30B430 Book #7 The Hunger Games

 

It's true. I have jumped on The Hunger Games bandwagon. And it is good.

I had been hearing out the books for quite some time, and when I saw the premiere for the upcoming movie, I decided I needed to check these out. Per others' suggestions, I got all three books at the same time, using up some Audible credits that had been lingering in my account. I had the feeling I would fly right through them.

The first book was intense. I knew the premise for the story - set in the post-apocalyptic, former United States, now called Panem, the controlling Capitol selects two contestants (one boy and one girl between ages 12-18) to compete to the death in the Hunger Games until there is a sole survivor. Pretty gruesome sounding, right?

I was surprised to find that the story is perhaps more brutal than gruesome. The concept is shocking, I think because the author is trying to make the point that we live in a country that has become so used to reality tv and has an overwhelming desire for the shock factor, that the lines have become blurred. It seems to serve as a commentary on what is right/ethical/humane. The author highlights the justice issues related to privilege, social class, and wealth in a unique story that we haven't seen before.

As a reader, I was routing for the heroine (and the hero too), yet questioning if it was okay to be cheering them on in the situation that they are in. I wanted them to survive, but wasn't sure if I was okay with them killing in order to live. So emotionally complex.

This book lives in the extreme, yet somehow doesn't seem over-the-top. Or perhaps it is so over-the-top that it isn't anymore? I don't know. Regardless, I need to get on to the next one.