the hunger games
by suzanne collins
★★★☆☆
dates read: 5/18/23 - 5/22/23 ! this review contains spoilers !
"Could you survive on your own in the wild, with every one out to make sure you don't live to see the morning?
In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.
Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before—and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weight survival against humanity and life against love."
tw: death, blood, violence
i originally read the hunger games when i was in middle school but since it’s been gaining a lot of attention lately due to the new prequel's movie coming out, i thought i’d give it a reread!
unfortunately this book is not as good as i remember, but i think that’s natural considering it’s probably been at least a solid six or seven years since i last read it. my brain chemistry has definitely changed from when young adult dystopians were my favorite genre in middle school.
one of my biggest realization was that katniss is very unlikable. when i had originally read the book i remember being quite fond of her character. although i do understand that first person narration makes it more likely that i am not going to like katniss, since i’m reading all of her thoughts first hand, she was frustrating to read. she was often confused about peeta’s actions when it was blatantly obvious why he did what he did. it’s all a means of survival, which i would expect her to understand since she’s portrayed as an intelligent character who was forced to survive as a child. if she is capable of outsmarting the capitol, then peeta's motives should've been as clear as day.
having mentioned katniss’ first person perspective, the writing style is not my favorite, but then again i understand that katniss isn’t the most descriptive or emotionally in tune character. regardless, the writing was really straightforward and for me personally, such a writing style doesn’t align with my personal preferences but i don't fault collins for that.
one component i thought was interesting was katniss’ braid as a motif throughout the novel. it’s a symbol of home but specifically her family, which essentially drives her life force, pushing her to volunteer and then survive the games. when katniss is on the brink of death, apart of it gets singed off, but when she wins the games she braids it once again.
something new during this reread was that i think peeta is my favorite character. there’s something refreshing about killing someone with kindness in such a morbid society. he was also just overall very charming.
i’m currently debating whether i want to reread the rest of the series, but i’d say this is a good middle grade and young adult book! it’s accessible and it’s message is pretty easy to grasp with the capitol’s leisure coming at the price of children’s lives and innocence.