Book Review: "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins

[jpskewedthrone]

I was treating this book like I treated the Harry Potter books: people were making such noise about it that I resisted reading it on the basis that it couldn't be that good. When I finally got around to reading Harry Potter, I had the reaction I feared--I thought they were good books, but I didn't get totally sucked into them like everyone else seemed to. They were fun reads, but I felt no urge to reread them.

That wasn't the case with this book. I did get sucked into this story and the main character. All the way to the end. I probably don't need to rehash the premise, but just in case there's a few of you out there who don't know . . .

Katniss is barely surviving in District 12 of a dystopian future where America's remnants have been divided into twelve districts, ruled over by the Capitol. To remind the districts that they lost the last war and are, basically, enslaved, the Capitol randomly selects a boy and girl from each district to compete to the death in the Hunger Games. The winner--and their district--gets a shower of gifts and an easier life. The winner also gets to help the two chosen for next years game. Needless to say, Katniss' younger sister is chosen for the games, but Katniss volunteers herself instead, since her sister has no chance of winning. Katniss, at least, has been hunting for her family's food since her father died in the coal mines of their district.

And that's the setup. Fairly simple . . . and the book is certainly written for the young adult audience, not an adult audience . . . but Katniss and her plight still draw you in and drag you to the rather gruesome Hunger Games. The book is dark, but it's kept at a level appropriate for young adults, in my opinion. This is not a "fun" book, in the same sense as the Harry Potter books were fun, but the world and Katniss' fight for survival are definitely good reads. I can certainly see why the books became so popular, with both young adults and adults alike.

I'm certain it doesn't need to be said, but I'd recommend this book to anyone. I had one minor quibble with the very end (it kind of felt like it had a different ending originally, but was tweaked so there could be a sequel), but that wasn't enough for me to drop the rating down to a 4. Well written, a strong plot and main character, great secondary characters . . . altogether a great book.

Comments

[amysisson.livejournal.com]

I remember someone telling me the premise and thinking "That's stupid and unrealistic" -- but I trusted my friend's opinion so I read it. And got totally sucked in. It takes some doing to make a plot like that seem plausible.

[jpsorrow.livejournal.com]

I agree the world premise is something that you just have to "go with" in this one. They never attempt to explain how the world ended up like this, and the way it's organized is hard to believe. But in the end, it doesn't matter. You get sucked in anyway. *grin*

[birdsedge.livejournal.com]

I got sucked in, too, and then read the second and third in the trilogy. The first is the best, but all are worth reading. The second seema a bit of a rehash and you're wondering whether it was just an excuse to write the same book twice when Katniss and Peeta get thrown into the ring again, but it turns out that the ending is very different. Book three is the logical conclusion to the events that Katniss set in motion. I didn't enjoy it as much, but there were no easy answers and I admire the book for that. Katniss is certainly affected by the consequences of her choices.