The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (#2)

Daniel Por

In this book review, I reread Suzanne Collin's sequel to the wildly popular The Hunger Games, where a dystopian Panem seeks to rebel against the tyrannical Capitol.

THE SHORT

While The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, may be a continuation of the Hunger Games series, it breaks new ground in every way. This time, Collins chooses to focus more on Katniss's impact on the Districts, rather than the actual Games themselves. Collins slowly enthralls you with her writing, as she gradually reveals the fact that the Districts are rebelling. This style of writing is both amazing and wonderful, as Collins uses her writing amazingly to flesh out her plot. Her plot also leads convincingly from one point to another. Utilizing the 75th Hunger Games excellently as a device to build tension and to parallel the Districts teaming up against the Capitol, and also to lead up to the climax. Eventually, Collins manages to deliver a masterpiece in writing as this sequel is just as great, if not greater, than the first book.

THE REVIEW

Collins manages to create an excellent and diverse set of characters, who are so amazingly fleshed out that even the most minor of characters can affect you emotionally. Katniss, the protagonist, gains a completely new definition in Collins's writing, as she develops over the course of the novel from one prepared to run to a rebel, ready to defy the Capitol. Speaking of development, most of the characters all undergo some sort of development over the course of the writing. This is a major plus point for Collins, as she defies expectations by going where no writer has gone before, redefining her characters in this well written, thrilling novel. As for the antagonist, President Snow, Collins seems to have modeled him on various Roman Emperors, as well as Emperor Palpatine from Star Wars. She somehow makes him a threatening character, yet never reveals too much of him to neuter him like Lucas did with Darth Vader.

Now for the main theme of this book. While this book is a YA book and therefore never overtly presses a moral theme on you, you get the sense that Collins was trying to write in an allusion to contemporary Roman history, with the evil Emperor and the common people. She also wrote in a theme about sacrifice, when Katniss decided that she was going to save Peeta, because it was for the greater good of the rebellion. While not very obvious, the main theme of the book had to be the price of freedom, and what people would do to rebel against the rulers who suppressed them. This can be seen from the very rebellion in the book itself, where a small act was enough to incite a rebellion against the Capitol. The political situation in this dystopian future parallels real history and politics in the world, further showing the full range of Collins's writing ability.

The plot in this novel is wonderfully convincing, as Collins provides decisions and consequences so grounded in realism, it's almost though the novel really could happen in real life. Perhaps the greatest plot twist in the novel was the tension packed climax where Katniss realized that the real enemy was the Capitol, and the fact that she had the ability to rebel, to revolt against the Capitol. Amazingly, Collins ties up all loose ends in her ending, explaining all unexplained things and leaving enough things unknown to entice us to read the next novel. From beginning to end, the plot is solid and perfectly written out, perhaps helped by Collins's writing abilities.

All in all,  Suzanne Collins successfully writes a sequel to the first book, and also leading us on to read the third and final book in the series, with her writing and plot. In a world where sequels often fail to live up to expectations, Collins not only defies those expectations, but sets the bar high for other YA authors to meet.

Rating: 9.2/10

Advice: Just read it!

I honestly can say that I never expected this novel to be that good.

Next week: I return to the magical world of Harry Potter, where a murderer is out for his blood, and no one is as they seem...in the third novel of the Harry Potter series: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban!! Will J.K. Rowling manage to live up to her wonderful two previous books as she delves into darker territory? Or will the book flop and sputter? Find out next week in my book review of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban!!

The Hunger Games (#1)

By Suzanne Collins

"'Ladies and gentlemen, let the Seventy-fourth Hunger Games begin!'"

THE SHORT

The Hunger Games seems a perfect example of the YA book. Although Katniss's relationship with Peeta might seem a little forced, the actual Hunger Games and the build-up to it is extraordinary. Collins manages to capture the tension between Katniss and the Capitol perfectly. The dystopic setting of Panem is oddly scary and injects a certain rebellion-y feeling into you. The Games are the perfect example of Rome's panem et circenses (bread and circuses) although the major event that wiped out North America is glossed over. The plot moves along at a steady pace, and this is one of the major redeeming qualities of The Hunger Games. All in all, this novel is excellent and one of the best YA novels I have ever read.

THE REVIEW

Let's begin with the book's protagonist, Katniss Everdeen. Being the sole breadwinner for her family, she has to hunt illegally in the woods outside her city, provoking a sense of anger and frustration at the super-rich Capitol, which rules over all the cities, named Districts. The anger is kindled by her hunting partner Gale, who rants about the unfairness, and by the Hunger Games, an annual event where twenty-four children have to fight against each other in a Battle Royale setting.

 Katniss shows remarkable development throughout the book, at the start only a whiny girl who dislikes the Capitol, and at the end a matured person who has stared death in the face and is willing to fight. Her motivations are clearly shown through Collins' amazing use of the first person POV, and her feelings for both Gale and Peeta are illustrated using the wonderful writing. Katniss is a person with love for her sister and the boys around her, but her sarcastic and negative attitude often clash with Peeta's humorous and good-natured disposition. I have a feeling that many people will be able to relate to Katniss, who is struggling with the hardships of life, yet she somehow manages to make it through, battling her out. A flaw in Collins, however, is her inability to show the "dark side" of Katniss, the side which kills animals in the blink of an eye. The emotional turmoil inside is enough to soften the image of the hunter Katniss, and instead we get a crybaby who can't kill humans to save her life.

Peeta is perhaps Katniss's forced lover, whose intentions are unexplained due to Collins' focus on Katniss, although it might have been a bit better to explore the boy with bread and his actions, his feelings for Katniss, and his bitter realisation that Katniss was only pretending to love him. Peeta is perhaps the most emotionally diverse character in this book, more than Katniss, who only ranges from SAD to CONFUSED and FRUSTRATED. Peeta really is the one who keeps the romance alive, therefore keeping both of them alive in the Games. He comes to life through Katniss' viewpoint of him and their tense romance is artfully shown through Collins' writing.

The Hunger Games is the epitome of child sacrifice, although it is made all the more cruel by the fact that it is just for the Capitol's amusement, not actually for any traditions, or for gods, or whatnot. Just for entertainment. The drawing of the names suggests a kind of lottery, except that the prize is to fight or die in the ultimate challenge. "The reaping" implies a kind of harvest, that the children are fruits for the Capitol to eat and laugh at their misfortune.

One of the most prevalent themes in this book is the theme of dictatorship. The Capitol seems to be the evil nation, reminiscent of the Galactic Empire in Star Wars, where an evil old man (President Snow and Emperor Palpatine respectively) rules over a whole world (or worlds in the case of the Empire). They rule with a rod of iron over their subjects, but President Snow seems to be all the more dangerous, even though he doesn't appear in this book (kind of like Palpatine not being in A New Hope?). The word Snow seems to threaten the people, as even though it sounds innocent, it has a kind of metallic ring to it, leaving readers wondering if it is his real name. This novel suggests that dictatorship is wrong, that we should have a free country, through Katniss' feelings about the unfairness and the wrongness of the Capitol, which will do anything it can to wipe out dissent, perhaps most strongly shown in the Avoxes, people who had their tongues cut out because they were traitors. The first sign of strong dissent in Katniss is shown when she recognizes the Avox serving them and she is angry at the Capitol for maiming them.

The plot in this book is perfect for a dystopic setting, which illustrates the future Earth. The pacing of the plot is finely tuned, although it does take quite a bit for the actual Games to begin (Actually, more than HALF of the book is spent on exposition and lead-up to the Games). The Games itself is a fun, action-packed adventure that will keep you thrilled. This is evident in the plot, which Collins' manages to tie together all the events in the books nicely, giving us sufficient background on the characters and also giving us what we all wanted: Children killing each other and the suspense around every corner, reading on frantically to see if Katniss lives and she gets to live with Peeta, the various hardships they endure...The plot is brilliantly constructed and it is excellently connected with the next novel, Catching Fire. Collins is superbly talented at smooth transitions from one book to the next, and even in this book one can see various warning signs that can lead to problems for Katniss in the near future.

However, the downfall of this book is the clumsy exposition that Collins has to resort to in the weirdest of places, such as a cave in the Games. Hello? Are you not doing other stuff? And it seems a bit forced, kind of squashed in, a huge rock standing in the clear and smooth river that is the plot. There are far too many little stories and this distracts us from the actual story. Backstories crowd in, something something about something Days, and then something about America, and then blah blah blah about a goat, just get to the Games already! While this "forcing it in" technique may work for the awkward love story between Peeta and Katniss, it just fails at exposition. Just horrible.

Despite that, this book is epic. The awesome originality of the Games, the dystopic setting, the excellent and well thought-out plot, all contribute to one of the best novels of all time.

Rating: 9.2/10

Advice: Superb for YA/Dystopia lovers.

I sincerely hope you've enjoyed this post, and I can say that The Hunger Games is certainly one of the best books I've ever read. The tension, evil dude to defeat, all comes together smash in one phenomenal books.

Next week: Sherlock Holmes returns in The Sign of Four, where a dangerous treasure threatens the life of a woman, in the second Holmes novel. Will Holmes survive this latest enterprise?