This wonderful piece of dystopian fiction, from a Japanese perspective, has been touted as the Japanese Hunger Games. I prefer to compare it to Lord of the Flies.
More important, it is much longer and more satisfying than the Hunger Game series. I look forward to reading book two!
"Worse yet, it wasn't simply a mass execution. The students had to kill each other, competing for the throne of survivor. It was the most terrifying version of musical chairs imaginable. But . . . it was impossible to oppose the Program. It was impossible to protest anything the Republic of Greater East Asia did." Pg 43
". . . The hatchet was lodged in so deeply, it was stuck.
Shuya took a deep breath. Oh God.
Then he thought about it. No. What's this about God? Ms. Anno was a devoted Christian but no thanks to her faith in God she ended up getting raped by Sakamochi. Ah, praise the Lord.
Shuya felt another surge of anger." Pg 134
"'Exactly. That's why I think no one here really wants to kill anyone. I think it's because we're so terrified we become deluded that everyone else is out to kill us and so we resort to fighting. And in that state even if no one attacked, we might even end up attacking others on our own.'" Pg 157
"Shinji nodded and tried to write out the name of the fertilizer compound, but he didn't know how to spell it. He was a casualty of spellcheck. Anyway, what mattered was the molecular formula." Pg 316
"He couldn't blame Yutaka for doubting him. The path they'd taken here was covered with trees, both large and small. Even if they managed to drag the wire out while avoiding G=7 and tugged on it later, the wire might get caught. It would make for an odd-looking piece of outdoor contemporary art. 'This installation piece is gigantic, but five meters away it turn obscure. The piece addresses the delicate balance between nature and humans . . .'"
Pg. 354
"Shogo then continued,'What I mean is that, even a dumb ass like me can think everything's pointless. Why do I get up and eat? It all ends up shit anyway. Why am I going to school and studying? Even if I happen to succeed I'm going to die anyway. You wear nice clothes, you seek respect, you make a lot of money, but what's the point? It's all pointless. Of course, this kind of meaninglessness might suit this crappy nation. But . . . but, you see, we still have emotions like joy and happiness, right? They may not amount to much. But they fill up our emptiness. That's the only explanation I have."
Pg. 525
"But of course they're part of you now." Pg 616
Book 54
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