The dytopian novel follows Katniss Everdeen in the nation of Panem - an area that was once called North America. Kat finds herself volunteering as tribute for the Hunger Games, an annual battle where 24 children between the ages of twelve and eighteen fight to the death until one victor is left. While I felt the start of the novel was a bit slow, I became very interested in the novel once the battle began. I was enthralled with the details of Kat's survival tactics and strategies; I wanted to see her succeed. Collins does a fantastic job roping the reader in to this disturbing and violent world. (I should also mention she had me thinking about my own lack of survival skills/general outdoorsy-ness and the fact that I would never survive in the Hunger Games. I can't even watch the Outdoor Channel without wanting to cry.) Throughout the continuous action of the latter half of the novel I was really rooting for Kat. I did, however, have one gripe with the last 50 pages of the book. I felt like Collins did such a good job creating this dystopian world where struggling to survive is the utmost priority, and suddenly a love story is thrown into the mix. It seemed like Collins felt she had to incorporate a romantic angle and I could have done without it.
With that being said, I did have a lot of fun with this one and I'd recommend this to anyone looking for a little escapism in a novel they won't want to put down. I'm interested to find out what develops in the second novel and I'm really looking forward to the movie.
Publisher: Scholastic, 2008
Don't worry, you're not the last one to read this. I haven't yet, although I'm thinking I should give in. Your review makes it sound entertaining and worth a read.
ReplyDeleteYou should give it a try. It's a quick read so if you don't like it, at least you didn't waste a week reading it.
DeleteOh, but wait until you get to the second book! The love story stuff makes much more sense then - and seems to fit better within the series. As you say, it seems kind of thrown in there (like, "crap, my readers are going to want some romance - it can't ALL be gore and death and more gore"), but later on the love story becomes much more a part of the games.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you enjoyed this. I'm psyched for the movie - hoping that it's one that makes its way to the Tirana theaters.
Ok that makes me feel a little better. I guess I would have preferred each book stand on it's own, regardless of the fact that it's a series. But still, thanks for the heads up!
DeleteI hope the movie makes it to the theaters by you! I am so pumped.
I did love The Hunger Games, BUT I did more or less ignore the whole romantic/love triangle-y thing- I was just like THIS GIRL IS AWESOME and was all Team Katniss about it. ALSO I'm very excited about the movie, because even as I was reading the book I was like 'hmmm... this would be so visually appealing..." So, yes, excitement!
ReplyDeleteAlso, I demand that Red reads this. I mean, really!
She is a pretty kick-ass girl - way more hardcore than I'll ever be.
DeleteI think the love story was necessary in creating the scene at the end of the Games with Katniss and Peeta, otherwise, why would he agree? It also is Important to the plot in the next two books, but without being the whole plot, if you know what I mean. At least you will when you read the other books. I'm sorry if I'm being vague, I'm trying not to give away anything.
ReplyDeleteAlso, Red, read it.
But then why did they have to have it end the way they did? Why couldn't Katniss have won on her own? I just felt like the love story felt contrived. Thank you for not giving anything away I really do appreciate it :)
DeleteHaven't read this even though I've been meaning to, and likely won't get around to it for a while - I'll probably just cave, see the movie, and call it a day. Good to see a review though. :)
ReplyDeleteQuestion: commentary on reality tv/exploitation tv? Are the games televised? - I had assumed so based on the movie trailer. The trailer reminded me so much of Atwood's The Year of the Flood, where instead of jails they just throw convicts into a 24/7 kill-or-be-killed reality tv show. Similar?
Yes the games are televised which is actually part of the reason the games happen in the first place. It's a way for the Capitol remind its citizens they can't escape the control of their own government, that they are really never safe from its rule. It also makes for interesting dynamics in the games themselves, as the Capitol tries to make for the most entertaining "show".
DeleteAs far as similarities to The Year of the Flood - there are definitely parallels but YOTF is so much deeper and metaphorical, whereas Hunger Games is as straightforward as you can get. They both challenge authoritarianism and warn against the idea that this dystopian world may be a little closer than we think.
I'm mid way through the series at the moment; just reviewed this. I completely agree - the story could easily have done without the love angle.
ReplyDeleteOther than that though I really liked the book!
DeleteI read this one in about one afternoon - hard to put down, but the intensity totally gave me nightmares after! I thought it was entertaining and pretty well done for a young adult series; the dystopian angle kept me thinking about it for a long time after finishing in the same way that The Handmaid's Tale did.
ReplyDeleteYes I read this in 24 hours - it's such a fast read. I didn't think too much of The Handmaid's Tale while reading it though. Other than the fact that they are both dystopians I didn't find many similarities.
DeleteWoooooo! You liked it!!!!! I was really so curious to see what you would think. I hope you get to read Catching Fire, too. Mockingjay... meh. Skippable. But Catching Fire is awesome :)
ReplyDeleteYes I liked it A LOT! I do plan on reading Catching Fire - I've got it at home but I'm taking a small break to read some other books before I dive into it :)
DeleteThe more I gain perspective about the story, the more I like it. Yeah, the romance stuff is stupid and not well implemented, but Katniss is a commendable YA character and Suzanne Collins can write as long as she doesn't venture into mushy stuff.
ReplyDeleteKatniss is super hardcore and all-around awesome. Are you going to see the movie?
DeleteHeh, no. I like Jennifer Lawrence, but I'll go watch something else like THE GREY for example, which I haven't seen yet.
DeleteThe Grey looks good. I'm totally going to see The Hunger Games though. He looks awesome. I think Jennifer Lawrence was a good casting call for Kat.
DeleteI read this before I started blogging. I remember reading reviews of it once I started blogging and everyone was obsessed with the love triangle thing and that was so strange to me. I didn't see that as the focus at all! I'm planning on rereading this one in March before seeing the movie.
ReplyDeleteAnd here I thought I was the last one to finally read this! Like you, though, I was pleasantly surprised, and powered through it in a few hours. I haven't read the second and third (yet, though I'm sure I will), but I'll definitely be seeing the movie...
ReplyDelete