I read this one again JUST FOR YOU squeezies! Okay, really, I have this unhealthy obsession with re-reading the books in a series just before the next book comes out. Which in the case of The Hunger Games Trilogy
is in just ONE MONTH (August 24)!!! Seriously on pins & needles over here... thank goodness for Amazon pre-order: Mockingjay
! This review may seem a little rushed only because I am FORCING myself to write it before I read Catching Fire (again). I wanted to jump right into it. True love shown right here peeps! The Hunger Games is not like any other book I have ever read. In fact it's not like any other book I have ever read two or three times. I knew the plot, I knew the characters, I knew the ending and I could still not put the dang thing down. Okay- I am pregnant and have a 1 & 3 year old, sleep is very, very important to me - but not as important as this book!First line: When I wake up, the other side of the bed is cold.
The book is set far into the future, not important how far really - but it does give scary insight on what the world could become. It's ridiculously barbaric - but it has parallels to things gone wrong in our world now. Katniss Everdeen is the heroine, a 16 year old girl who struggles everyday to keep herself, her younger sister, Prim, and mother alive. She is skilled with a bow and arrow - trained by her father, who died when she was just 11 - and illegally hunts in order to barter, trade and feed her family. Her world is called Panem and it consists of a controlling central Capitol and 13 outlying districts. As an exhibition of their control the Capitol forces 2 tributes from each district to compete in the annual hunger games. Katniss finds herself heading to the arena as the female tribute for district 12. I should mention that the 'games' are a fight to the DEATH of children aged 12-18, therefore "ridiculously barbaric." Every value or belief you have ever possessed is challenged by the way Panem is ruled, and the games operate: religion, culture, government, entertainment, education, economics, fashion, trends, even life and death.
I cannot begin describe the emotions you experience as you read. Some novice book reviewist I am! But really, if you haven't read it, crawl out from underneath your rock and get 'er done! You'll be glad you did!
