The Hunger Games (Hunger Games, Book One) (Volume 1)

Ok

There is an enormous amount of hype surrounding this series of books which is rapidly becoming a global phenomenon. The question is whether the hype surrounding the book is justified. The concept of the book is that of a future dystopia where two candidates from each of the now twelve districts are chosen to participate in an annual gameshow known as the hunger games. The games are conveyed as a means of punishment to the ditricts to demonstrate the capitols totalitarian grasp over the districts. In the past an era refred to as the dark ages the then thirteen districts insurrection fought against the capitol. Twelve of the districst were defeated with the thirteenth being completely destroyed. The first element you will notice is that the books are written entirely In first person and present tense. This narrative style immediately draws the reader into the world created by Suzanne Collins and immerses you in the horror and desperation experienced in the world. There is a strong narrative running through the novel which revolves around the protagonist: katniss. Once each year there is a yearly lottery where the tributes are chosen for the hunger games. Katniss's sister Primrose is chosen in the lottery and instead her sister steps up to take her place. Underneath this narrative are frequent flashbacks to Katniss' past which help to explain the protagonists personality and the key events that alter her psychologically. Meaning that what happens to characters referenced in flashbacks carries some emotional weight adding to the drama. Katniss is an intreging character who demonstrates depth She is by far the most well rounded and complex character portrayed in the novel. She is constantly over analysing peoples motivations and trying to second guess their future actions. In the interest of not spoiling the story I will not discuss the hunger games themselves, this is where the majority of the action and character development takes place. This novel has a perfect amount of background information pertaining to the poverty sticken state of distict 12 and the politics and society of the capitol to invest the reader. Katniss is constantly evolving throughout the story which allows the reader to become emotionally invested causing you to urge katniss to succeed. This is one of the most engaging novels I have read it really puts the reader in the shoes of the protagonist. The novel will have you guessing all the way through and you will be unable to stop reading until you have the answers. The language used in the Hunger Games is fairly basic and is clearly aimed at 11-16 year olds. I would argue that there is reason for older readers to pick this book up. The Hunger Games is a rich and intresting story it is relentless in its action as well as offering intresting characters and adrenaline filled action sequences. The first one hundred pages or so slowly introduce the reader into the key concepts of the novel this might put some people off. It is well worth persevering, and when the hunger games event starts you will be unable to put the book down. Score 8/10

This book was so fun to read and the suspense was unreal. This was the best book I read so far. This book amazed me in how there’s so many plot twists and the plot it’s self was outstanding. I am so excited to read the next book!! I recommend to anyone over the age of 13 because there’s a lot of gore and violence. Overall amazing book I recommend to all

came a little bit damaged

I came accross this book randomly while searching for books about vampires (I have no idea why this book is listed in the same category). The content seemed to have high potential for a page turner, but I was unsure if it would turn out to be teen stuff. The cover design gives you this assumption... But after reading some of the opinions I just gave it a try - and I am glad I did! First: There's no problem if you are not a teen anymore. I have to admit I am almost 30 and I absolutely loved the book! The language resp. writing style is nice to follow and you'll literally get caught up in the story right from the start: Katniss Everdeen is a sixteen year old girl who has the instincts of a hunter and killer as she has to provide food for her remaining family members. Finding herself in the Hunger Games, a ruthless manner of demonstrating the Capitol's power, she has to discover if killing an animal is different from killing a human being. My recommendation is: please do not hesitate to buy this book if you are interested in the topic. All characters are described in detail and the book is fun to read - well some pages are pretty hard to read. But this is due to the fact that people are actually letting their children fight against each other - until just one of them remains... You get to find out a lot about human beings and how they react when having to protect their lives or anticipating dangerous situations. The cover design should definitely be revised. Of course teens can also enjoy the book, but in my opinion the design aims at younger readers only - which is a mistake as you might miss an excellent book which made me order part II and III immediately after finishing the first book.

This whole series should be an obligatory read for everyone. I read it for the first time when I was much younger and I really enjoyed, even though I didn't really catch all the details and the social commentary this book series provides. But now, when I reread it as an adult it wasn't as much of a fun read anymore, but a scary one. Because you can see so many similarities between the universe of the Hunger Games and the real world.