Review for The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Publisher: Scholastic Inc. ®

Summery:

[From back cover]

Winning means fame and fortune. Losing means certain death. The Hunger Games have begun….

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.

Sixteen year old Katniss Everdeen regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister’s place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to death before—and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

Introduction:

Who hasn’t heard of The Hunger Games? If you haven’t, you must be living under a whopping big rock. It’s everywhere you go! From bookstores, to grocery stores, to TV and the Web, it’s like it’s stalking you. Back when this book started to get popular, I was sure it was going to be another Twilight Saga. Every book in the Young Adult genre seems to be trying to copy from it, and frankly, I’m getting tired of vampires and love triangles. The hype didn’t fade, however, and with the release of the movie, I was sure it was just another money making ploy to advertise a poorly written, cliché story about childish fantasies. I didn’t want to read the books, I didn’t want to see the movie, and the main reason was because of its popularity, and how fast it had seemingly gained that popularity. I was sure it was just a fad that was driving people crazy. Well, with that as my opinion, I was entirely shocked when I bought the silly thing. Maybe the cheap price had something to do with it, but whatever the reason, I actually picked it off the shelf and took it to the check-out counter. The next day I started reading it, and now, I tell you my thoughts!

Characters:

I found most of the characters intriguing. Katniss Everdeen was actually a very strong and intelligent character. I’ve found a lot of female leads in teen fiction to be lacking in the intelligence department, so Katniss was refreshing. She takes her little sister’s place when her name is drawn as the tribute for District 12. I commend her on that. An older sibling should do anything to protect their younger siblings. Peeta, who is the main male character, is very caring and sweet, a good balance for Katniss’ hardness. He’s also in love with Katniss, and during the Games, Katniss has to try and decide how she really feels about him. Fortunately, this story did not have the love-at-first-sight element to it. I thought that added more believability to the characters.

The secondary characters range from interesting and believable, to shallow and “just there.” There was Haymitch, who became Katniss’ and Peeta’s mentor when they arrived at the Capitol. He seemed like nothing more than a disgusting human being at the beginning, and I didn’t think I was going to care for him at all, However, I found as the story went on that I grew to like his gruffness and grizzly-like behavior, and I can understand how he became who he is. He also works hard during the story to keep Katniss and Peeta alive. Then there was Cinna, who was the one who worked to make Katniss presentable to the crowds at the Capitol, who actually enjoy the Games and treat it as a show. He became Katniss’ friend, and actually cared for her and worked to give her a chance of survival. I was kind of sad when his part in the book was over.

My Thoughts:

This book was actually a lot of fun to read. Definitely not what I was expecting when I first opened it. Most nights I stayed up until midnight (very late for me), turning page after page, eager to know what was going to happen. It has been a while since a story has kept me that involved and hooked. Suzanne Collins is a master as keeping the reader’s attention. The story was fast paced, and there wasn’t a dull moment, not even when she was explaining the history of this world she created. I wouldn’t say her writing was amazing however. The whole thing was very simple, so much so that I might have thought this book was written for younger children, except the content disproved that notion. That didn’t really annoy me though; it wasn’t so simple that I felt like it was talking down to me. What did annoy me about Suzanne Collins’ writing was the way she wrote long paragraphs of dialogue, and then at the very ends of these, state which character was speaking. There were a number of times I thought Peeta was talking, since he had been the last character mentioned, but then it turned out to be Katniss, or vise versa! That interrupted the flow of the story on a number of occasions for me. No, the writing could without doubt have been better.

Now, even though the story was intriguing and I enjoyed it immensely, there was a part in the story which I thought was just plain wrong: the killing of children. The youngest of the tributes was twelve, and she, along with others, was made to kill for someone else’s pleasure. I suppose it’s very reminiscent of Ancient Rome with their Coliseum. I don’t know why the author chose to have children fight, probably to evoke a more emotional response. That might be why the book is so popular. It’s horrifying to read that these people actually look forward to these deaths! I know this is the premise of the book, and I went in expecting it. I choose to view it as a warning to not allow our society to deteriorate that far. I’m hoping that in the next books, the characters fight to end the Hunger Games once and for all! I am planning on reading the rest of the trilogy; I did enjoy the first book after all.

Warnings:

There wasn’t any language in this book, or if there was, it was so minor and brief I didn’t notice it. Since the story is about killing, there are a number of very graphic and disturbing death scenes. Also, there are a few scenes of nudity, when Katniss is getting changed and prepared for the Games, and the character Haymitch drinks to excess. This is most certainly not a book that I would feel comfortable letting a child read. I have no idea how the movie presents these things, since I haven’t seen it, but violence in books is usually more intense. Depending on a child’s maturity, and what he or she can handle, my age rating may not be relevant to some. I am erring on the side of caution however, considering subject matter, and raising the age appropriateness above the preteen crowd it seems to be aimed for.

My Age Rating:  15 and up

Cya!