The Hunger Games
~ Suzanne CollinsKatniss is a 16-year-old girl living with her mother and younger sister in the poorest district of Panem, the remains of what used be the United States. Long ago the districts waged war on the Capitol and were defeated. As part of the surrender terms, each district agreed to send one boy and one girl to appear in an annual televised event called, "The Hunger Games." The terrain, rules, and level of audience participation may change but one thing is constant: kill or be killed. When Kat's sister is chosen by lottery, Kat steps up to go in her place.
Jen says we should read it because:
"Read it because it's good. I can't think of any real intellectual comments to make."
So.. go forth, read it. Comments here on what you think.. feel free to post during reading or after you've read it. Fair warning on spoilers/plot points, if you're going to give something away, let folks know you're going to; that way they can wait till they've read it.
I started this book last night (and this morning I'm figuring out this blog thing..so if I'm doing this in the wrong spot let me know!), so far so good!! Great pick Jen!
ReplyDeleteHi Everyone!!! Thought it would be nice to start this way. This is not a "spoiler" post.
ReplyDeleteIf you haven't started reading the book yet, please do!!! What a great selection, Jen! Brandon bought the book yesterday (Friday), and I was immediately turned off by the cover. Certainly doesn't look like something I would read. But I knew we would have to both read the book in a month and Brandon is a much quicker reader than I am, so I thought I better get my butt started. The book immediately draws you in. I love how this author writes. The language is simple, but the content is not. Brandon looked over at me at about page 15 or 20, and said, "You're crying already?!?" I've felt so many emotions already. I actually put it down for a bit because it was causing some anxiety. I've also come to love the cover. I'd love my own "jabberjay" pendant. It may just be this books "V".
I'm glad I wasn't the only one crying! Mel is right, the author does draw you in and connects you to the characters right away.
ReplyDeleteI just got the book today and can't put it down. It's one of those 'ok, just one more chapter....OK, one more....' reads. I love the writing style, not a lot of embellishment and very straightforward. Great pick; love it so far. I did not cry. I am dead inside.
ReplyDeleteOK, team - I'm free of my school shackles and I'm hoping to pick up the book today. These comments are encouraging...
ReplyDeleteThough I'm not sure how I feel about a book that may cause crying in the first 20 pages...
I did not cry either, but I'm one who ridicules people over watching The Notebook, so I'm apparently dead inside as well. I am really enjoying the book as well. It's hard not to root for Katniss. I'm at the point where they have literally just entered the arena, they aren't even off their launch pads yet. I will echo what everyone else has said so far as far as the writing style. I love that it's more simply written but not poorly written. I am not sure how I feel that this is the first book in a series - does that mean this book is not really going to "end"? Gah!
ReplyDeletePossible **spoiler** (depending on where you are in the book - I'm at page 149): I can't figure it out. Is Peeta just a really good strategist or does he really like Katniss? I wish Katniss would be nicer to him either way!
Response to Possible **spoiler**
ReplyDeleteOh, Drama Mama....the drama never ends. If you want to know what really happens you will have to read the rest of the books! It gets better!
I really think I am going to try and read the others in this trilogy! I'm hooked. Yes, you will have to read on to figure out Peeta's motives.
ReplyDeleteAll I can say is after reading before going to bed, I often find myself drifting in and out of thinking I'm actually playing the Hunger Games.
Ok - I finished the book on the second day. Loved it. It's been a long time since I got so into a book. There were a lot of things about Katniss that actually reminded me of myself. I definitely want to read the rest of the trilogy.
ReplyDeleteI stole our copy of the book from Mel last night… and read it. Read it all in one sitting.
ReplyDeletePartly because she kindly asked for it back, but mostly because it was good. Very good. I hedged my bets when I first started: I don’t generally empathize with female protagonists, I despise stories told in the first person, and I’ve read this story before.
As a fan of science fiction, I’ve come across this type of narrative before: the voyeuristic murder game as a way of controlling the population of a post-current society. Stephen King wrote the first version I encountered: The Running Man (written as Richard Bachman, and later turned into an awesomely cheesy Arnold Schwarzenegger movie), and (after a quick lookup on Wikipedia) he wrote the second, and more closely related: The Long Walk. Both revolve around a contest in which there is only one victor, and no surviving losers.
What set this book apart was, in complete agreement with everyone else, the writing. As I said, I don’t enjoy the first person perspective for storytelling. What made me like it this time around? This book would have been much less told any other way. The core of the story isn’t the Games themselves, but growing up… and we couldn’t have witnessed that as accurately as we did/have/will without Catnip explaining it the way she did. The best part of the story was figuring out the characters motivations and drive, and only knowing Katniss’ feelings made that discovery much more real.
I agree with others, I’ll read the rest of this series. In spite of the fact that series in science fiction are another peeve of mine (too many authors want a saga, rather than a story). This was a book that was designed for me not to like it, but (and this is 100% why I started this group) I thoroughly enjoyed it and am very happy to have read it.
Also: I did not cry.
ReplyDeleteFor I am the Dragon... and I have no pity.
(watch the movie, Red Dragon if you don't get that...)
Catnip...that's good...
ReplyDeleteThis is a spoiler...so don't read unless you are finished.
I like what Brandon said about figuring out the character's motives. In this situation, I would think you would have to think completely with your head, and not your heart (logic over emotions). I think this is why Katniss wins. Even though she may have feelings for Peeta, she continues to tell herself that she is getting close to him to better her chances throughout the game. Then you have the one boy who let her go for saving Rue...of course he wouldn't win.
I have a love/hate relationship with the ending. I'm glad she did show that she wasn't sure how she felt about Peeta and it all changed going back home.
I am with Brandon, I never would have picked this book up on my own, but now I can't stop talking about it!
SPOILER:
ReplyDeleteI thought the "puppy dogs" at the end were fucking dumb. To me, that was the equivalent of writing a few pages in crayon. The rest of the book was so creative... that seemed a bit amateurish.
END SPOILER
**SPOILER ALERT**
ReplyDeleteBrandon - I actually liked the dog thing she did at the end of the games; however, I really wish she had expounded upon it, talked about it a bit more. That could have been a good piece of the story but I felt like she dropped the ball on that one.
Because I have no heart, I started to actually get annoyed with the love interest part of it. I was over it. But I kept telling myself it was written for a younger audience, so I dealt with it. I mean, come on. . . Katniss is so a lesbian. tee hee Kidding!!!
If I can get my fellow sophomore English teacher on board, I'm going to assign this book for summer reading. I think they will actually like it and will READ it. That would be a change! ha!
Thank you, Jen, for the suggestion. Two thumbs up! : )
I wanted to share this: I walked into the school library yesterday and lo and behold, sitting there on the counter display for new books was the second Hunger Games book, Catching Fire. I snatched it up to read during spring break. Has anyone else read it?
ReplyDeleteI've started Catching Fire...not too far in to it though. I was hoping it would pick up RIGHT where the first book left off! No such luck!
ReplyDeleteAugh. I realized after I joined this that I have not a great deal of extra time to read now... that said, I will fit this in at some point. Just don't judge if I'm super late to the party.
ReplyDeleteAlmost finished with Catching Fire and I have to say - I think I like it better than the first one! It definitely deals with some more adult themes, or at least there is a progression of the theme. As a teacher I have to say how excited I am about these books - there is so much to build on!
ReplyDeleteI may have missed it, but did anyone talk about all the Roman history allusions in the novels? All the names of course, the "Capitol," the "Hunger Games"/gladiators. Does anyone else see the mockingjay symbol as a sort of "Jesus fish" kinda thing going on? I'm not saying Katniss is a Christ figure, don't get me wrong. What do you all think? Did you like the allusions/connections?