The Targeted Town (The Case Notes of Telepathy Girl Ran)

ねらわれた街 テレパシー少女「蘭」事件ノート (nerawareta machi , The Targeted Town:The Case Notes of Telepathy Girl Ran, 1999) is the first in a series of children's books by ASANO Atsuko (あさのあつこ). The main character, Ran (蘭), is a thirteen year old girl just starting middle school; and the book is clearly aimed at children about that age. In many ways it is very reminiscent of Japanese popular television, particularly anime or dramas aimed at teenagers. Not surprisingly it too has been made into an anime series, by NHK in 2008.

Ran and her family, mother and father and older brother Rin (凜), live in a small but growing town. Ran already has a boyfriend, the quiet Rui (留衣), whom she has known since they were small children. She is looking forward to everything in her new school life. Then on the way to school, she hears a mocking voice inside her head.

Haha.

 Just next to her she heard a laughing voice, a tiny laughing voice.

Ran turned around.

The room was filled with the the light flowing in from the window. The cats Kishou and Tenketsu were sleeping in the bright spring sunlight. There was nobody there.

As the day progresses, she hears the voice again, now talking to her clearly, and she identifies the 'speaker' as the new student Midori (翠), who seems set to become Ran's personal enemy. After an initial confrontation however, she finds that Midori has been seeking her, having come to her town after sensing another person with strong telepathic powers in it. Midori's parents have effectively rejected her, unable to accept her powers. Ran, more at ease in her home life and confident that her family would still accept her, makes friends with Midori. There is however a real enemy at work in the town. A variety of apparently isolated incidents all have in common that people (and animals) suddenly act out of character. It seems there is someone else with psychic powers behind it all.

The mystery is one of those affairs where there's really only one suspect, though just what the culprit is after leaves some room for deduction or speculation. In general as far as plot is concerned, the book runs a very conventional path, with a thin emotional story progressing in tandem with a thin mystery. Probably the book is best seen as establishing the characters, in particular Ran, Midori and Rui, for later appearances. In the final confrontation, it is Midori, rather than Ran, who is the detective. Ran's role, from this book at least, looks to be more one of emotional guidance.

What I said about the vivid but simple style of Battery applies here too. The story here feels more conventional than that book. It looks like it is meant to be something lighter, mostly humorous outside of a few confrontation scenes. It is also more eventful and progresses a lot more purposefully.

Battery

I started this blog on June 23rd last year. So this post marks a full year of posting, not very much of it in the last months. That's likely to continue (or get worse) for the next few months, as I struggle to meet a work deadline. For now, here's the next review.

バッテリー (Battery, 1996) is the first in a series of six children's novels of the same title by あさのあつこ (ASANO Atsuko, born 1954). I haven't read Battery II-VI, published from 1998 to 2005, so I don't know how the story goes on from here. There's a film with the same title from 2007 and a television series from 2008; but I haven't seen them and don't know whether they're based on the whole series or only part. The first book is structured as a complete narrative, with a ring composition motif in the titles of the first and final chapters; but a lot of elements of the story are still only slightly developed at the end of the book. American readers will probably recognise the use of the word "battery" in the title, which according to Wikipedia, "refers collectively to the pitcher and the catcher" in a baseball team. I'm English, and I don't know much about baseball. So I can't say how well it's portrayed.

The book follows twelve year old Takumi (巧), who had been the star pitcher in his primary school team, as his family moves to a new town, over a few weeks of the spring holiday before he starts middle school. Takumi is the book's main character, convinced of his own ability as a pitcher, and with no interest in anyone around him (almost every chapter has him saying, "As if that matters" or "What's that got to do with me?" more than once). Takumi's family are returning to their home town. His father has been transferred there after becoming ill from overwork in his previous position. They are moving in with Takumi's maternal grandfather. Takumi is happy about this, as his grandfather was very active in baseball. His mother is less happy. She had felt that her father neglected her for sports, and in reaction had married a man with no interest in baseball. In particular she is worried that he will involve her younger son, Seiha (清波). Seiha had been seriously ill when he was younger, and his mother now treats him over-protectively. Seiha wants to play baseball too; but Takumi is hardly willing to acknowledge his existence. (It isn't clearly stated, but I think it's implied that the family neglected Takumi when Seiha was sick, and that Takumi resents him.) Beyond the family, the most important character is Gou (豪), like Takumi a boy about to move up to middle school, and a baseball catcher. Takumi is relentlessly concentrated on his own achievements. Gou is more easy going and kinder, noticing the feelings of those around him.

The story follows Takumi's interactions with his family and with Gou and other baseball playing boys. The narrative and dialogue style is simple but lively, painted in a few bright colours. Much of the narrative follows what is going on inside Takumi's head. His thoughts tend to go round in circles, which is realistic, but a little wearying to read. The story progresses (not very fast) through conversations, where everyone brings out into the open underlying issues without much reserve, but without ever getting to any resolution either.