Wednesday 10 June 2009

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins


Pages - 454

Published by Scholastic in 2008

Challenges - 100+ and Once Upon A Time

It is books like this one, which make me glad I started blogging. If I had never started blogging I would never have discovered this fantastic book. It is definitely one of the best books I have read this year. So thank you to all the lovely bloggers who raved about it.

I know this book has been reviewed many times, but I feel I have to ramble on about it.

This book is set in a dark alternative near future to our own. America no longer exists as we know it and 13 Districts now cover the parts still habitable after natural disasters had eaten away at much of the country. After these disasters a dark uprising occurred against the Capitol, which resulted in 12 Districts being defeated and one being obliterated. To mark the strength of the Capitol over all the Districts, the Hunger Games were set up to constantly remind the population which area is in charge.

The Hunger Games consist of two children being chosen by drawing their names from a pot, from each district. These children will then go into an arena with all the other children from the other Districts and basically fight for their survival. So twenty four go in and only one child will come out alive and win the game.

Katniss becomes one of those children,when she sacrifices herself to save her younger sister Prim from having to fight for her life. With Peeta, the baker's son, who has been in love with Katniss since he was a child, they head into the arena to fight each other and save their own lives.

This book had a Lord of the Flies feel to it for me. These children fighting for their survival, with no signs of escape being an opportunity. It also reminded me a little of the Running Man with Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Katniss is a very strong female character, who has learnt to take care of herself by hunting and killing with ease, since she had to take care of her family after her father's death. She comes across as the strong one in her relationship with Peeta, who as a baker's son is vulnerable to the wilderness environment.

In an arena designed to kill, some of the victims enjoy an element of comradeship as they help each other to outwit the real killers in the game. Rue, the young girl, who flies through the trees, is so innocent, yet her survival instincts kick in, helping her to stay one step ahead of her pursuers.

Even though, to many people, the thought of reading a book about children killing each other would put shivers down their spine, this book is not just about the ruthless televised murders. It is also about friendship, love and caring for other people. Katniss and Peeta do not kill anyone intentionally, they are fully aware of the unfairness of the situation they have been thrown into. The real killers in the book have been trained all their lives to do so and are evil and manipulative from the beginning of the story, so you feel no sympathy when they are killed. Suzanne Collins has been very clever in the way she writes this, so you don't feel like you are supporting the murders of these children, you are reading it to fight for the truth and for right person to leave the arena alive.

This book is full of suspense from the first few pages. From the way it has been written, you feel like you are right behind Katniss in the arena, willing her to survive this atrocious situation. If you don't believe me, then have a look at the first chapter here.

When this book ended, I was desperate to read the next installment and found that I have to wait until September - I am not a happy blogger!

You have to read this book, if you haven't already. It was definitely as good, if not better than City of Bones by Cassandra Clare and I loved that one.

18 comments:

  1. ...must check if teh library has it!!!

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  2. I am definitely meaning to read this one soon!

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  3. Now I gotta have this one too! Viv!!!! LOL

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  4. Soon I'll be the only blogger left who still hasn't read this :P I plan to, but I think I might as well wait for September, since I keep hearing about what a cliffhanger the ending is.

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  5. First of all, I love the new blog look, love the pink!
    Hunger Games sounds like a good read, great review.
    http://thebookworm07.blogspot.com/

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  6. I am so glad you enjoyed reading this! It's one of my favorite reads this year. It's amazing how fast the book hooks the reader in.

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  7. I haven't read this one, but I think it's so much fun to discover books thanks to all these wonderful blogs!

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  8. I loved this book when I read it in April. It was so so wonderful! I was okay with the wait for the next book, though. i felt like it was closed enough that I could wait. I wonder what the end of the second book will be like.

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  9. Great review!! I loved this one, too, and I haven't come across too many people who haven't, though there are a few. I was skeptical at first, but finally read it and hated myself for holding out on it. (Kind of like I did with Harry Potter until after the fourth book was released.) Anyway, I'm adding a link to your review on mine :-D

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  10. Fantastic review, I've just ordered this one from The Book Depository and I'm so excited to get it now.

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  11. Knew you'd love it. ... hell, I don't know who wouldn't love it! :]

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  12. I'm so glad you enjoyed this book! I absolutely loved it!!! Though I think I'm the only person on Earth who didn't see the ending as a cliff-hanger. I thought the way it ended was perfect, with the absolute "right" questions left unanswered. I'm not even sure I want to read on.

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  13. I bought this recently and haven't had a chance to read it yet. It sounds like I'm really missing out.

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  14. I have lots of great comments about this book. I'm glad you enjoyed it.

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  15. i loved this one too--a few bloggers managed to scoop up the next book at the bea in NYC. i was not among the lucky ones! :(

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  16. How funny, I read my copy of this book earlier in the month but haven't yet decided whether or not to write a review of it on my blog. I adored it. And I really cannot wait for the next book, in agony here..!

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  17. I know just what you mean about books making you glad you blog. Book Thief was like that for me and I'm sure once I get my hands on this one it will be the same. Just think, September will be here before you know it!

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Hiya, thanks for stopping by, it is always nice to hear what you have to say, so do leave a comment if you have time.