It takes a lot out of a book for me to desire to sit down and read. However, since last year, I have been enthralled in what I believe to be the best young adult trilogy out there today. I speak of course of The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins.
Last year, I was first introduced to The Hunger Games via Ludlow High School’s Book of the Month announcements. I remember hearing the announcement over the intercom during my first period class, and they explained the synopsis of what would quickly become one of my favorite books.
The Hunger Games is about a futuristic world called Panem that is located in the present day North America. Panem is corrupted by a dictator, President Snow, and has 12 districts and a Capitol. Each district specializes in a perticular field such as fishing or coal mining. The higher number your district, the poorer it is. The Capitol is the epicenter for all of the rich people of Panem, and holds a tight control over the rest of the population.
Throughout the novel, the sense that the Capitol is all knowing establishes a Big Brother like aspect to the story. I found myself constantly alert of what the Capitol’s actions would be against the protagonist, Katniss Everdeen, and her friends and family.There is an annual battle royale amongst 24 of the children in the 12 districts run by the Capitol. Panem served as a great contrast to any safety one would feel here in America, and the sad truth is that one day we as a nation coud become like Panem.
The first two books of the trilogy also concluded with great cliffhangers that made me eagerly anticipate the release of the third and final tale. Action and suspense always seemed to surround the characters, and just when I would think things were going well, disaster would strike. The idea of a battle royale at first seemed a little unrealistic, but the fact that the participants were teenagers helped me put myself into Katniss’ shoes.
The actual games were definitely the best part of the series, as the desperation and fight for survival held a fierce intensity throughout the series. I had to fight the urge to get too attached to any of the supporting characters, as I knew soon they would most likely be brutally killed.
Amidst all of the fighting and government corruption, there is also a love triangle between Katniss, her friend Gale, and the other tribute from district 12 Peeta Mellark. As a teenage guy, I found it interesting to see how that kind of situation can look through the eyes of the girl involved, and I quickly sympathized with her difficulty in making her decision on who to be with.
As great and captivating as the trilogy really was, I did find some flaws. Occasionally, I thought that the stories were rushed and thought that they could have been longer to explain things in more detail. I also believe that the first book Hunger Games was by far the best, and that they gradually got a little less exciting as the series continued. Despite this, the final two stories, Catching Fire and Mockingjay were both amazing. I would definitely recommend these stories to anyone, as the trilogy goes through so many aspects of literature: suspense, romance,tragedy,heartbreak and even triumph.
