What can I say about a book that’s already been read by just about everyone interested in reading it? I read this when it came out six years ago, and it was assigned for my lit class so I read it again. I’ll admit I was annoyed by this at first. I took the class to force myself to read literature I wouldn’t on my own and I don’t have any trouble finding books like The Hunger Games, but I think they just stuck this in the curriculum to appeal to the youths. Alright.
It feels strange to review such a well known book at length, so I’ll keep it short. It really is a cut above most YA dystopian trilogies. Katniss is anything but a helpless female, and the world and conflict are truly compelling. You get far enough away from a series like this and it’s hard to remember if it got so much hype just because it got a huge movie deal but no, it truly is a fantastic piece of fiction. It’s what a lot of others try to be and end up coming off as knock-off versions. The genre is often trivialized and that’s often its own fault, but The Hunger Games is a classic in its own rite. I think what makes it so powerful is the reality show format: we can see ourselves in the tributes and the Capitol, and we’re disgusted. How much would we watch before we said no? How far would we go? Not that far…right?
A couple stray thoughts that I’d forgotten over the years: wasn’t there some big thing when Amandla Stenberg was cats as Rue? Why? The book is very clear that Rue and Thresh are Black.
I’d forgotten how much Katniss and Gale really weren’t a couple before The Hunger Games.