A Grownup Review of The Hunger Games. I absolutely loved this trilogy.
I am very careful in my star ratings on books. I try to be completely honest about my feelings, meaning that if I didn't enjoy a book, I am confident in giving it a one star rating. The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins. Can you imagine living in a world in which there is never enough food to eat?
A world in which the children are sent off at a very young age to work to support their families? A world in which you cannot go where you want, when you want, because the government controls everything? What if, in that world, children were annually chosen by lottery to go into a great arena to fight to the death on live television? This is the world of Panem, where Katniss Everdeen lives in "District Twelve" with her mother and sister, following the death of her father in a mining accident. It is a world in which Katniss and her best friend, Gale, sneak under the fence to go out hunting daily and then sell their contraband game at an underground market. Catching Fire, by Suzanne Collins. Mockingjay, by Suzanne Collins. I have to be honest in saying that I expected... more.
It's a hard thing to define when you're feeling disappointed about the final book in a series (though admittedly the ending was outstanding!) , and I'm not going to try to push myself to give the details about what was "wrong" at this point in the novel. More than anything I think that the shifting and changing relationships were a bit confusing as Katniss didn't seem to be able to make up her mind (and not in a Bella loves Edward -- NO! Is The Hunger Games Trilogy Appropriate for Young Readers?