Hunger Games Trilogy

I have to admit ... I'm a sucker for teen fiction.  Harry Potter was a staple of mine when I had knee surgery in 2003 and was stuck on the couch.  I know this doesn't necessarily qualify for "teen fiction", but I am always mesmerized by the Pevensie children in The Chronicles of Narnia.  Some people call Narnia "Children's Fantasy", even though some of the lessons taught throughout the series are very much directed at adults.

Anyway on the the review of this trilogy.

The Hunger Games Trilogy was so well written that it made me really want to go and compete in the Hunger Games ... for those that have read these books this might qualify me for being totally off my rocker.

The heroine is 16 year old Katniss Everdeen (awesome name), and she is at heart a great person.  Though conflicted in many ways, she seems to genuinely want to put others first.  Everyone from her mother and sister (Prim), to her friends (Gale & Peeta), to all other people in District 12.  She is also a crack shot with a bow.  She is one of the main sources of food for the people in District 12 as well, so people love her.  Peeta Mellark is just a baker's son, Gale Hawthorne is "Katnip's" (as he calls her) best friend, and Haymitch Abernathy is supposed to be her mentor for the Games.

Suzanne Collins has created a world from nothing, and it is fun to try to figure out where exactly District 12 is located.  How does District 12 still survive in the era that these books are created?  The overall premise is the fact that when government control gets to be too big, there will typically be problems for everyone involved.  Even the innocent teens that are forced to "compete" in the Hunger Games.

Collins continues the story into Catching Fire and on into Mockingjay.  These were both just a well written as the first, if not better.  You can see Collins style mature through the trilogy, just as Katniss matures.  In Catching Fire (like Empire Strikes Back) there are questions formed and concerns answered.  But it leaves you hanging ... in a good way.  I read these one after another, so I didn't have to wait for the "next installment".  It was enjoyable, and it kept me going for a couple of weeks to finish all three.

My favorite was Mockingjay.  At times when a series is written too much can be put into it, just to stretch it out.  Mockingjay does not dissapoint.  It answers so many questions that were left alone in the first two.  Katniss struggles with some pretty deep issues for a 17 year old girl, and shows wisdom beyond her years.  Let me know what you think.

PS- The Hunger Games will be coming to a theatre near you next March (2012).  I am pretty excited to see how the film adaptation will capture some of the minute details of Panem and the games.  Is it OK for me to be pumped up to see these movies?  I'm going to see it anyway.

PPS- I hope they do a better job of creating a movie than they did when Eragon was made into a film.  It was a great book, and the movie was TERRIBLE!!!

Ratings:
Hunger Games: 4.5/5
Catching Fire: 4/5
Mockingjay: 5/5