The Hunger Games (Book)

So, the other day I happened to post on my personal Facebook page that I was reading The Hunger Games, which, just in case you're new in town from Mars, is just about the hottest book series since...what was that other one?  Twinight or something with Dracula and wolves...whatever.  Anyway, I posted that I was reading it and the next time I saw a couple of my buddies they gave me a hard time about reading a teenage girls book or something like that.  Well, truth be told, teenage girls, or at least teenagers in general, were the target audience of Suzanne Collins' trilogy.  But, that doesn't mean it isn't good.  Pixar makes cartoons and no one questions their brilliance.

For the six of you that don't what The Hunger Games are all about, here's the gist.  A post-apocalyptic North America is now occupied with the country of Panem.  Panem is divided into twelve districts, all ruled by The Capitol, the opulent and ruthless seat of power.  As punishment for a prior (and failed) uprising by the districts, The Capitol forces each to submit two children between the ages of 12 and 18, one boy and one girl, as tribute every year.  The tributes are then thrown into a vast outdoor arena and forced to fight to the death until only one is left standing.  The rest of Panem is required to view The Games as a twisted Olympics style spectacle on live TV.

The protagonist is Katniss Everdeen, a 16 year old girl who lives in District 12 with her mother and 12 year old sister Prim.  After The Reaping, the yearly choosing of the tributes, Katniss finds herself as District 12's tribute along with her male counterpart Peeta Mellark.  Katniss and Peeta, coming from the poorest district, are at a disadvantage and have only their cunning and charisma to see them through the ordeal.

I've never read anything Collins has written before, and besides the interesting story she has to tell, I enjoyed her plain spoken prose.  I've been reading Jack London's White Fang recently also.  London can expend two pages describing how frozen a lake is...and make it interesting.  That's not Collinins' style.  Moving the story forward is her bag, and as such the book moves at a blistering pace.  And apologies to all those who are cursing my name for equating Jack London with The Hunger Games.

A few other thoughts:

• Reading this book you can't help but think of our own nation's obsession with televised spectacles.  Whether it's sports, reality TV, or even the 24-hour news channels.  I'm sure this is no accident, though I didn't pick up any direct parallels to our modern times, but they are certainly there in the general sense.
• Along those same lines, The Capitol's obsession with fashion, superficial beauty, and cosmetic alterations seems somehow familiar.  Hmmmm, where would I have seen something like that before?
• It also reminded me a lot of Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game.  There's something interesting, and I suppose a bit disturbing, about the idea of children being thrust into position where they are expected to fight and kill and survive on their own.  It's nothing new--Lord of the Flies immediately comes to mind--and I cant' exactly put my figure on what it is, but it's makes for an entirely different story than if adults were involved.  I supposed it has something to do with the vulnerability of children, but also the ways they can surprise you with their ability to adapt and survive.

So yes, it is supposedly a book for kids, and no it ain't literature, but it's a darn good read full of action, adventure, thrills, and, yes even a little romance, and its a lot of fun.  Uh, that is if teenagers fighting to the death while the grownups watch and place bets can be fun.  Maybe, fun is the wrong word.  Nah, it's not.

And if you really live under a rock, The Hunger Games movie will be released on Friday.  Here's the trailer.