Battle Royale: Remastered
Translated by Nathan Collins.
Koushun Takami’s notorious high-octane thriller is based on an irresistible premise: 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 one another until only one survivor is left standing.
Criticized as violent exploitation when first published in Japan — where it then proceeded to become 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. Made into a controversial hit movie of the same name, Battle Royale is already a contemporary Japanese pulp classic, now available in a new English-language translation.
Koushun Takami
Koushun Takami (born January 1969) is a Japanese author and journalist. Best known for his 1999 novel Battle Royale, which was later adapted into two live-action films, directed by Kinji Fukasaku, and three manga series.