The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
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Book Reviews of The Hunger Games
Book Review: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Summary: 5 Stars
Also reviewed on my blog, the Vintage Bookworm.
When I first got this in the mail about a year or two ago, I quickly set it aside after seeing the not very alluring cover. After days went by I finally decided to try and look past the cover and see what it was about. So I did, and was still not very into wanting it on my reading list. It sounded a bit interesting, but not enough to really draw me in.
But now, lately, I've seen this book and it's series around everywhere. I couldn't shake this series. I started reading reviews on it and all of them have been great reviews. I have not seen one bad review so far! Basically all of them are five or four stars. So I finally decided to sit down and try and read it.
I told myself that I would read the first 10 pages before I went to bed and if it didn't catch my attention and if I didn't remember what I had read the next day, then I would set it aside again and try and read it at a later time when I was more in the mood for it.
The next day came and I remember everything and was more interested in reading it! And I'm so glad that it caught my attention because this is one GREAT book. I can see what all the hype is about it now and why I see "Team Peeta" and "Team Gail" around everywhere! Which, by the way, I am completely "Team Peeta". Not that there is anything wrong with Gail, he's a nice character. But Peeta has me completely won over!
I can see the meaning of the cover now and it fits with the book well. It may not be one of my favorite covers, but I appreciate it a bit more now after reading the book.
Collins' world building is prodigious, but scary! I can't imagine being able to live in Panem. The world is already upsetting enough, but not as upsetting as her world would be. Can you imagine being forced to sit down and watch twelve through eighteen year olds fight to the death as entertainment? I couldn't!
The characters in this book were real and believable. I couldn't help but want to know more about the other tributes as they were killed off, one by one. Each one had their own personality and it was sad to see them killed.
Katniss was the perfect heroine. She was strong, and selfless, and intelligent and her family was her top priority, which is highly admirable.
Collins' left nothing out, you read from Katniss point-of-view at all times as though you were really in her mind, watching everything she sees and does. Even though the chapters leaves off in amazing cliff hangers, she starts right back up from where it left off. Which I really liked. Her writing style kept you reading and at the edge of your seat.
This review is really hard for me to write because this book completely blew me away and I can't type fast enough to even begin to tell you everything about what is going on in my mind about this book. I highly appreciate the honesty that Collins' put into this book, no matter how disturbing her world was, and I can't wait to continue the series and see what else she has install for us.
I recommend this to anyone who would love to be put into a world different, but somewhat the same, as our own. Also, even if the book doesn't sound appealing to you, please try and at least give it a chance and read a chapter of two before you completely dismiss the book. You will be missing out on a wonderful book that I can see as a classic one day.
Book Review: And Another Book Read Reviews
Summary: 5 Stars
After the destruction of North America the nation of Panem emerges, in the middle, a shining Capitol with twelve less scintillating nations surrounding it. In order to remind all of the residents of Panem of the brutal war and the power the Capitol holds, the Capitol forces each district to send a boy and a girl, between the ages of twelve and eighteen, each year to the Hunger Games, a fight to the death, survivor style, broadcasted on live TV.
In the devastatingly poor District 12, lives a sixteen-year-old named Katniss Everdeen. She lives alone with her mother and twelve-year old sister Prim, being the sole provider for their family, making sure that they just scrape by. When the day of the reaping comes (the event where names are drawn for the Hunger games) Katniss herself feels that she has a greater chance of being picked, but never would expect Prim to be chosen. When the worst happens though, Katniss immediately volunteers herself to participate in Prim's place, becoming the girl to represent District 12 in the Hunger Games.
Without even realizing it, Katniss soon becomes one of the top contenders to win the games, as survival is second nature to her. If she is to win though she will have to call upon her keen sense of intelligence and expert survival techniques.
Oh my goodness, this book is jaw droppingly good! Every single sentence left you grasping for more and wanting to turn the page so fast that you have to be careful they don't rip. Everything about the book worked and fell so easily into place that it was absolutely impossible to put the book down.
The plot itself was extremely unique and was filled with adventure that kept you extremely riveted. Even though Panem was a fictional world it was very easy to see many parallels to our world, which I found extremely interesting. Suzanne Collins also made this imaginary world very lifelike and made the events of the games so real that it felt like I was sitting in my living room watching them on TV along with all the other residents of Panem.
Another aspect that really made the book shine were the characters. Regardless of how big of a role the character played they were well developed. Katniss was an amazing and strong character and had a nurturing side that was completely unexpected, but very welcoming. Peeta, the second main character, was a sweetie. He was funny and genuine and I loved how he added the romance element to the story, which in my opinion made the book that much better.
As for the author's writing, it was impeccable. She threw you into the arena and made you breathe the same air as Katniss, Peeta and all the other contestants. She created a fascinating world, using fantastic imagery, which made it easy to picture the beauty of the Capitol, all the amazing outfits the contestants wore, and of course the brutality of the arena. She also created one heck of a cliffhanger with the ending of the book, setting up for the next book (CATCHING FIRE) to start right away.
Overall this was one heck of a book. The author combined a ridiculous amount of suspense, a ridiculously cute romance, and so much adventure that this has easily become one of my favorite books. As soon as I had finished it I immediately wanted to read it again and again and again. I strongly recommend it to absolutely everyone and cannot wait for the sequel
Book Review: Fantastic read, YA at its best.
Summary: 5 Stars
I really really like this book. I mean really. It is not the most stunning and emotionally wrenching thing I've ever read, but it deserves a 5-star nonetheless. I am a teenage girl, and there were parts of it that most definitely were aimed at my age and gender, but for some reason boys like the Twilight books so I wouldn't be surprised at all if my male friends liked this book as well. It is pure YA: no moody, complex reflection on the human condition, just fast-paced storytelling that leaves the thinking to the reader. It is written to make you want to turn the next page, and frankly there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.
Collins made an extremely complex character believable. Katniss is straightforward, yet knows how to lie and double-cross, she is a hardhearted survivor who goes mushy at the sight of nasty cuts and has a soft spot for children. Ultimately, Katniss is a young girl thrown into a heartless world, and she adapted while still retaining the ability to love. Selling that character is a remarkable bit of writing.
About the love in this book: it was refreshing to see a girl heroine who isn't obsessed with love. She obviously has some feelings for Peeta and Gale, but she really isn't too torn up about lying to Peeta to win the games, and she doesn't really think about Gale until he comes up paranthetically. Her reaction to her difficult love dilemma isn't "Oh Gale! O Peeta! Oh what shall I do?" but rather "Oh. That. Whatever, survival first." The typical roles were reversed, the woman fought for her life and protected her beloved while the man blundered about, messing things up, attempting heroism, and following his lady like a puppy. I love Peeta, he's vulnerable and sweet yet determined and tough (for a city boy), but he is absolutely not the dominant force in that relationship. In fact, it's almost a complete role reversal of the most popular of all teen love stories, the Twilight novels.
About the things other than love: fantastic suspense, exciting adventure, and a futuristic world that is only a few disturbingly small steps from ours. Some futuristic worlds are highly doubtable: the world is not going to go up in flames, nor will Vulcans fall out of the stars and help the earthlings create a happy, peaceful United Planets sort of deal where the people who resist having civilization shoved down their throats are hunted down by the ruthlessly diplomatic Captain Picard and his cleanly dressed crew on a disturbingly snazzy and well-armed ship. I know, I know, I want replicators and phasers to exist too, but that is a rather unlikely future for humankind. But Panem, a dog-eat-dog (more like teenage-girl-eat-dog-rabbit-squirrel-and-whatever-else-she-deosn't-feed-to-her-starving-family)world, ruled by a sickly materialistic and ruthless capitol whose inhabitants are clueless to its corruption while the rest of their world starves...not so unrealistic.
SPOILER: A thought for the future of the series. Why was there nothing of Katniss's father left to bury? Why did Cinna ask for District 12? Who is the redheaded girl and why was the Capitol chasing her? Just a thought. I think this book - The Hunger Games - will be to the rest of the series what the Hobbit is to the Lord of the Rings series. A self-contained beginning that serves a piece of an even bigger puzzle. I'm very excited.
Book Review: Hungry for More
Summary: 5 Stars
To paraphrase T.S. Elliot: Good writers borrow; great writers steal.
So what if the premise is largely taken from two of Stephen King's stories ('The Running Man' [good eye, Kevin], and 'The Long Walk', with Shirley Jackson's 'The Lottery' thrown in for good measure)? However, these ideas are STOLEN, not borrowed. Collins does a nice job of making the outlandish premise her own by setting it in a (mostly) believable distopic future peopled by familiar archetypes (the noble lad, the wise man, the brute..).
But instead of a strong, macho warrior, she gives us Katniss, a girl on the cusp of womanhood who'd rather hunt squirrels than fawn over boys- even strong, able boys like Gale, her best friend. Katniss anchors this story through her riveting first-person, present tense narrative describing her actions and her conflicting emotions as she navigates the terrors of the Hunger Games and the absurd world around her.
The 'bread and circuses' of the Hunger Games is designed to instill feelings of unmistakable servitude, fear, and awe into the hearts of the people within the 12 principalities that serve The Capitol.
I pause here to reflect on the haunting similarities of modern America compared with Panem (what's left of a post-apocalyptic North American supercountry). During my lifetime, American teenagers could be randomly selected for war. Many times, the rich could get out of service; it was the poor and often uneducated who bore the brunt of the fighting. And what did they fight for? If you buy into the mass media messages, it's always about Freedom, and Our Way of Life. However, if you talk to veterans, almost to a man they will say they fought to stay alive and to keep their platoon members safe. It was the love of their fellow countrymen that kept them alive. So it is with Katniss and Peeta.
Collins world also echoes modern America's fascination for real-world playoff-type entertainment. It's 'Big Brother' or 'Survivor' for lunatics. Think about it: a wealthy ruling class puts together a show of 'regular' people (dressed up and made up by professional image-makers) all pitted together to out-last one another. The country is forced to watch. Any sort of rebellion against the state is edited out of the show. Everyone has a part to play.
Yet there is an undercurrent of rebellion throughout in Kat's actions and thoughts. She wants to subvert the system...or at least to find her OWN system? This theme is echoed in the symbolism of the mockingjays. These birds, mutated long ago, are remnants of past wars, yet they linger on to echo the beautiful, heartfelt songs of the proletariat and to taunt the ruling class. When they hear a song worth singing, they spread it far and wide. It grows into a chorusing round, like a grassroots movement.
I'm sure this theme of rebellion is explored in the next books. However, it's mostly in the background here, as Katniss is trying desperately to survive. Will she be victorious? Will she keep her humanity? Can she change the system from within one of its grandest symbols?
5 out of 5 stars This book is very accessible, filled with action and dramatic irony that keeps the reader on edge.
Lexile: 810 AR level: 5.3 AR points: 15
Book Review: The Ultimate Reality Show!
Summary: 5 Stars
With 435 existing Amazon reviews about this book already, maybe I'm just adding to the noise, but Suzanne Collins's THE HUNGER GAMES is the best book I've read in quite a while.
First off, having read many other reviews of this book, both from Amazon and professional reviewers, I see that this book has been slammed by some as being a rip-off of several, or even dozens of, other books / movies. I suppose if I had read some of these other books, I might feel less impressed by this title - or maybe not. This year's Newbery Medal winner, THE GRAVEYARD BOOK by Neil Gaiman, was an admitted rip-off of THE JUNGLE BOOK. However, Gaiman transformed it into something entirely new. Likewise, John Christopher obviously used THE WAR OF THE WORLDS as the basis for his phenomenal Tripods Trilogy / Quartet, but made it into something new as well. Many other children's / YA books could be seen as rip-offs of previous books (though probably unjustly so) - Gary Paulsen's HATCHET is very much like the little-known earlier book STRANGE COMPANION by Dayton O. Hyde. THE CITY OF EMBER seems inspired by H. M. Hoover's even better book, THIS TIME OF DARKNESS. And, though they each stand on their own just fine, several of Gloria Whelan's recent novels with strong female leads seem like direct knockoffs of... well... Gloria Whelan's earlier books with strong female leads. So, in reviewing this book, there seem to be two major categories of reviewers - those who've encountered some of these earlier works (BATTLE ROYALE, RUNNING MAN, LORD OF THE FLIES, THE LONG WALK, and others), and those who have not. Since I have not read most of these (though I love LORD OF THE FLIES), I can't compare THE HUNGER GAMES to them.
Others have criticized this book for being too predictable, though children's / YA books are supposed to have at least a bit of predictability - otherwise, we wouldn't have what is known as a story arc with the introduction of a problem, rising action, climax, and resolution. I've read a handful of books that "don't seem to be going anywhere," and I've hated them. Collins did do a fair amount of foreshadowing, something I think is great to use with students in reading and studying books together, helping them develop their own skills of prediction in books. If I was using this book with students (which I won't, as it's too "mature" for my fourth graders), I would definitely use it with the context of foreshadowing. (spoiler alert) I was able to predict the change in the rules of the game (though it happened much later than I thought it might), the double-suicide threat (How many times was the term "star-crossed lovers" used?), and that Cato would likely be the last opponent left for a big battle scene - for me, the ability to predict these things MIGHT happen did not take away from the story.
I will leave the other reviewers to handle the summarizing of this book, but I thought THE HUNGER GAMES had all the elements of great storytelling - lots of character development, maximized action and conflict, inventiveness, conflicting emotions, and great lessons for the reader (sticking to your beliefs, helping others when possible, believing in yourself, and others). I'm greatly looking forward to reading CATCHING FIRE, book two in the trilogy, upon its upcoming release - can't wait!