The Hunger Games
In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by 12 outlying districts. The Capitol keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.
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If this is a young adult book I can't imagine what Ms. Collins could come up with for an adult crowd. It was full of adventure from the onset. An incredible book- I can hardly wait to read something else by her.
I'll be honest -- I was extremely hesitant to pick this book up. The last time I picked up something super popular, it was Twilight and I got burned so hard I think I'll be wary for the rest of my life. But I read and loved Suzanne Collins' other series, The Underland Chronicles, so finally I caved and went ahead and read The Hunger Games.
First of all, I did find it an enjoyable book. It wasn't the best book I've ever read, but it I did get an inkling of where she was going with the plotline, but that may just be that I'm familiar with her writing (normally I don't make a point of trying to see ahead -- I just let it come).
Second, Katniss. I thought that Katniss was hard and calculating without being unlikable. I found myself rooting for her. I thought her logic was realtively sound. She did what she had to do -- the fact that she never got a chance to really kill someone full of hate and rage doesn't mean she's weak. In fact, it's more realistic to think that in a large arena with 24 competitors, she wouldn't really meet much of anybody if she wasn't trying to seek them out and if she was playing defensively, not offensively, merely trying to stay alive. She was mostly trying to hunt squirrels, not people.
Thirdly, Peeta. Damn I feel bad for him. He's just mister nice guy, and the only reason Katniss ever really helps him or teams up with him is still basic survival. If they say a team can win, then by god she's gonna team up. Maybe she does kind of begin to maybe sort of think about him differently by the end, but it's kind of too late. Her overwhelming need for survival has crushed any chance they have of romance in this book. It's just another thing the Capitol has cheapened and ruined.
Fourthly, the world. It's true, Suzanne Collins doesn't go into much depth about what really happened, what's outside of Panem, or what the other districts are like. But why would she? She's telling this from Katniss's perspective, and Katniss can only guess at things from what white-washed version she's been told by the authorities over the years. As to Katniss's time in the Capitol merely being the author's princess wish fulfillment or some other nonsense, I would say to those people that they missed perhaps the whole point of the book. Katniss is almost completely trapped, and the only recourse she has is to win the Games. She does not like anything they do to her, she despises the people (and frequently doesn't even view them as people), and even though the food is delicious she can't help thinking about how many people it would feed back home or how it will help her survive later.
Finally, to those people who think they are so superior and have figured everything out about this book, it's author, and it's world -- give it a rest. We get it, you read "real" books, you have a basic prejudice against teen/youth fiction, and you are unimpressed. I think perhaps you went into it thinking in such a way, and thus failed to really think about what Collins was trying to get across. I feel she was trying to warn about the dangers of survivalism and complacency, and I think that this future is just possible enough to be terrifying. I respect your opinion but would ask that you respected mine as well.
Lastly, I thought Brave New World was contrived, repetitive, and overly indulgent. Just because everyone says it's classic literature doesn't mean it's for everyone, or that it merits every fawning thing everyone's ever said about it. Having said that, I think the Hunger Games is worth reading and thinking about.
Beat that with a stick.
First of all, I did find it an enjoyable book. It wasn't the best book I've ever read, but it I did get an inkling of where she was going with the plotline, but that may just be that I'm familiar with her writing (normally I don't make a point of trying to see ahead -- I just let it come).
Second, Katniss. I thought that Katniss was hard and calculating without being unlikable. I found myself rooting for her. I thought her logic was realtively sound. She did what she had to do -- the fact that she never got a chance to really kill someone full of hate and rage doesn't mean she's weak. In fact, it's more realistic to think that in a large arena with 24 competitors, she wouldn't really meet much of anybody if she wasn't trying to seek them out and if she was playing defensively, not offensively, merely trying to stay alive. She was mostly trying to hunt squirrels, not people.
Thirdly, Peeta. Damn I feel bad for him. He's just mister nice guy, and the only reason Katniss ever really helps him or teams up with him is still basic survival. If they say a team can win, then by god she's gonna team up. Maybe she does kind of begin to maybe sort of think about him differently by the end, but it's kind of too late. Her overwhelming need for survival has crushed any chance they have of romance in this book. It's just another thing the Capitol has cheapened and ruined.
Fourthly, the world. It's true, Suzanne Collins doesn't go into much depth about what really happened, what's outside of Panem, or what the other districts are like. But why would she? She's telling this from Katniss's perspective, and Katniss can only guess at things from what white-washed version she's been told by the authorities over the years. As to Katniss's time in the Capitol merely being the author's princess wish fulfillment or some other nonsense, I would say to those people that they missed perhaps the whole point of the book. Katniss is almost completely trapped, and the only recourse she has is to win the Games. She does not like anything they do to her, she despises the people (and frequently doesn't even view them as people), and even though the food is delicious she can't help thinking about how many people it would feed back home or how it will help her survive later.
Finally, to those people who think they are so superior and have figured everything out about this book, it's author, and it's world -- give it a rest. We get it, you read "real" books, you have a basic prejudice against teen/youth fiction, and you are unimpressed. I think perhaps you went into it thinking in such a way, and thus failed to really think about what Collins was trying to get across. I feel she was trying to warn about the dangers of survivalism and complacency, and I think that this future is just possible enough to be terrifying. I respect your opinion but would ask that you respected mine as well.
Lastly, I thought Brave New World was contrived, repetitive, and overly indulgent. Just because everyone says it's classic literature doesn't mean it's for everyone, or that it merits every fawning thing everyone's ever said about it. Having said that, I think the Hunger Games is worth reading and thinking about.
Beat that with a stick.
Decided to pick up this series over Christmas break, it's been one that I had planned to read for a long time. Finished this in three days. I adored it. Couldn't put it down, and I can already see the strategic and beautifully thought out plot. I love how realistic of a character Katniss is; many times, there is an emphasis that she doesn't know who she is. And you aren't supposed to know at sixteen years old. Now she has all this added pressure, from both the Capitol and the people she loves, to decide or else. Peeta is a wonderfully genuine character as well. It was every bit exciting, sad, and all that's in between.
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