“Impossible to put down, this adrenaline-packed novel will have you forgetting to breathe as your heart beats faster than you can imagine.”
In Panem, the country that rose up from the ashes of what was formerly known as North America, the government believes the only way to keep the districts in line is by forcing 24 teenagers to fight to the death each year. While some look for a reason to embrace the competition and raise their children up for the Hunger Games, others look on in fear at the reminder that they are completely at the mercy of the Capitol. With her name in the pot over twenty times, 16-year-old Katniss fears that this may be the year she is chosen for the gruesome and fatal Hunger Games; but when her 12-year-old sister’s name is chosen, Katniss puts all fear aside to stand and fight in her place. Katniss is shocked when her district partner—who she also must kill to survive—happens to be the boy who helped her years ago. With the rule that there can only be one winner haunting the 24 tributes, there is no doubt that the worst must be done to survive; but will they be able to show the Capitol that they are not just pawns in their horrible game? And when love and survival come face to face, which one will win the battle?
The Hunger Games is possibly the last book you would want to judge by any summary you may read on the back of the book, Amazon, or any other retailer website. The idea of a “fight to the death” game between 24 teenagers seems repulsive; and as you read, you will most definitely be outraged at the deaths of each character. Your emotions will run wild. You’ll laugh and cry; and sometimes you’ll want to throw the book against the wall. Still, in the end, you only want more.
From the first page, the reader can’t help but be completely taken captive by this book. Suzanne Collins has written a fast-paced novel that immediately becomes real to the reader and is impossible to put down! No, that’s not the same “impossible to put down” that you read about thrillers on a regular basis. This is the intense, adrenaline-producing, edge-of-your-seat, nothing else exists, “I won’t sleep until I finish this book” kind of “impossible to put down”. From beginning to end, I did not let the story out of my sight. The idea of doing anything else seemed impossible with all the possibilities of what could happen next! The story played out in my head as if it were real—as if it had actually happened.
To add to the intensity of the plot, Suzanne Collin’s writing style is mesmerizing and sure to hold your attention from beginning to end! Written in present tense and first-person point of view from the eyes of Katniss, the reader feels as if he or she is experiencing everything with the character.
The characters are exceptional! Several of them start to feel like old friends; and your heart breaks for the horror of what they must do to survive. As I read, I couldn’t help but talk about them as if they were completely real any time I had a conversation with someone about the book! Because that’s what they are to the reader! Even the worst savages of the teenagers become people who you can’t help but sympathize with. As a matter of fact, throughout the entire novel, I could not be truly angry at any of the teenagers, no matter who they killed. Instead, I could only be angry at the Capitol for forcing the teenagers to kill each other to survive; and all any reader wants is for them to defy the Capitol and prove that they are not pieces to their game.
This young adult novel is certainly not a book that only teenagers will enjoy. The writing style is beautiful without child-like word choices; and the fast-paced plot will produce adrenaline in readers of all ages and leave them begging for more. When I finished reading, I couldn’t think of any part of “The Hunger Games” that I did not find to be exceptional. The second and third installments of the series are “Catching Fire” and “Mockingjay”; and the first movie is scheduled to release in March of 2012. This story is not one that will be easily forgotten!
No comments:
Post a Comment