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Monday, February 20, 2012

Book Review :: The Hunger Games




A few weeks ago several friends of mine from our Bible study group were talking about The Hunger Games.  I'm one that never likes to feel left out of the conversation by not knowing what's being talked about.  So, to not feel left out I got the first book of The Hunger Games Series on my nook color.  I quickly finished the first book and by the end of the week I had finished the other two in the series.

They're quick reads without a complicated plot line.  The characters are relatable and the setting is interesting.  The story takes place in the future in a drastically different United States known as Panem.  There are 13 districts and the Capitol.  The districts each specialize in a different product that serves the Capitol.  For instance, District 12 where our main characters are from specialize in coal mining.  They're usually poor and under the strict Capitol government.   Even though it's set in the future the Districts come off as more primitive without many of the comforts and conveniences of modern technology we use today.  The Capitol and it's residents however seem like something out of a Doctor Suess book. Everything is colorful and people are altered to have golden tattoos or overdone features.

Each year the Hunger Games are held for the Capitol's entertainment.  Two candidates are chosen from each district, one boy and one girl.  They are sent to the arena and must fight to the death.  The lone survivor is the winner and travels all over Panem for the victory tour.

This series is classified as young adult fiction but nothing about it other than the characters being teenagers strikes me as teeny bopper-ish.  There is no foul language or sex.  Just gory murder.  Even the murder doesn't seem so terrible.  It's like when an actress says they did nudity for their role in a movie because it was important to the story line.....  Murder in the Hunger Games is actually the whole point of the games so it is necessary and important to the psyche of the characters.  

I haven't read any of the Harry Potter series so I can't compare the two young adult fiction works.  I have however read the Twilight series and let me just tell you, The Hunger Games is by far more interesting to me...an adult.  I've been a brooding teenager dealing with young love to a vampire boy.  Why would I ever want to experience that again?  Bella describing Edward as a sparkling marble statue over and over got a little monotonous.  After seeing the first Twilight movie I was finished.  I completely lost interest and didn't have any desire to watch the rest.  I finished reading the series only because I started it and once I start a series I have to finish it.  Like the Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest series.   Yikes, I wouldn't recommend that series to anyone!

I'm looking forward to the first movie coming out in March.  In my opinion, movies are never as good as the book, but if you can go in with an open mind, knowing the director can not fit everything from the book into the movie, it can still be an enjoyable experience.  If I were you I'd buy these books immediately and start reading them tonight!  If you have a Nook I can even lend it to you.  And maybe when the movie comes out I can step out of my old person mindset and try going to the theater, fight the crowd, and the price, to see The Hunger Games.  If not, I'll just wait until it comes out on iTunes and watch it in our garage theater in my PJs.

Under my Facebook badge on the right side of my blog vote for your favorite book series.  I'd curious to know which one will be the winner!
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3 comments:

  1. I guess I need to make a trip to the library!

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    1. You certainly do. I think you'll like these a lot, especially since you'll be able to get through them pretty quick.

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