that I like the idea of “Hunger Games”, but found the movie to be boring and lost interest of it half way through. “Battle Royal” to me is a combination of “Hunger Games”, “Lord of the Flies”, “Surviving the Game”, and the “Running Man” blended into one epic story.

“Battle Royale” starts off with 40-9th grade students who are captured by the government and are taken away to a secluded island. They are instructed to play a game, and are sent out into the island and have to hunt each other down until there is only one survivor left. The winner gets to live a rewarding life.

As a fan of horror/thriller books, this book surprisingly satisfied my interest in those genres. Violence is definitely what you get, and a lot of it. Some battles are grotesque and some are simple. It really brings to light what kind of personality changes can happen to someone when they are facing death when given options of survival.

At first I was intimidated by the size of this book. It’s a little over 600 pages and double the size of a standard paperback book. The author did a great job of not being overly descriptive in each scene keeping the story a fast paced read. To me, a good chunk of the story could have been shortened. Times when characters reminisce of the past prior to the game did not apply much to the story, and conversations between characters got a little too repetitive. Moments like that could be pace read through in a page or two and you didn’t feel stuck with nonsense rambling-on as senseless filler.

Starting the book was a little difficult. As an American, I had difficulties being able to instantly recognize characters by their names, not knowing which names were of male or female context. Sometimes characters are referred to by their last name through the story, and the chart in the first few pages made a great referral. The students drop so fast through the book, that you really don’t have to keep track of whos’ who through the whole story with the exception of a handful of characters.

A lot of the book is predictable. I got through 1/4th of the book and was able to foresee the ending. Even the actions/ideas/situations that some of the students carried out were obvious to happen. There weren’t very many twists to the book, but this did not deter me from continuing on reading. The adventure as a whole story kept me enthralled. Action, violence, humor, betrayal, conniving, compassion, strategy and intelligence are riddled throughout the whole book.
I absolutely would recommend this book to people who enjoy the horror/thriller genre. I am happy that I have another great book to add to my collection.

28 people found this helpful

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Ruth

Excellent Book But It is Dark

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 7, 2015

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This is a dark book. I mention that in advance because I don't usually read fiction this dark. But this was a referral from someone I knew and liked, so I bought a copy. This English translation, by the way, is excellent.

The basic setup of this book is that a 9th grade class has been selected to go to an island and fight until only student is alive. They are given collars that track their every move, and the people in charge can hear everything they're saying. Sections of the island are off limits at different times, and if they happen to be in an off-limit area, the collar will explode, thereby killing them. So they have to constantly be on the move.

Three main characters emerge in the story, though we are given pretty much the point of view and background of every character in it. This can slow down some of the reading, even though I will admit it made for some heart wrenching moments and really brought home some of the horror of an entire class being told they must kill each other. This is a violent book. The author goes into detail over the way everyone dies.

But that being said, there is a spark of hope in the middle of all the horror that takes place. This emerges best in the three main characters, two boys and a girl, who are desperately trying to find a way to stay alive and escape the island. I won't give the ending away, but it was one of the best endings I've ever read in a book. There was a great twist, and though I can't say this book gave me a warm and fuzzy feeling, it did satisfy me. I'd recommend this to people who are okay with reading darker fiction. I wouldn't recommend it to those who prefer light reading.

12 people found this helpful

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Heather Smith

All I can say is ..."wow!"....

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on April 6, 2005

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I purchased this novel because I wanted to see the movie. The movie is unavailable in the United States (not banned, as we are led to believe) and I wanted to see what the controversy was all about.

We all know the premise of the story, so I won't go over it here. I will say that I could not put this book down. It almost immediately dives into the action and almost never lets up. It is bloody, brutal, and merciless as it hacks away one 9th grader after another. This is where the American controversy lies: Do we really want to see kids this young butchering each other? College kids, yes. Older teenagers, sure. But Junior High kids? The first school shooting after the movie is released in America, and the lucky production company will have a lawsuit on their hands faster than you can say Columbine.

After I read the book, I did make it a point to obtain a copy of the movie. You can spend about 30$ on a region 0, NTSC format DVD, that will play on most standard US DVD players. It was awsome but the backstory varied greatly from the novel.

In reference to a review where the dialogue between students is characterized as elementary, the thoughts and actions of 15 year olds in a sheltered society should be elementary. Up until they were forced to fight and die, the most important thing in their world was probably who had a crush on who. It's part of their youthful innocence or immature view of the world.

And maybe the ending was a bit predictable, I mean you know who the main characters are from Chapter 1. But the book is so good, that in my mind, I'm thinking "who cares?"! Nothing is perfect, and opinions are like (you know whats) - everybody has one.

Just get the book. Chances are if you were interested enough to look up Battle Royale on Amazon, you will probably love it.

10 people found this helpful

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Rory

Very good read.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on January 3, 2019

Verified Purchase

So my son and all his friends are into Fortnite right now. Some of the parents have been saying 'it's all about the Hunger Games!'. I thought, hold on, no it's not, it's about Battle Royale, a Japanese film I watched some years ago. Thought I would give the book a go given I'd read Hunger Games. This is a very well written and translated book. I read lots of books, as you do. This is a big book (think Moby Dick size). Awesome. Page turner. Yes, it's nasty. Yes, it's gruesome. It's also very philosophical. Yes, it's very real and relative to the modern day 21st Century. Cracking read highly recommended.
It is a modern day Lord of The Flies with older children, weapons and a 1984 'big brother mentality'. It is William Golding, George Orwell and Koushun Takami rolled into one. The Hunger Games is just a copy. This is the real thing.

15 people found this helpful

James Tormey

Ultra Violent but a great read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on October 15, 2020

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Whether or not Battle Royale was the inspiration for The Hunger Games is a debate that continues to rage. For what it's worth I believe Suzanne Collins when she says she had never heard of the book or film, after all it was "banned" in the states until AFTER the first Hunger Games book had been written.... so, it is believable enough.

The films are where I jump in. I watched them repeatedly - despite this I didn't realise they had been based on a book. I then tried to find copies of it to no real avail, trying every now and again over the years. It turned out this was a blessing in disguise as the better version of the book (it says Remastered on it) came out later - and this is the version I read. I highly recommend that this is the version you seek out. I have been told on a couple of occasions (and read online) that the original English version of the book is a more difficult read due to bad translation and formatting - probably because it was a rush job after the movie had been so successful internationally.
Anyway, Battle Royale is like The Hunger Games in some respects except the violence is ramped ALL THE WAY TO 11! There are several differences throughout between the book and the film but nothing too out of the ordinary. The premise remains the same. The book is set in an alternate Japan of 1997. In this world Japan won World War Two. The country is strongly controlled by the government and anything "immoral" is banned (immoral things include rock music, and mostly anything American). 50 classes of students around Japan are selected to battle their classmates with only one survivor emerging from each group. To be clear, they are not battling students from other places, they only fight the other kids they have been going to school with. That's right - they get to kill their friends, boyfriends, girlfriends and..... enemies. All in the name of battle preparedness.
Reading it, it is easy to see why it took three years to go from completion to publication. It is overly violent, and highly critical of certain government ideals. I guess that is why I thoroughly enjoyed it. I highly recommend you check it out.

One person found this helpful

Alan Adale

The OG Hunger Games

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on December 15, 2021

Verified Purchase

This was a recommendation from someone who knew I'd read and enjoyed the Hunger games.
It's quite telling that this seems to be a popular title so many years past publication in the current climate. It's written in a style which somehow hasn't aged and although this is the translation I believe it hasn't lost any of its potency.

The story is simple but effective and the way it's written means you'll kept guessing. More of a caution retail than near future sci-fi I would love to see more from this alternative universe.

I read this over a weekend so it's perfectly doable for busy professionals.

Bishmanrock

Brilliant read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on November 19, 2013

Verified Purchase

Battle Royale is a book set in an alternate timeline where Japan has become a militaristic state ruled by the all great Dictator. Aside from outlawing rock and roll, Japan has a bunch of crazy new laws, one being the Battle Royale act, where students are abducted and forced to fight to the death as part of a 'game'. This is claimed to be for the greater good of the state, and the winner gets a life pension and an autograph from the Dictator himself!

The book follows one of these games, from the students being abducted through the three days of fighting (after which, if there is more than one student left standing, the collars attached to the surviving students explode!). The novel primarily follows Shuya and Noriko who team up with a shady Shogo hoping to overthrow the game, but the story also frequently delves into the affairs of the other students. It's a bloody book, lots of gore, but never glorified. The message of oppression hangs throughout the entire novel.

Brilliant read. The style of writing feels a bit basic at first, but you get to grips with it and get sucked in. Definitely worth experiencing and infinitely better than the film.

2 people found this helpful

Sarugumo

Battle Royale

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on August 12, 2008

Verified Purchase

'Battle Royale' is an excellent Japanese novel that is both gripping and original. I won't describe the storyline as the amazon page has a pretty good synopsis. I will say that from the first page you will be hooked and you will find yourself returning to this book at every free moment to see how the story develops. It is a simple premise, superbly executed (excuse the pun!) and you will become completely immersed in the mindsets of the various characters and how they behave. This book, like the film, is deemed controversial and yet I can't see any real reason why. It is a violent novel, but no more so than others out there, and it has a great many redeeming qualities compared to those other pulp fiction horror books. The translation is very good, so much so that you barely realise you are reading a translation at all, the ultimate goal I would have thought. This book is so easy to read that the 613 pages will fly by in no time at all. The ending, considering the subject matter, manages to leave you satisfied and with an adrenaline rush as well. One of the better modern fiction books i've read in a while and well worth a read.

Feel free to check out my blog which can be found on my profile page.

One person found this helpful

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