The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

ISBN# 978-0-439-02348-1

Available now

Published by Scholastic Press

Format: HC, 374 pages

Genres: YA, fiction, science fiction

Before she was an author Suzanne Collins worked on many children's TV shows such as Clarissa Explains It All, The Mystery Files of Shelby Woo, and Oswald.  Now she has a rhyming picture book for younger readers, When Charlie McButton Lost Power, and The Underland Chronicles starting with Gregor the Overlander for tweens.  Then we have The Hunger Games which is clearly aimed at the older YA crowd and even adults (I know I liked it).  If you've seen the movies The Running Man, Battle Royale, or The Condemned you get the gist of this book and should know it's for mature readers.  Catching Fire, the second book of The Hunger Games, will be released September 1st.

In a future maybe not quite as distant as we'd like to think stands Panem, its shining Capitol and twelve districts are all that remain of what was once North America.   In retaliation for the districts' failed rebellion over 70 years ago the Capitol has instituted something akin to martial law.  Their most brutal institution is known as The Hunger Games.  Every year a boy and a girl are picked from every district, by drawing, to compete.  It is mandatory that every child between the ages of 12 and 18 enter, your number of entries depend on how old you are and how badly your family needs food.  The winner and their family will be taken care of for the rest of their lives, but in order to win the other 23 contestants have to die.  The contestants have to kill each other to survive while all of Panem are watching via huge screens in every district.  The richer districts train for it while the poorer families pray it passes them by, but for the Capitol it's just another way to assert their control.

This year is different, this year everything may change.  It all starts with the drawing in district 12.  Katniss volunteers for the games to take the place of her 12 year old sister, Prim.  For this she gets her district's version of a standing ovation.  Peeta, one of the baker's sons is also chosen.  Once they get their mentor sobered up they come up with a plan to present a united front to all of Panem, something never done since there can only be one winner.  Katniss is a survivor, all of district 12 knows this except Katniss, and soon everyone else will too.  Soon she has not only won over her stylists and mentor, she also gets the highest survival score (private sessions with the Gamemakers where the contestants try to impress them).  Peeta decides to win over even more of Panem by telling his interviewer he's fallen for Katniss or at least that's the reasoning she's going with because she can't handle anything else at the moment.  For a few days both are doing well in the games, but when Peeta's mortally wounded and the Gamemakers change the rules mid game can Katniss come out of survival mode in time to save him?

This book is a pretty wonderful find for me.  It reminds me of all the best things I liked about 1984 by George Orwell, the Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld, and the movie Battle Royale (I haven't gotten to the book yet).  If you've read Uglies the citizens of the Capitol have a lot in common with bubbly-headed Pretties, all the time in the world and nothing to do with it except obsess over their looks.  This book brings to light a lot of the same views as 1984, but from a younger perspective.  And finally, just like in Battle Royale teens end up paying the ultimate price for a floundering government they're not even really old enough to understand.  If you like any of the books or movies mentioned in this review you will love this book.  I also highly recommend this book to all science fiction lovers, as long as you're at least 15.

Zhye