The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
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Book Reviews of The Hunger Games
Book Review: What an entertaining and simultaneously disturbing novel!
Summary: 5 Stars
Meet Katniss Everdeen, a 16 year-old female who lives with her younger sister, Prim, and their mother. Katniss has had an unfortunately difficult life but she has made the best of it. She lives in District 12, the final district of Panem. It is the Coal producing district, and she lost her father, a coal miner, in a mine disaster, years earlier. Panem arose out of what remained of North America after natural and man-made disasters destroyed it. As with many post-apocalyptic tales, rebellions occurred against the powers-that-be, otherwise known as the Capitol. During the uprisings, District 12 was defeated and District 13 was destroyed.
In order for the 12 districts to always remember who holds the power, the Capitol began an annual event called The Hunger Games. Every year, each district produces one girl and one boy (ages 12 through 18, randomly drawn) to fight in the Games. The 24 tributes are taken to the Capitol and enjoy a short week of simple training, eating like kings, and attending events and interviews. Then, they are thrown into the vast outdoor arena to fight for their lives, as the Hunger Games has only one winner.
As you can probably guess, Katniss is the tribute for District 12, along with Peeta Mellark, the town baker's son. They are whisked away to the Capitol and treated like royalty. It becomes apparent that Katniss may stand a chance in the Games when she proves to the Gamemasters that she possesses great hunting skills. After all, she has been keeping her family from starvation for years by killing game and gathering vegetation (illegally) in the Seam of District 12.
While Katniss and Peeta are from the same District, it is no secret that they will eventually face one another as enemies. Peeta is very kind, but Katniss vows not to allow him to weasel his way into her heart. Peeta surprises her though, on many levels and in many ways, throughout the book. Does he eventually weasel his way in? Can he be trusted in such a dire situation?
The characters in this novel are very realistic as they sympathize with others and form alliances and friendships even though they face overwhelming odds. All 24 tributes have some sort of page time, some way more than others. The plot is high intensity, very dramatic, deeply emotional and completely engrossing! Katniss is courageous, intelligent, skilled, wily, and compassionate. Peeta is kind, loyal, and brave, but is not on an equal playing field with Katniss' skills. Peeta grew on me. I didn't have much draw towards him through much of the book, but he won me over at the #7 quote below.
The mutations of animals that you come across in this world are interesting, freaky and vile! The Capitol bio-engineered certain species for their own purposes - spying, physical damage, etc - and they play serious roles in this story. The mutants at the end of the book completely horrified me and I wonder if we will learn more about them.
There are a few twists at certain times in the books. One is very obvious, in my opinion, but the one at the end snuck up on me! It is an ugly twist that will make you gasp, and the outcome of that event sends us flying into the second book, Catching Fire.
Conclusion: 5 WHOLE STARS! What an entertaining and simultaneously disturbing novel! While the plot has been done before (The Game, Battle Royale), it does not take away from the emotional intensity you will find yourself feeling page after page! It is nothing short of fantastic. I have yet to speak to a book blogger who did not rave about this trilogy
Book Review: Wasn't going to give into the hype... but I'm sure glad I did
Summary: 5 Stars
Let's pretend for a minute or two that it is the distant future right now, perhaps around 2065 or something like that. The United States of America has been completely destroyed and is now taken over by Panem, a new country divided into districts. Every year comes this big event that is the most watched nationwide (and worldwide) event on TV: The Hunger Games, an event that lasts for a few days and where people have but one objective: to kill each other until they survive. Now wouldn't that be something?
I wasn't going to give into the hype, especially since a lot of the time, things get overhyped and when you read them they turn out to be unsatisfactory as best. Even moreso, I was afraid to read it when I saw the praise from Stephenie Meyer on the front over, seeing as she did the same thing with that godawful book "City of Bones" (It's no surprise, seeing as she wrote one of the most mind-bogglingly awful franchises ever, which would be "Twilight"). But then again, don't judge a book by it's cover. And upon reading the story, I thought it would be a cheap Battle Royale ripoff, which has a similar plot (people kill each other until one is left alive), but I gave in anyways after a friend strongly recommended it. He was practically glowing when he told me how good it was. "Alright, I guess", said I.
I rented this book from the Library yesterday and managed to finish it all in 4 hours (I'm a bit of a fast reader, I can finish a 300-400 page book in a day depending on how good it is). I must say, not since "Q&A" has a book had me on the edge of my seat for the duration of it's page length! I wasn't expecting much, but I LOVED it. Finally, in the age of Countless books with overhyped characters like Edward Cullen and Eragon, comes a book with characters that are likeable and a plot that manages to keep you on the edge of your seat the whole time. I'm not lying, I hated having to put this book down since it's SO GOOD!
Not a single character here is unlikeable by any means. Every character is likealbe. Katniss and Peeta are fun characters, and I thought the sexual tension between them was hilarious! Primrose, who is Katniss' sister, is a very cute and innocent character. Katniss is, finally a strong female character. SHe is not a Mary Sue, she does not mope and whine about her life and she becomes badass in the last chapters of the book. I can envision Peeta as a handsome and quirky character, he was one of the best things about it. Admit it guys, you were on the edge of the seat for him, hoping he survived! And Rue, boy would I love to have Rue as a friend.
This book is definitely not for Children. The violence is infrequent, but when it comes it's very brutal and gory. The final showdown is very intense and well written. The fight scenes are well written, and very brutal- there's quite a bit of action towards the end of the book, which does have you on the edge of your seat. There isn't any swearing too- I'm not a prude, but I thought it was cool how she managed to tell the story without profanity in it.
Another thing about this book that was cool was the fact that it was written in Present tense. This seems to make the story more realistic, especially how Collins creates a sense of urgency in the writing. It's almost like you're watching the show itself. She manages to make it like a movie with how exciting it is, and I sure hope a movie of this book comes.
In short, this was a surprisingly great book, and my new favortie too. Totally recommended for fans of "Battle Royale" and "Death Race"!
Book Review: The Hunger Games
Summary: 5 Stars
The Hunger games Book Review Julia Carter
Katniss Everdeen, a sixteen year old girl, saves her sister; Prim Everdeen, from being put with a bunch of other teenagers in an arena to fight to death. The teenagers are from ages twelve to eighteen. Katniss volunteers to take her place. The other tribute is Peeta Mallark who has had a huge crush on her ever since he laid eyes on her. When she finds this out though, they are being broadcasted over live television all over the country Panem during Peeta's interview. Panem Is a country split into thirteen districts. It is where North America is today. Sometimes I wonder if North America evolved into a country called Panem or the people just decided to call the land Panem and everyone agreed. I loved the book Hunger Games so much! Most of the way throughout the book I was itching to read more. The book is very suspenseful in some parts. One of the things I loved the most was how well Suzanne Collins described Katniss's dresses made by Cinna. Cinna is her designer. The way Suzanne described them gave me a perfect picture of what Katniss looked like in the dresses. I liked how the book had a lot of details in the story. I could follow the story all of the way through with a good idea of what each of the situations would look like in pictures. The book is visual. One of my favorite parts in the book was when Rue died. Rue died by being captured in a net and speared in the stomach by a boy from district one when Katniss arrived to help her. It was an emotional part in the book. I was very sad! I loved Rue. My favorite character in the book was Katniss because she was the easiest to relate to, like sort of feel how she feels about different things in the story. For example, in the story she doesn't think the capital is right to put young adults in an arena to fight to death and I was thinking the same thing, but I do think it was right to build a story around that because that makes up most of the excitement. Another time we thought alike during the story was when Rue died, she was crying and I was sad as well. I thought it was great to hear that two tributes were able to win as long as they were alive and from the same district. I loved how Peeta and Katniss were able to meet up and beet Cato and Thresh. In my opinion the parade where all of the tributes were in their first costumes in the chariots riding through the crowd of people was very exciting. I liked Katniss's "girl on fire" dress was interesting. I think the fact that Cinna lit her cape on fire is what made it interesting. The one with crystals must have been pretty too. The yellow one at the end might have been beautiful as well but I don't think I would like it as much as the others if I were to see them. One thing I didn't like about the Hunger Games was the names. They were strange for example Katniss could have been Katy or Katelin. Peeta could have Peter or something like that but the names that were chosen were strange. Cato and Thresh were weird names too. Glimmer is a pretty name, but why was she called Glimmer? Some of them just don't make sense to me. Another thing I didn't understand was why are the Hunger Games called the Hunger Games? A strange part in the story was the part with the Tracker Jackers. Another part I didn't understand was when Suzanne mentioned Rue watching Peeta and Katniss train in the training center. We never did find out why she was watching them. Other than that, though, I thought the book was excellent. The Hunger Games is one of my favorite books!
Book Review: Brilliant Plot, Excellent Writing, and a Clever Protagonist
Summary: 5 Stars
(NO MAJOR SPOILERS)
Imagine two dozen gladiators -- brutal killers, merely for the sake of entertainment -- being selected to star in the reality show "Survivor." But forget voting your competition off the island, this contest of wit, strength, and endurance isn't over until just one heart is beating. This is The Hunger Games. Or at least this is what The Hunger Games would be at its finest, according to its producers. Instead, a national audience is forced to watch perhaps eight or so of the contestants, who have trained all their lives for this "honor," slaughter the other sixteen, who were chosen from a mandatory raffle to be easy prey. Some of them are as young as twelve. None are older than eighteen.
But only after the bloodbath do the Games really begin.
Had I read this introduction on the back of a book, there is no way I would have spent $17 on it. I wouldn't have even bought it with a half-price coupon. But because of so many others telling me the novel would be well worth my time to read, I am now the proud owner of two copies--neither of which is in my home at the moment because I talk the book up so much myself that I have to lend it out to one friend after another. Simply put: The Hunger Games is one of the best novels I've read in several years.
Why, you ask? Brilliant plot, excellent writing, and a clever, highly-likable protagonist. And for you fans of a good romance . . . when one will eventually have to take the other's life, think of the complications. This definitely isn't your typical love story, but it's a great one.
The target audience is young adult (ages 12-18), and I think a good majority of twelve year olds are mature enough to read it. But I would encourage a parent to read it first before their child that young picks it up. You'll likely enjoy the read yourself even if you decide your child should wait a year of two longer. However, I don't think many younger than fifteen or so will really see the depth of the story -- the subtle hints woven into it about how savage our entertainment tastes have become, and where they may end up if our humanity isn't kept in check. The author never says this, but the message is clear on nearly every page.
As far as content for younger readers, there isn't a single curse word in the entire book. Not one. In my opinion, that is the mark of a really competent writer. Even in life and death situations, Collins doesn't lean on easy crutches to portray the emotions of her characters. And I don't want to give too much away about the romance, but there wasn't a single line in the most intimate of scenes that I wouldn't let my own twelve-year-old read. The violence is definitely there, but gore is kept to a minimum. Remember what The Hunger Games is all about, however, because the rules are real: kill or be killed. And children do indeed die. I think it's fair to relate the violence level to that of the last three books in the Harry Potter series. But there are fewer emotional strings attached to most who die in The Hunger Games, so it isn't quite as traumatic.
Honestly, compared to the shocking material I often find in novels written for an audience as young as twelve, questionable content in The Hunger Games is really quite mild. I recommend it for just about anyone in the target audience range, and the novel is easily sophisticated enough for most adults. In fact, I rarely read books even half as riveting off the adult shelves.
Book Review: Wow! This is a great, great book
Summary: 5 Stars
I kept hearing about The Hunger Games. On Twitter, in blog posts. People were referring to it with that "Oh my God you have to read this" language that gets one's attention. So I looked at the book's description on Amazon, and it didn't seem like my kind of thing: It's a futuristic YA novel set in a post-apocalyptic North America. The country of Panem has risen from the ashes of a continent devastated by (apparently) natural disasters. Panem is divided into twelve districts, each of which has its own specialty--agriculture or factory work or the production of luxury items. District twelve, in the Appalachian area, specializes in coal mining. It's among the poorest of the districts, if not the poorest, and its people struggle to keep themselves from starving. The book's protagonist, 16-year-old Katniss Everdeen, is from district 12. She's been feeding her family for years, since her father died in a mining accident, by poaching in the woods surrounding her community, an offense which could easily get her executed. But her time in the woods has also honed her survival skills, which will prove to be essential.
Panem is a Big Brotherish society, the civil liberties of its citizens severely restricted. Among the demands made by the government is the annual participation by each district in The Hunger Games, a reality TV show to which each district must contribute two children as participants. They're selected in a lottery--the "reaping"--that isn't quite fair: the selection process favors the rich. The winners of the reaping are compelled to participate in the Games, a televised fight to the death in which there are no rules (though cannibalism is frowned on). The one participant who's left alive at the show's end is the winner, and goes back to his or her district a fawned-over champion. If you're looking for antecedents, think The Truman Show mixed with Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery," 1984 and Survivor and the ancient Greek myth of the minotaur.
The bleak futuristic society aspect of the book was a turn-off for me. I decided I wouldn't be reading it.
Weeks passed, and again I started seeing references to The Hunger Games, comments prompted by excitement over the recent release of the second book in the series, Catching Fire. Again I went to Amazon. Again I thought I wouldn't like the book. But I downloaded a sample to my Kindle. That was about 24 hours ago.
It was immediately apparent from the sample that The Hunger Games was well written. By the end of the sample it was apparent that I would have to read the whole thing. I downloaded the book and devoured it, sometimes having to force myself to read more slowly because I was reading too fast, the literary equivalent of swallowing food unchewed. All of which is to say that the book is for some reason immensely readable. Katniss is a very compelling character: she's smart and motivated by sororal love; she's a survivor. But her character alone can't fully explain the book's appeal. The book never slows down. The evil government that imposes the Games on its citizens is easy to root against. The writing is flawless, at least as far as I could tell while gulping down the story. In particular, the author does an excellent job of describing the complicated details of the Games and the society of Panem so that they're easily digested and don't come across as instructional or out of place. It's a great, great read.
-- Debra Hamel