Showing posts with label Suzzan Collins. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Suzzan Collins. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Catching Fire ( The Hunger Games 2 ) by Suzanne Collins

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Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark are still alive. Katniss should be relieved, but now there are whispers of a rebellion against the Capitol - a rebellion that Katniss and Peeta may have helped create.
As the nation watches Katniss and Peeta, the stakes are higher than ever. One false move and the consequences will be unimaginable.
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dystopia is the idea of a society, generally of a speculative future, characterized by negative, anti-utopian elements, varying from environmental to political and social issues. Dystopian societies, usually hypothesized by writers of fiction, have culminated in a broad series of sub-genres and is often used to raise issues regarding society, environment, politics, religion, psychology, spirituality, or technology that may become present in the future. (from wiki)

The Hunger Games Trilogy falls under this genre and because it's dystopian makes it a likely scenario. That's why it's a scary book aswell. The themes of hunger,oppression,child labor,death are so well interwoven in this story/presentation that you can't help feeling angry at The Capitol or sympathetic to the people in the districts and even a bit scared of president Snow .but  other than the sympathy toward this fictional world and it's fictional characters   where's your sympathy for the real one. oppressed states, hunger,child labor. aren't fictional phenomenons. These are real things. 

After reading Catching Fire I no longer  feel comfortably saying this is an awesome book or an amazing book, for fear of sounding like someone from the capitol. And even if I call it an amazing book, what's amazing about Rue dying! or any of the other children (even if some of them were crazy). What I will say is that this is a significant piece of literature and if anything it succeeds in making you think. maybe seeing these things on the news over and over again while we're comfortable in our own homes, save and warm we're detached to the suffering of others.

For this book to make you think and  feel says a lot . It's a well written book and The characters are real in a way. If you like strong female leads then Katniss is definitely the girl. She's grown a lot since book one. Coming back from The Hunger Games has left her with nightmares ,guilt and fear for her family. nothing has really changed. In book one she was only concerned about her and her family but in Catching Fire things change. Katniss realizes although she's tried to protect her sister from the Capitol they have already hurt her by letting her watch her in the Games. Rue's death has also played an important part in Katniss's development. By the end of this book Katniss becomes the Mockingjay, the symbol of the revolution.

The book is divided into three parts:

The spark: Katniss and Peeta are back home and are getting ready for their victors tour. Katniss is anxious to get it over with. She gets a visit from president Snow. President Snow warns /threatens Katniss not to encourage rebellion but it's out of her hands really. But at the threat to her family ,Peeta's and Gale's she doesn't have much of a choice. Katniss makes plans to run away or start a rebellion. I think it's called The Spark because after Gale gets punished for poaching ,she realizes she has to do something.

The Quell: in honor of the 75th Hunger Games there's a new rule. The  tributes to participate in this Hunger Games will be chosen from the surviving victors. Which means as the only female victor from district 12, Katniss will be going back in. Coincidence? This part focuses on the training and preparations for the Hunger Games. Katniss's plan this time is not to survive and go home, she's adamant on getting Peeta out of it alive.

The enemy: Part three focuses on the Game itself. This time it's set on a beach. Before Katniss goes in Haymitch tells her to remember who the enemy is. At the end she figures it out. The other tributes aren't her enemy. The Capitol is, president Snow is. and she blows up the arena.

At this point I'm really skeptical about this series having a happy ending. Unrealistic but that's what everybody hopes for. This one ends with district 12 blown up , the other districts are rebelling , Cinna's probably dead. Peeta's been taken by the capitol. Katniss wants to kill Haymitch. It's all chaotic. But not so far gone for a happy ending I hope. 

Dystopia seems like a heavy cup of tea. I don't like thinking about the future. I only think so far forward as tomorrow. Even then I'm self-centered and only think about what I'm going to do. I'm no Katniss. But there are others out there. vigilantes, guard dogs. Showing us the truth. We just have to open our eyes and see it. and do something.



Friday, March 30, 2012

The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games 1) by Suzzane Collins


I read this last year and and loved it. Also seeing as this book has been getting a lot of hype you probably already know what it's about . I haven't seen the movie yet and if you have I'd advice you to still go read the book. 

The Hunger Games is an awesome book. It has a great story ,good writing, wonderful characters and a level of seriousness I didn't expect from a young adult novel. This is one frighteningly good book! I still haven't read Cacthing Fire or Mockingjay because I'm waiting on the paperbacks. Albeit that didn't stop me from looking for spoilers and becoming depressed by them. I still want to read the other 2 books!

This book is about children getting forced to participate in a game called "The Hunger Games". This event is held to show the 'people" who's the boss and discourage them from rebelling from The Capitol. You're going to get pissed off by the Capitol and the people from The Capitol. They are just weird and weird looking. The Hunger Games is harsh . The participants(children) are called tributes and if they wanna win they're gonna have to kill each other till the last one standing. This is the reason I find this book scary. This shit could actually happen! the (any )government could go all dictatorial on us! Children being forced to kill is also not a recent phenomenon. It's old and still around in third world countries. Hell they could make us go around looking like that Trinket lady!

At first I didn't want to read The Hunger Games because 1. it being compared to twilight 2. the whole team Gale/Peeta thing.

note to you people: these 2 books are not comparable. please stop. seriously.
As for the team thing. This book is about oppression, effects of war, starvation and you're picking teams!! and the wrong freaking team!! Team Peeta FTW!

Katniss is the main character and the book is told from her POV. She enters the games with the sole purpose of surviving and coming back to take care of her family. Katniss's a survivor she's been taking care of her family since her dad died. She's only a kid in age. 

As for Peeta. He gets drafted into the Games. The boy with the bread  has been crushing on Katniss since he was 5. Great at camouflage . He's just a civilian . Although what I like about he's character is when he says He wants to find a way to show the capitol that they don't own him. Peeta doesn't want to kill anybody but understands what he's going to be forced to do.

In this book people are going to die. Children are going to die. Death. Gruesome deaths awaits you in this book. Oh and then they get turned into chimeras. Ah what the government does with our taxes, very creative.

The most horrible scene and touching but also shows how horrible The Games are is when Rue gets killed.
Rue! oh Rue!! I read this last year but when I think of Rue I think of a small fury woodland creature that you have to protect or take care of. Although Rue was small and most thought she'd be the first to get killed. She was very fast and sneaky and sweet and kind and they freaking killed her! Katniss's sang to her before she died and covered her with flowers and then maked a sign with her hand to honour Rue. Sad and touching and horrible! you're gonna feel some stuff reading this

Like I said this is a great book. So go read it, understand what it's about. Feel it .



 



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