This week for Anime Sunday I’m covering an Anime series that was adapted from an excellent Japanese novel, now if only it got translated into English I’d be even more excited. It’s Shinsekai Yori, or From the New World in English!

Plot Synopsis: The story is set in Japan a millennium from now. Six children—Saki, Satoru, Maria, Mamoru, Shun, and Reiko—have been born and raised in a tranquil town, Kamisu’s 66th district, that can be described as a utopia overflowing with water and green foliage. The world is ruled by people who have the “cursed power” or the “gods’ power” of telekinesis (呪力 juryoku).

Plot: The plot is fairly disturbing, and is probably saying something about society and how we treat others. That said if you can’t deal with that, you are missing out on a great story that is very satisfying. I absolutely loved all the twists and turns as we find out how this new world came to be.

Characters: Saki is the main character out of the six mentioned above, although they are all fairly important to the story. I actually like how they deal with sexuality in this series, as it doesn’t feel overt or overdone. It just is and that is great.

Art: The art for this series is amazing, it was what got me into watching this series in the first place, but I was surprised at how amazing it became over the course of the series.

Music: In a departure from the standard in Japan for Anime, Shinsekai Yori doesn’t have an Opening theme. It does have an excellent pair of Ending themes though, and the soundtrack is absolutely amazing.

Overall: If you haven’t watched this series yet, you really need to. It’s an amazing series.

For those who like: Amazing plot, Great Characters, Incredible artwork, Fantastic musical score.

Not for those who don’t like: Any of the above, but can you really hate all of that?