Series: Book 1 in the The Hunger Games series
Rating: ****
Tags: Fiction, General, Juvenile Fiction, Action & Adventure, Young Adult Fiction, Performing Arts, Survival Stories, Social Issues, Television, Science Fiction, Interpersonal relations, Survival skills, Television programs, Contests, Survival, Television & Radio, Lang:en
Summary
Starred Review. Signature_Reviewed by_ Megan Whalen
TurnerIf there really are only seven original plots in the
world, it's odd that boy meets girl is always mentioned, and
society goes bad and attacks the good guy never is. Yet we
have
Fahrenheit 451,
The Giver,
The House of the Scorpion—and now, following a
long tradition of Brave New Worlds,
The Hunger Games. Collins hasn't tied her future to
a specific date, or weighted it down with too much finger
wagging. Rather less
1984 and rather more
Death Race 2000, hers is a gripping story set in a
postapocalyptic world where a replacement for the United
States demands a tribute from each of its territories: two
children to be used as gladiators in a televised fight to the
death.Katniss, from what was once Appalachia, offers to take
the place of her sister in the Hunger Games, but after this
ultimate sacrifice, she is entirely focused on survival at
any cost. It is her teammate, Peeta, who recognizes the
importance of holding on to one's humanity in such inhuman
circumstances. It's a credit to Collins's skill at
characterization that Katniss, like a new Theseus, is cold,
calculating and still likable. She has the attributes to be a
winner, where Peeta has the grace to be a good loser.It's no
accident that these games are presented as pop culture. Every
generation projects its fear: runaway science, communism,
overpopulation, nuclear wars and, now, reality TV. The State
of Panem—which needs to keep its tributaries subdued
and its citizens complacent—may have created the Games,
but mindless television is the real danger, the means by
which society pacifies its citizens and punishes those who
fail to conform. Will its connection to reality TV,
ubiquitous today, date the book? It might, but for now, it
makes this the right book at the right time. What happens if
we choose entertainment over humanity? In Collins's world,
we'll be obsessed with grooming, we'll talk funny, and all
our sentences will end with the same rise as questions. When
Katniss is sent to stylists to be made more telegenic before
she competes, she stands naked in front of them, strangely
unembarrassed. They're so unlike people that I'm no more
self-conscious than if a trio of oddly colored birds were
pecking around my feet, she thinks. In order not to hate
these creatures who are sending her to her death, she
imagines them as pets. It isn't just the contestants who risk
the loss of their humanity. It is all who watch.Katniss
struggles to win not only the Games but the inherent contest
for audience approval. Because this is the first book in a
series, not everything is resolved, and what is left
unanswered is the central question. Has she sacrificed too
much? We know what she has given up to survive, but not
whether the price was too high. Readers will wait eagerly to
learn more._Megan Whalen Turner is the author of the Newbery
Honor book_ The Thief
and its sequels, The Queen of Attolia
and The King of Attolia_. The next book in the
series will be published by Greenwillow in 2010._
Grade 7 Up -In a not-too-distant future, the United States
of America has collapsed, weakened by drought, fire, famine,
and war, to be replaced by Panem, a country divided into the
Capitol and 12 districts. Each year, two young
representatives from each district are selected by lottery to
participate in The Hunger Games. Part entertainment, part
brutal intimidation of the subjugated districts, the
televised games are broadcasted throughout Panem as the 24
participants are forced to eliminate their competitors,
literally, with all citizens required to watch. When
16-year-old Katniss's young sister, Prim, is selected as the
mining district's female representative, Katniss volunteers
to take her place. She and her male counterpart, Peeta, the
son of the town baker who seems to have all the fighting
skills of a lump of bread dough, will be pitted against
bigger, stronger representatives who have trained for this
their whole lives. Collins's characters are completely
realistic and sympathetic as they form alliances and
friendships in the face of overwhelming odds; the plot is
tense, dramatic, and engrossing. This book will definitely
resonate with the generation raised on reality shows like
'Survivor' and 'American Gladiator.' Book one of a planned
trilogy._Jane Henriksen Baird, Anchorage Public Library, AK_
From Publishers Weekly
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of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.From School Library Journal
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division
of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.