Scan barcode
excritos's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.75
Graphic: Blood, Suicide, Sexual violence, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Child death, Suicidal thoughts, Homophobia, Bullying, Body horror, Sexism, Rape, Physical abuse, Gun violence, Car accident, Child abuse, Drug use, Sexual assault, Murder, Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, and Death
rightwhrleftme's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
Graphic: Grief, Gun violence, Death, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Blood, Self harm, Violence, Body horror, Child death, Rape, and Gore
lexthe_siren's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Child death, Body horror, War, and Violence
suprconman99's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Some things, such as the generally misogynist and homophobic attitudes of even the “good” characters, have not aged particularly well. Whether these were intentional commentary on conservative Japanese culture or an attempt to realistically inhabit the mind of a teenage Japanese boy in the mid-to-late ‘90s, or a reflection of the author’s own unexamined biases, I don’t know. I doubt it’s the latter, though, as the author seems like a self-aware, reflective, and thoughtful enough fellow in the afterword of the ‘09 translation I read. Also, I just generally try to be charitable and extend the benefit of the doubt where possible. The characterization is also pretty shallow for the most part, although to be fair we’re dealing with a roster of like 40 characters.
All in all, this book mostly lived up to the hype by the end (aided in part by virtue of its stronger-than-expected closing chapters, beginning with the final chase/fight sequence on the island). I’d recommend to anyone looking for some thrilling genre fiction. It’s a big ol’ tome but the pacing will have the pages flying by once the action gets going.
Graphic: Child death, Gun violence, Murder, Suicide, Blood, Death, Violence, and Gore
Minor: Misogyny and Homophobia
parchmentdreams's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Pedophilia, Suicide, Blood, Bullying, Child death, Death, Body horror, Child abuse, Death of parent, Gun violence, Homophobia, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, Violence, Medical content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Suicidal thoughts
seventhcr0w's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Body shaming, Death, Addiction, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Suicide, Violence, Gore, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Blood, Child death, Cursing, Grief, Medical content, Misogyny, Murder, Rape, Torture, Gun violence, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Child death, Fire/Fire injury, and Sexual assault
Minor: Sexual content, Stalking, Homophobia, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Alcoholism, and Body shaming
wispy_reviews's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Battle Royale is the next step after Lord of the Flies; after you examine the cruelty of humans in a vacuum, you must examine our cruelty in the systems we’ve created ourselves. It’s so incredibly difficult to fix a broken system when people insist on participating in it, and “play the game.”
It was difficult to keep up with so many names, but that can be attributed to me being a westerner not accustomed to Japanese names. Even so the author did a great job with context clues, so even if you didn’t remember a character immediately he helps you with what they did previously.
What really blew me away was how effortlessly the narrative voice changed; we got a perfect psychological imprint of each character as they became the focus.
Graphic: Gore, Sexual assault, Blood, Sexual harassment, Murder, Child death, Pedophilia, Violence, Sexism, Sexual content, Gun violence, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Suicide, and Rape
perthalus's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
I’ve seen the film adapt more than once before, and reading the original book provided so many pieces of context and extra character bits that made reading it entirely worth it. Koushun Takami absolutely nails the action. Even knowing what happens doesn’t remove from the intensity and suspense provided by each encounter, and god, what a premise.
I especially love Kazuo Kiriyama’s gang, though I wish Kazuo himself got a little more background towards the end, but that may just be my bias talking. And I also love Shogo Kawada because… I don’t know, I just love him, okay? 🫶🏻 Now that I think about it, there isn’t a character I don’t really like, maybe besides Shinji, though even he has his moments. But Mitsuko, Kazuo, Shogo, Shuya, Hiroki, Chigusa, and Noriko are all characters I absolutely love.
I will say that the action can ride the edge between believable and ridiculous, especially when characters do somersaults mid-fight. And on top of that, Shinji’s computer jargon and his exposition on pre-established information made his chapters a little repetitive, but other than that I can’t pick out any glaring problems with the book or it’s story.
Overall, it’s a book that is still incredibly entertaining, shocking, and politically powerful as it was when it was first released, and it only made my appreciation grow for the story and the film adaptation.
Graphic: Gun violence, Murder, Death, Gore, Violence, Suicide, Misogyny, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Bullying, Cursing, and Blood
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Adult/minor relationship, Grief, Rape, Sexual assault, and Pedophilia
Minor: Suicide, Trafficking, Classism, and Homophobia
virgilsinferno's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Child death
Moderate: Pedophilia, Rape, and Child abuse
Minor: Homophobia
katndrsn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Classism, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Gun violence, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Physical abuse, Police brutality, and Violence
Moderate: Self harm, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, Rape, and Sexual violence
Minor: Suicide