Monday, November 3, 2014

Read This: Death Note by Tsugumi Ohba


            What if you found a notebook that could kill anyone? All you have to do is write their name down. You could even specify how they’d die. So long as you know their full, real name, no matter who they are, where they are, what they can do, you can kill them.
            If you’re Light Yagami, your answer would be “Create a perfect world… and kill everyone who stands in my way.”
            Death Note is a series about a brilliant young man, Light Yagami, finding what could be the ultimate weapon of destruction: a book that kills whoever’s name is written within. Though an intelligent, well-meaning youth with big hopes of making the world a better place, having so much power quickly sends Light down a path of destruction and entangles him in a game of cat and mouse with the world’s greatest detective.
            Having been around for a while now, Death Note is already well known among youth for its dark storyline, but there is more to the series than the macabre. The author is a clever planner who keeps the reader thrilled with fast paced mind games as the various characters race to outsmart each other, where the smallest advantage can mean life or death. Despite being aimed towards teen readers, Death Note is mature in its outlook on the impact of crime and fear on society, the meaning of justice, and the influence that power can have on the well intentioned.
            Only 12 issues long, Death Note is a short read, but one you won’t forget. It will keep you guessing from climax to climax, and force you to question how far you would go to make the world a better place.

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